We awoke off Ding Darling Refuge to the gentle lapping of water on the bow, something that for me promotes a good night's sleep. Some small craft had arrived to fish in the bay, competing with a sizable number of birds who were already there with the same idea. After some more quiet reading time, we retreated into Pine Island Sound, went east along the ICW into San Carlos Bay, and entered Sanibel Marina.
There, we went directly to Gramma Dot's, which was dockside at the marina, for lunch. This famous and award winning restaurant was named after Dorothy Sterns, who fell in love with this area and came to live here in 1963.
Sanibel Island has evolved into a good balance between development and preservation of the island's ecology. The city of Sanibel has about 6,500 residents, but almost 50% of the land is protected by nature and wildlife refuges. There is a nice mix of residential, condominium, and small businesses, knitted together by winding two lane streets and bike paths, and surrounded by sandy beaches.
We rode bikes to the historic lighthouse on the eastern tip and walked the beach. This lighthouse was typical of the other Florida lighthouses we have seen, and while quite functional, they do not have the architecture and charm of those found on the Great Lakes.
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| Sanibel Historic Lighthouse |
Larry, What do you hear about the Sandy storm debris in the water off the coast of New Jersey? Is transiting that part of the loop going to be an issue? I've read there are boats, cars and houses in former navigation routes and sand has filled in bays and rivers. Some are saying it will take two years to fix. Bill
ReplyDeleteBill, I have heard these things as well. There is no certainty either way. Worst case is we may have to go outside New Jersey and miss what there is too see. Larry
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