New venue, new view

Tides, soft sand and beach erosion have made walking on my normal part of the beach very difficult lately. That plus a cat-sitting job a few miles south of here have me looking for a new venue for my daily beach walks. 

Since there is a new beachfront park in town about 4 miles south, I decided to give it a try since I'd be driving anyway.

What else can I say but... lovely. Enjoying the sun framed by newly planted palm trees is a great way to start any day. 

I also ran into some of my normal beach buddies walking here as well. Sand is much firmer with fewer peaks and valleys to contend with. Though I must admit that I do miss my normal cadre of beach walkers and fishermen. Sigh, can't have it all, huh?

Progression...

My camera is broken so I dredged out an old cumbersome one that doesn't take such great pictures but the progression of the sunrise this morning was too spectacular not to share.

The pelican below isn't afraid of melting its wings — unlike Icarus. Beautiful!

Finally here comes the full force of Old Sol... almost blinding in its brightness!

Great day, Great Heron

I admire the patience and grace of the great herons we often see along the shoreline. Feet in the water, gazing to see if there are any breakfast fish in the surf while enjoying the golden sunrise. Ah, what a life.

This one was quite captivating and didn't seem to mind me and a couple of other would-be photographers as we captured its long legged "strike-a-pose" attitude. I'll share him the only way I know how — through pictures.

I'm easily amused, but it just tickles me that their knees bend backwards when they walk.

Leatherback day

Leatherback turtles are very rare... HUGE and very rare. Most years we average 6 leatherbacks within the 50 miles of shoreline in our county. Just to put it into perspective, the total nest count of all turtle nests averages to about 500 a year. The photo to the right is from the Orlando Sentinel but gives you an idea of the size of these turtles.


So, today started out with a lovely sunrise... 

an enticing moon-set 

and then I saw turtle tracks, not just ANY turtle tracks but the very large and unmistakable tracks of a leatherback. Large nest and tracks — better viewing if you click on the photo and see it enlarged.

Not only are they large but leatherbacks have a tendency to act like they've been drinking and zig-zag across the beach. Alas, she was gone but her telltale signs were left behind.
Needless to say it made MY day and my friends on the turtle patrol arrived while I was snapping photos so I got to gush my excitement to someone equally as thrilled. Oh happy day!

Ginger... WOW!

I have ginger plants growing all around my house mainly as a landscaping touch but also for my own home-grown ginger root. Yum.

The plants have sporadically been putting out their annual flowers for the past couple of weeks but yesterday I noticed that every single plant by my patio door was abloom. 

Each cluster of these lovely hanging White Ginger blossoms is about 12 inches long and they boast a light ginger scent. 

 

Plus, as each individual blossom opens, the flower has a distinctly cute and almost toothy persona. Fun!

Ginger... WOW! lovely to look at as well as providing flavorful roots for cooking.  

Merry Month of May

Here it is the middle of May and, again, I've been remiss with this blog. With the warmer weather I've managed to get to the beach early enough to see the rising sun. Always stunning and always different no matter how many times I see it.

Then there is the double great heron. Two for the price of one. Hurrah! I do so love a bargain. 

Sterling Sunrise

Sterling silver was the hue of the day this morning at... you know where, the beach! The silver tones just captured my attention so I had to share.

It was lovely, refreshing, and a pure pleasure to be there. With the reflection we even got double the clouds too. Joy!