A SUNDAY ADVENTURE

What a magnificent day, a perfect 75 degrees, slight breeze and sunshine. The smell of a #sublimesunday is in the air, along with views of a #beautifulsunday on the Island of Sanibel-Captiva, in southwest Florida, USA.

The island's curved shrimp-like shape forms Tarpon Bay on the north side of the island. It is linked to the mainland by the Sanibel Causeway, which runs across two small manmade islets and the Intracoastal Waterway. A short bridge links Sanibel Island to Captiva Island over Blind Pass. The Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum on Sanibel is the only museum in the world dedicated entirely to the study of shells. The Gulf-side beaches are excellent on both Sanibel and Captiva, and are world-renowned for their variety of seashells, which include coquinas, scallops, whelks, sand dollars, and many other species of both shallow-water and deeper-water mollusks, primarily bivalves and gastropods. Sanibel Island is home to a significant variety of birds, including the roseate spoonbill and several nesting pairs of bald eagles. Birds can be seen on the beaches, the causeway islands, and the reserves, including J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge. Common sights include pelicans, herons, egrets, and anhingas, as well as the more common birds like terns, sandpipers, and seagulls.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanibel,_Florida#Geography

Rising early, the mood of the day was uplifting and adventurous. Today we would travel the few miles from our Fort Myers rental to see what we could see on both Sanibel and Captiva Island. As was stated above, these islands are connected through a series of bridges know as the Sanibel causeway. It's a fun drive over the blue-green water that sparkles in the sunlight.

Sanibel is well known for it's shells. Many visitors and natives alike enjoy walking the shoreline in search of unique and colorful shells that are ever present in the sand. I have been shell collecting for years, my collection began at the Jersey shore, where my family would visit every summer. But I have shells from the states of Maryland, Delaware, North and South Carolina and Florida. California and Oregon, west coast USA, are also included.

This year I remembered to bag up some of the pure white, powder-like sand to show the grand kids, but also to dip my toes in if old man winter decides to stick around too long.☹️

Such texture and color in this one.

The wildlife on Captiva is really cool, although we weren't able to capture an alligator, with the camera, of course, the birds gave us plenty to admire. Check out the sand bar with a nice assortment of our #featheredfriends.

This is a spillway that runs under the road, the water was so clear you could see the bottom, very pretty.

Now that was time well spent. Fresh salty air, a barrage of wildlife, just enjoying a leisurely Sunday with my better half @thebigsweed. We enjoyed a meal out and then watched the sun slowly set over the horizon.

I want to thank @cOff33a and @ace108 for throwing the Sunday shindig, great job both of you.

A big shout out to @melinda010100 for turning me on to sharing my #photos of my feathered friends🦅,with this fantastic community of my human friends. 😎🤭😁❤️

Have a wonderful week everyone!!