Hurricane Bay and Pelican Landings

We are well into our stay on Hurricane Bay at San Carlos RV. Yesterday was our first day really sitting outside and enjoying the sun. I did get into the hot tub, but lollygagging around the pool was not to be these past days. Temperatures and winds may have been a precursor for what is to come up north–it's been COLD. Still, we can't complain when we know what is happening back in Minnesota. In fact, Gerard breaks camp today to fly into MSP. He will arrive before a big snowstorm hits tomorrow.

two pelicans in the mangrove across from G

Great White Heron

Our campsite is on the edge of the bay. There is a strip of mangrove that separates us from a more expansive view of open water. At first, I was a bit disappointed, but it turns out this is the nesting spot for brown pelicans, ibis, anhinga and a host of herons. Constant entertainment. The brown pelican nest up in the trees and the American white pelicans nest below in the mangrove. We see the white pelicans early morning at low tide coming in to fish on pink shrimp and small fish. This strip of water between our dock and the mangrove is a takeoff and a landing strip for these large birds.

American White Pelican

The next week or so we will be relatively dry. This is normally the dry season,  but we are 12 inches above normal! It is causing hosts of problems. There is a large lake east of here that is dangerously high and compromising its dam. They are releasing billions of gallons of freshwater from Lake Okeechobee into the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Rivers. This freshwater has unfortunately been contaminated with agricultural runoff. The release contributes to overly high salinity levels coming into the salt water of the Gulf. The imbalance leads to death of seagrasses in rivers and estuaries where endangered manatees and other marine life reside.

Mucky grey sediment coming from Lake Okeechobee. This is the kayak put in point. I wouldn't want to put my feet in it!

We can already see the cloudy sediments floating here on Hurricane Bay. The cloudiness blocks the sunlight from underwater grasses and contributes to their death. The sediments in Lake Okeechobee are loaded with nitrogen and phosphorous pollutants. When too much of this enters the waterway, algae takes over. We are bound to see more severe and frequent outbreaks of Red Tide. Hundreds of square miles of the Gulf of Mexico are affected. Not good for tourism, which I think is more profitable industry for the state than sugar cane production that is causing the agricultural runoff. Just my humble opinion anyway. And as you know I am a staunch ally of the wildlife here. Our moving north may be fortuitous. Hopefully, they will get this under control before we return to the shores of the Caloosahatchee for the last five days of this trip. Something tells me the damage has already been done.

Campsite review: #116

•Sandy, level parking on the edge of Hurricane Bay. A mangrove buffer from the wind and aquatic bird nesting a bonus.
•Concrete slab with picnic table.
•All sites pretty tightly spaced. Maybe 18' feet from vehicle to vehicle. Many large rigs at water sites and they have room for a toad (towable vehicle)
Not much room for Sitka to stretch out and he had to be leashed all the time.
•Full hook-ups
•Pool, hot tub, shuffle board and rec center all well-maintained and well-used. Quite a few seasonal folks use this park.
•Two bathhouses both with laundry facilities. Showers were in better shape at the one by the pool and had hot water. Bathhouse closest to us had missing tiles and just seemed groady even though it was clean and the water was just lukewarm. Even though we have a full bathroom on board, space is tight. So we opt to use the bathhouses. The day we run across a bad one, I'll be showering right in the van.
•This RV park is exactly 1 mile from Fort Myers Beach.  Most days I walked there and did not bother with driving through the in season traffic and parking. Other bennies are several good restaurants all walkng distance and all on the water on Hurricane Bay: Doc Ford's Rum Bar and Grill, Dixie Fish House, Parrot Key, Bootleggers Barbeque and Bonita Bill's Waterfront Café.
No reviews on these as we started this trip with so much food from our house frig that we felt obligated to do home cooking at camp. And it's not like we can't come here regularly since home is only 30 minutes away.

The next week I will be visiting with my mom.  She may or may not head out on the road with me for a couple days. Time will tell. My sister flies in today. So the ZiOs mobile will be parked until at least Tuesday.  Gerard returns on the 21st and the real road trip begins. I'd like to take Sarita down to Chokoloskee Island in the Everglades. Hoping there will be a cancellation ... wish us luck.

~Catherine, Gerard, Sitka and Kole

Great shot Gerard!