Last year I took an online training program on the St Petersburg, Clearwater area. I passed the test, got a diploma and my own palmer pen, complete with velvety palms. A few months later we, the graduates, were offered a weekend to experience the area. I jumped at the chance as I had never visited St Petersburg or Clearwater, having only driven through a few times.
These are supposed to be the most beautiful beaches in America…I was curious as I am very fond of the beaches on the Atlantic side. The sand is nice and powdery, but walking at the water’s edge is a tricky affair as there are a lot of broken shells that can have sharp edges. My memories of the Gulf of Mexico beaches were of Sanibel Island that had incredible seashells. I did not see any unbroken shells this time around but, what I did see a lot of, were dead fish washed ashore: big ones, small ones, flat ones, rounded ones… I inquired and was told that this was caused by the red tide. I have not looked it up yet but was given to understand it is an algae that kills the fish that eat it. This algae floats and moves with the currents and can hit anywhere. It seems that last summer it stayed in the area for months. This is apparently not dangerous for people but the biggest problem is the stench…and in some areas that are not exposed to the winds it is bad.
The other thing that I remember fondly about the gulf are the birds. And to my delight those are still there. At the Pier there were pelicans that seemed to be posing for the camera.
On the other hand there are no waves on the Gulf, which I find a little boring. It feels like a very warm and salty lake…so after this experience I am still partial to the Atlantic side.
And to make sure of it, I drove across the state to spend a few days on the Space coast. I got there around supper time but could not resist the call and rushed out for a long walk…I love the sights, the sounds, the smells…even the sea weeds are pretty…
I walked on and on, always lured further by one more flock of birds or a group of fishermen or some para-sails shimmering in the setting sun. I stopped for a while to watch this bird wrestle with a catch…he would drop it to the ground, pick it up, dip it in water, drop it again and finally when I was beginning to think that he was only playing, he threw his head back, opened his beak and let the fish slide it. You could almost see it go down, and that took a while…I was beginning to wonder if one can perform the Heimlich maneuver on a bird but after several minutes it was obvious the fish had gone down, so I resumed my walk….
I went a bit too far this time and had to walk back in total darkness…with only sunglasses…I could barely make out the hotels and could not believe how far I had gone…this reminded me getting lost on a beach in Maine as a little girl…I was scared…but finally made it back safe and sound.
More stories to come….