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The 2015 Florida Adventure
Trip
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| AFTER the Thanksgiving with the Cousins... | |||
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Day One:
Boca Grande...to Punta Gorda...to Fort Myers... Clearly Boca Grande is known for its grand beaches....they call it 'sugar sand'...and 'an end of the road village'... |
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| ...and grand homes and buildings.... | |||
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| ...especially in the historic downtown area... | |||
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| ...and bold and colorful shops.... | |||
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| ...very impressive...this fireman was playing hoops in sticky 85 degree weather!... | |||
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| Then on to Punta Gorda...just in time for the sunset.... | |||
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| and the evening sales dedicated to small businesses.... | |||
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...Day
Two included a
morning wander around Cape Coral...looking for a street that might
remind me of my grandparents' home...there were a few that did, but much
has grown up around that area.... ...then on to Sanibel and Captiva Islands...childhood favorites... |
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| Sanibel is the site of the 'Ding' Darling Preserve...a great place to test my new short to long distance camera lens... | |||
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| ...my two favorite birds of the trip are both white...the White Ibis and the American White Pelican | |||
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| ...the American White Pelican is much larger than the Brown...and Ding Darling is a favorite hang-out for the Whites...no Browns at all... | |||
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| ...this pelican enjoyed his lunch...while these photographers waited for the midday flight of the White Pelicans... | |||
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| ...the Great Blue Heron is local here in Maine, as well as in Sanibel...but I don't think I've seen a tri-colored heron before.... | |||
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| ...here's the little blue heron | |||
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| ...the White Egret is pretty sweet too...here's a Great White having greens for lunch...and a small White visiting the humans... | |||
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| ...in certain areas of the preserve, the red mangroves...with its telltale root system...stain the water red... | |||
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| ...throughout the preserve, the mullet fish leap out of the water and are reported to be hard to catch.... | |||
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| ...but this little guy wasn't too tough.... | |||
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| ...the Double-Crested Cormorants were everywhere...along with their cousins, the Anhinga...(coming later) | |||
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| ..and then it was time to leave the preserve...Sanibel beaches were glorious...just as 'sugary' as Boca Grande.... | |||
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| ...the alligators are everywhere.... | |||
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| ...the buildings are bright and colorful.... | |||
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| ...and everywhere I see my new favorite palm...the Bismark... | |||
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| ...then it was time to wander down to Naples and find a place to stay...timing was perfect for their famous sunset...where literally hundreds of people were gathered on the town dock... | |||
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| ...and the streets of Naples were all dolled-up for the holidays.... | |||
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| ...press here for Day Three-- | |||
