Beaches, beaches, beaches

With only one day left we got an early start to visit some beaches. What a fabulous day it turned out to be. We started early on Lover's Key Beach. Ft. Meyers Beach is in the background and Bonita Springs was in the distance behind us.

This Great Blue Heron seemed unbothered by our presence. I guess the birds are plenty used to tourists.

I love getting to know an area before the crowds descend and this was the perfect morning on the beach

Osprey nests lined the edges of the Lover's Key State Park which was so in contrast to the condos that lined the beach less than a mile away.

People had added seashells to these upturned roots so I added another.

I waded out among all the small critters crawling along offshore and found this big guy.   I tossed him a little further out to sea.

Our next stop was Little Hickory Beach after a short trip into Ft. Meyers Beach. When we came to the standstill traffic at 10 am we turned around and got out of town. As I strolled down the beach Mary's neighbors John and Bonnie waved. What a surprise. No wonder they are so tan!

I thought perhaps the builder of this sand castle, complete with dinosaur, was sitting in his condo room watching people take photos of it so I waved.

What beautiful water and sand at the end of the point.

As we returned to our vehicle we visited with John and Bonnie. They had put up their umbrella, a nice setup.

Our third beach was Vanderbilt Beach where we found the snowbirds out in full force. 

This is not my "it must be 5 o'clock somewhere" pose but my "it's noon and I am hungry" pose.

The Turtle Club provided a nice atmosphere for lunch. What a fun mixture of folks - some dressed to the hilt and others in bikinis.

I know you don't care what I ate for lunch but check out the lobster and scallops.

Now how is that for dessert? Then a few miles down the road we stopped for ice cream - not my idea!

 What a fabulous holiday I have had. Thanks for your hospitality, Mary!