Cape San Blas Day Two
These are being posted about two weeks later–after I caught up with mail and work and laundry and so forth.
Cape San Blas January 2015 Day Two
Our plan today was to rent a canoe and go paddling about in the bay. I was not particularly eager to do this as there were alligator warnings posted everywhere and I had visions of bopping an alligator on the nose and trying to paddle faster than they can swim. I don’t remember how fast that is but it is quite speedy. They are slower on land but their teeth are quite impressive.
We stopped at Scallop Cove and filled out paperwork for a canoe and were given two black plastic paddles and life jackets. As we approached the boat launch, fog was rolling in and the skies were black. The ranger said rain was expected and he had to get a burn done before it set in.
So we decided that maybe we needed to wait on the canoe expedition and walk on the beach instead. The surf was quite loud, heard from the boat launch but there were no more shells than those we’d seen on earlier walks. Two fishers were feeding their bait to fish but their catch bucket remained empty.
After lunch of roast beef sandwiches and home grown oranges, we took a look at the sky and the water—the water was like glass and the sky was clear. Temperatures were considerably warmer without the wind but the no-see-ums were out in full force.
Back to Scallop Cove and picked up paddles and life jackets and launched a red—very heavy canoe. The water here is crystal clear and we could see urchins, some broken up shells, floating algae and a lot of eel grass bits. At one point we landed on a sandy beach and explored a bit. Lots of horseshoe crabs bits, raccoon tracks, fiddlers, and a grand prize of some sponges. I picked up two, Glen said they would smell really bad so they are living in the bed of my truck until I can get home and rinse them out. Sponges like these are used in water color and are incredibly expensive and so I was quite thrilled—Glen not so much.
We returned the paddles and life jackets with the male clerk laughing at the mistake his sister had made in giving us standup paddle boat paddles instead of canoe paddles. They were the worst paddles I have ever used and definitely not something I would use on a long trip. Apparently they were designed to be used for all sorts of paddling and so not very good for anything but limited their stock.
Supper was on our mind and we stopped at St. Joe Fishing Company and bought tuna, shrimp, and a container of raw oysters. Regretfully, after paying, I spied frozen bags of scallops—maybe tomorrow. Then on to Piggly Wiggly for assorted items.
Glen cobbled together a shrimp steamer and we ate steamed shrimp, two hopped into the water and so were boiled; sliced avocado and raw tuna on crackers. Not the most balanced of meals but quite tasty.
Both of us were tired after our day on the water; Glen worked Sudoku puzzles on his netbook, I did some paper piecing. The next door neighbors had a very loud fight around 10 or so and the bathroom light burned out. The Sugar Shack is crammed full of stuff—but no light bulbs to be seen.
Sylvia Weir Art 