We decided to begin the day at Turtle Beach, which is on the south end of Siesta Key. We had heard that the shelling there is excellent. There is a decent parking area, along with rest rooms and covered picnic areas. From the parking area, there are several access points to the beach, so you won't have to walk far from any point in the lot. Walking south, there are a few condominiums and private homes along the shore. The sand here is brown, course, and very soft, making it a bit difficult to walk on. Once you near the end of the county owned area and enter the section known as Palmer Point Beach, the beach becomes much more secluded, with very nice private homes scattered along the shore (mostly back from the beach). Toward the end of Palmer Point, the houses get a bit closer to the road, but it is still very nice and we saw only a handful of people on this stretch. We took our time, walked to the end from the parking area, and it took almost 3 hours. As far as shells, they were plentiful. They are mostly common varieties and on the smaller side, but we did find a few interesting ones to bring home for our collection.
After lunch we decided to check out Siesta Public Beach. It was easy to see why it is so popular. The sand here is pure white, and as fine as sugar. It also one of the widest beaches we have ever seen. So wide that it was quite a hike to the water, and very crowded even this time of year. It has many amenities, including picnic areas (some covered), food concessions, rest rooms, volleyball nets, etc. We have heard that it is not unusual for there to be 15,000 people there on a typical weekend. As nice as the beach looked, we opted to return to Turtle Beach for the rest of the afternoon, because we just wanted to sit and enjoy the day and it was much less crowded there today.
Siesta Key is easy to find from the Orlando area, and is about a 2 1/2 hour drive. Simply take I-4 to Tampa, and go south on I-75. Take exit 205, and go west on Highway 72 (Clark Road becomes Stickney Point Road). Go about 8 miles to Midnight Pass Road. Turn left (south) and drive about 2 1/2 miles to reach Turtle Beach. Turn right (north) to reach Siesta Public Beach.
Mary took some great photos today - here is a sampling:
"me and my shadow . ."
Needless to say, there were a few birds around today.
we see a lot of herons, but rarely on the beach
Bird dives for a fish . . . .
. . . . and he gets one
Now that had to hurt - yes, this lady has an entire tree tattooed on her back
I am happy that you guys are enjoying life and each other ... great photos!!!!
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