Super Low Tide: Little Hickory Island

My mom, daughter & I had a great beach day on Monday! We got to Little Hickory at 2 waiting for the tide to go out with low tide at 7:30 pm. I never get to go to the beach so late in the day during the school year so this was really cool.  With the tide so high when we got there it was so different at the point. My "shell-shelf" I'm always on was completely covered in water. Once the tide started really going out the shells & other sealife were really visible.

Would've liked to keep this one!

Horseshoe Crab

Baby Stingray

Blue Crab

Mom found this. It looks like the whelk has drilled into the other one for dinner?

                           There are 2 sea turtle nests at Little Hickory right now.

enjoy your day!
stephanie

On Shore.....at home

Have you been hooked on Pinterest? I have!
You can find me on pinterest here: http://pinterest.com/khakifishsigns/

 If I ever thought I had even one creative bone in my body I realize now that I don't.  The things you can find on there are so great, so creative and so inspiring.  I'm trying to only pin things I'm actually going to cook or make.  That is a huge challenge.
  I've come across all the miniature gardens & have become quite fascinated/obsessed with them. Now I'm not saying I believe in all this fairy stuff  BUT maybe I can somehow get a little beach fairy around here.
 When I was little & living in TX. my granny told my sister & I that there were fairies living in the moss under a tree in her backyard. Sounded good to me. I've also let my daughter know that there are fairies living in the moss by our pool heater(it's pretty much always damp over there & the only place I have anything resembling moss)
  I also remember loving that part of Captain Kangaroo with the little people who lived behind the books on the shelf.
 So, who knows? Maybe if I build it, they'll come. So I gathered up some succulents from around my yard & a pot & some accessories. I wanted to create the obvious- blind pass beach. This is what I came up with complete with the shell pile. I used my mini's for the pile.

I'm certainly not going to win any awards with this, but it was fun & it'll look a little better when the plants grow some & maybe we add some more stuff. Here's a few examples of some from pinterest. And please, don't judge- I'm a sheller not a crafty girl! lol

My daughter is getting into this as well and wants to make some more so I'm sure we'll be checking out all the websites & pins on mini-gardening. Should be a fun thing to do together!

Enjoy your week!
stephanie

Barefoot Beach Preserve

I go to Little Hickory Island shelling alot. Every time I go, I pass up Barefoot Beach.There's no reason for it, just a habit. I felt like doing something different that day.

 We have had crazy weather the past week. The day I decided to go it was really chilly and wild winds. I packed light since I didn't think I would stay too long. I didn't bring my wheelie thing to haul all my stuff around. Well, I arrived at 9:30 to this beautiful view.

Yay for the weekend

If you are on my seashells & salty air fb page then you may have seen the picture I posted of my shelling the other day. Tomorrow I will take the time to blog about it. Let me just say- I'm so out of shape I was sore for 2 days! HAHAHA  Oh-well!

This was when I got home & dumped them on my lanai table- I had to use 2 beachmats.
 Happy Friday!
stephanie

Easter Shelling

We had a great Easter this year. We traded the Easter bonnets for visors & hit the beach. I took my husband, teenage son(Dustin) & almost 12 year old girl(Meredith) with me to Blind Pass. We got there around 9:30 and were happy to find the parking lot was almost empty! We started at the shell pile, although it was a little low, we still managed to find some keepers. Turns out 16 year old boys think this is really boring- hahaha. Meredith wanted to hang with Dustin so Jim & I headed over the bridge to the Sanibel side and did much better. It was a gorgeous day out.

looking over at Sanibel

When we got back this Blue Heron was hanging out by the kids.

I try and get to the beach as often as I can. Jim, on the other hand, goes every few months. So of course he's the one who finds a piece of a Junonia and a piece of a Scotch Bonnet! Which, by the way, he only knew what it was because he googled it the day before! augh!!

Scotch Bonnet
I've never found one, but I'm still looking!

I brought some peeps & props with me:

Next trip to the beach will be Barefoot Beach since I haven't been in a while-
Have a great weekend & Awesome Shelling!

Shelling Marathon

So mom & I headed to Little Hickory Island on Thursday. We had all day to be at the beach and planned on enjoying it until I had to pick up my daughter from school. We ended up staying for 7 hours! Which means we were non-stop shelling for 7 hours, with little breaks for snacks of course. We aren't those people who go to the beach to relax & read a book. (not that there's anything wrong with that :)

Mom hard at work :)

Beautiful as always

He sat here while I had lunch

Look at him! ewww

yep, they're all still here- hahaha

Gaudy Natica's

At the end of the day- this is what I had found

 The tide was coming in all day and bringing with it plenty of shells. I ended up finding 34 olive shells!

Lettered Olives

I got a really cool video of a fighting conch that I put on my facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/seashellsandsaltyair
so check that out if you have time.

We had a great day shelling but I have to tell you, I was exhausted! Shelling for 7 hours is rough on the back! However, I'm ready to do it again & can't wait to get back out there!

Hope you have a great 1st week of April!

stephanie

Do you need directions to 75 NORTH?

When I moved to Fort Myers in 2001 I saw a bumper sticker that said "We're not all on vacation"  I found it a little rude. Fast forward 11 years- I want/NEED that bumper sticker. We are busting at the seams here. The traffic feels like it did in Houston. With this awesome weather & all this area has to offer, we are at full capacity. Not to mention I live in the middle of the Red Sox & the Twins spring training parks.

 Near downtown Fort Myers are the winter homes of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. A great place to visit, by the way. Edison had it right when in 1914 he said   "There's only one Fort Myers and 90 million people are going to find it out."

The beaches are no exception to the crowds.

 Even my little slice of paradise Little Hickory Island is busy.

 Lucky for me this winter season is almost over. After Easter most will go home & we locals can have our town back. That is always a good day at the beach!

enjoy your day!

stephanie