Fort De Soto

Sunrise from outside my door at the Sirata Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach.

7:01 am.  I laid back down for a while, before going out to the beach at 8:30.

The hotel has an enclosure with abandoned iguanas.

What does this add to the room rate? And the 3 pools and 2 whirlpools I did not use.  What I need in lodging is a fridge, microwave, stovetop, internet. And a good table and chair where I can see my computer, TV, and view, all at the same time.

I checked out, and went 4 blocks north, out of my way, to Subway.  Had a gift card. Thank you again, Ed, of the Green Wave Forum.  Got a breakfast sub for now, a footlong for later.  On to Fort De Soto Park, a seven mile drive.  As of the new year, there is $5 entry fee.  Also being charged at the north end of Pinellas County, Fred Howard Park in Tarpon Springs.   Parking off the road before the manned entrance station won't get you in free, there are self pay stations before the booth.  I parked near the rental concession and was on my way at 10:40.

Paddled out of Soldiers Hole, the marked area near the concession.  Ask for a brochure and follow the trail markers if its your first visit.

Sunshine Skyway.

I paddled out of Soldiers Hole into Mullett Key Bayou.  Here's a map

 Two of my favorite birds. On the large end, white pelicans, the small, belted kingfisher.

Pushed the button at the right time to get the wings in the above photo.

 Punk snowy egret

 Hooded merganser, female, with the pelicans

A breakwater near the Arrowhead Picnic Area has to be built from debris from old barracks and other buildings. Note the red bricks.

Tide was in, so I could paddle into the area behind the North Beach,  Gulf just over the low dunes.

 I crossed Bunces Pass to Shell Key.

Here's a map  The shipwreck was at the elbow on the south end of the Key.  The Gulf was flat. Which was why I was here, nice when the marine report from Friday stays accurate. Wanted to paddle north.  But a bot zoomed by. Huge wake.  I angled the yak, but one wave brought in a lot of  water.  Bleep this, I'm going back into the protected water.

Oyster catcher

Much nicer in the combustion exclusion zone on the east side of the Key.

 A huge flock of white birds, maybe pelicans, in the distance.  As is the Don Cesar.

Whelk.  I was thinking conch, but did a little research.  Put it back in the water. Just so happened to place it next to another live one.

Crossed back to Mullet Key and took a break. Half the Italian sub.  Just the second Subway I've had in about 15 years.  Publix makes much  better subs.  The views.

Back on the water.

I've been seeing a lot of mergansers lately, but all females.

Feeding brown pelican.

Back to Soldiers Hole.

Too bad I did not get the registration of these illiterate boaters.  As I've asked many times, how can buy and operate a boat if you can't read English?   These scofflaws came back into the combustion motor exclusion zone to land. 

I landed at 3:10, and went for a bike ride.

Would have been nice to have brought the road bike for the nice paved trail, but I just had the trail bike with me.  I had rode about a mile, past the Fort, with views of the Gulf, when I stopped to photo a great egret.  To find I left the camera in the car.  Went back to get it, and pedaled in the other direction.  Stopped to walk the "barrier free" nature trail.

A nice, 15 minute walk. One I had not taken before.  Fort Desoto is a very large park, always new things to discover.
Back on the bike, I got my egret photo.

I always need to post family photos

Views from the top of the Fort.

A nicer walk to the top. New steps at one end, and ADA compliant ramp on the other.

I left at 4:45.  A nice weekend. 

An hour later, moon rise on I-4.