Sanibel Island, Fl December 6 thru the 8th, 2011

So that wonderful time of the year has arrived, and so has my better half's birthday. This year we decided to go and see more of the real Florida, after all how can you live in this wonderful state and not get to really know it. We (I, with some help, lol) decided to head to Sanibel Island, on the west coast of Florida.

We arrived at the hotel on Tuesday early afternoon to a beautiful view of the Gulf, and soon after headed to the beach. The water was cooler than expected, yet refreshing in contrast to the sun. The weather couldn't have been better, no humidity, clear skies, and a nice breeze blowing.

Day 2: The lighthouse- the pier and lighthouse are on the east end of the island, and after an approximately 8 mile quad-bike ride around the island (not all the way around) we headed to the famous ligthouse. There we ran into dolphins right by the shoreline, birds, seashells and gopher turtles.

 The place truly is a wild life refuge and it still has some of the wilderness feel to it, even as motorboats pass by. After some time relaxing, and shelling we walked back to the car, but on the shoreline instead of on the trail we took earlier so that we could keep collecting shells, and yes it becomes addictive, once you start seems impossible to stop.

The island seems full of shops, and most buildings are "key west" style, and lush landscapes surround everything. Bike/walking paths stretch from end to end of the island, and always appear to be in use by tourist and locals alike. There are also conservation areas with hiking paths, that run in loops that appear to be a "must visit" item (next time). The day came to an end with a nice dinner for the birthday girl and quiet evening following such a long day.

 Day 3: Started out with a nice walk on the beach for more shelling which seems to be the top ativity in the area for both tourist and locals alike. It was a beautiful crisp, actually cold day with temperatures in the 40's and 15 m.p.h. winds, but beautiful none the less. Birds seem to enjoy the refreshing weather and shared the shoreline with the people as they bask under the sun.

And with so much natural beauty in this little piece of paradise it was hard not to take hundreds of pictures, well 287 to be exact, but who's counting? The rest of the pictures will be available on our Picassa web album. And for us, well this is our last trip of 2011, but certainly not our last trip as we keep on discovering the natural beauties of this wonderful "Sunshine" state.