Fun day!

We went on an adventure today!  We started to go to Indian Rocks Nature Preserve, but just as we were about to turn onto Gulf Blvd from W Bay, we saw some Roseate Spoonbills off to our right.  So I turned right instead of left.  We couldn't get close to them because everywhere around them from that side was private property.  So I got back out on Gulf Blvd and turned back on W Bay.  We parked at the Community Center on the S side of the street and crossed busy W Bay on foot!  We (along with several other people) got to see Roseate Spoonbills, a Reddish Egret (which are not very common), a wood stork, a Great Blue Heron, a cormorant or  two, and a bunch of ibis.  Great photo opportunities!!

When we had taken our pictures (about 250 of them!) we drove on to the Indian Rocks Nature Preserve.  It was a nice walk, surrounded by mangroves, but no birds!  There was a pretty view at the end of the boardwalk!

I took this shot above the mangroves.  I just loved all of the different shades of green!

Next stop was John's Pass where I wanted to pick up some little gifts for our bowling cheerleaders and while we were there, we had a light lunch at Scully's.  After we ordered and were just people watching, a guy walked by who had played football at Iowa State from 1969-1972 (before I got there, but I knew him).  So I hollered at him and he and his wife ended up eating lunch with us!  It was fun seeing them again and chatting!

We came back home after all of that and just puttzed around until 6:00 when the Cyclones played in the Big 12 Tourney Championship game against Kansas.  We had to do another comeback, but we did it and we're Champs two years in a row.  Now I'm exhausted and heading to bed.  What a great adventure!

More later...

Saturday

What a beautiful day we had today!  It was 75 and beautifully sunny!  We went to breakfast this morning up at the clubhouse, and then we took off looking for Roseate Spoonbills.  These birds are pretty elusive.  According to what I've read, they feed early in the morning and later in the evening - I guess I'll have to get up earlier!  We did see one today during our travels.  We ended up at Sawgrass Park - a beautiful area with lots of marshland.

The reflections in the water were fantastic!  There wasn't even a whiff of a breeze while we were there.  Besides the Spoonbill, we saw a Tricolor Heron, a Cattle Egret, and lots of Great White Egrets and Seagulls.  In our travels we ended up in St Petersburg at the Farmers' Market where we purchased some Dynasty Guacamole - the best guacamole in the world!  We also got some fabulous strawberries!  St Pete was a mess - there was some kind of Expo going on about 3 blocks from the Farmers' Market so traffic was horrendous!

We came back home and took a bike ride then I finished our newsletter and calendar!  It was a good day!  Tomorrow we become Associate Members of Anona Methodist Church and then my niece and great niece get here tomorrow afternoon!!

More later...

Adventure Day

Dave and I went on an adventure today!  We went looking for Roseate Spoonbills!   Even though it was chilly out, we stayed warm.  I actually only wore shorts and a sweatshirt and I was fine.  We went to Lake Maggiore and Boyd Hill Nature Preserve on the south side of St Petersburg.  It was a great day for walking the trails.  We probably walked 3 miles, maybe a little more.  We saw lots of birds and beautiful water scenes - but no Roseate Spoonbills!

When we left there, we went toward Fort Desoto, still looking for Roseate Spoonbills.  On the way there,, we saw one in a small waterway along a golf course...so we did a flip and got some pictures!  Yay!  I can add a few more birds to my personal bird book, now!

 After taking pictures of this beauty, we headed to Pass-a-Grille for lunch.  We ate at the Brass Monkey and enjoyed watching the Gulf through the window - it was much too windy and cold to eat outside!  The water was sure pretty today - very blue!

Fun adventure and one we'll do again!

More later...