Beachcombers

We recently went on a little excursion to one of the barrier islands off SW Florida's coast with visitors from 'up north'. The morning started off with somewhat unseasonably low temperatures and we tried to huddle down as the small boat whisked us across calm waters.

After taking 'the tram' (a pickup truck pulling a wagon) to a beach on the far side of the island we set up base camp for the day's stay. I'm not sure when this fellow arrived - in fact, he may have already been there when we set up - but he wasn't shy at all. I was able to walk to within a few feet of him as he posed to have his portrait taken. You might wonder how I know this was a male - any self-respecting female would have straightened her feathers before allowing a photo.

While waiting for the forecasted weather to arrive, we decided to explore a bit of the island. After following trails for some time we returned to 'camp' along the shoreline. By now the fog had crept in and covered the strait rather than giving way to the promised sunshine but we hardly noticed as we discovered some of the life forms along the shoreline and marveled at the power of the Creator.


everything fits neatly inside the protective shell including the eyes

this one looked ready for action as I stared him in the eyes

and these sea urchins looked like they would give an inattentive beachcomber a nasty surprise

(Day 259) Island in the sun

Thursday Sept. 16, 2010

We traveled to the southwest part of the island today and visited another medieval castle near Monolithos - another spectacular piece of history perched atop a hill/small mountain hundreds of feet above the sea and surrounded on 3 sides by sheer cliffs. The view was breathtaking, to say the least. We then decided to take a road down to Fourni Beach, since it was quite warm and the sea beckoned. This road was the closest we've come to a death experience - it clung to the mountainside, with a sheer drop on the passenger side, no guardrails, hairpin turns and switchbacks, and about 1-1/2 lanes wide ! We survived.

Just before we started this journey down, I pulled over - carefully - and made this photo of a small island in the shimmering sea. If you ever want a vacation with a weather guarantee, come to Rhodes - another island in the sun !

(10-22mm  f11  1/1250 sec  ISO200)