Beach Explorations - Day One

 Friday, June 5, 2026

We’ve been enjoying the beaches of Southwest Florida for the last few days.  It all began with the arrival of Jim’s daughter, Kris, at Fort Meyers International Airport on Friday, June 5th.  The airport is directly south of where we live by traveling about 45-minutes on I-75.  Leaving the airport, we opted to head straight to Sanibel Island, famous for the abundant shells on its beaches, and chose Bowman’s Beach Park as our destination, because according to the Lee County website:  “Isolated and picturesque, this beach is probably the most popular on Sanibel. Great shelling and amenities make it worth the five minute hike from the parking area to the beach. Adventurous beachcombers can walk for several miles on unobstructed white sand beaches covered in shells. The shoreline at Bowman's Beach has experienced little of the intense development seen on the rest of the islands.”  It turned out to be completely true.

    

We observed several luxurious waterfront homes as we drove onto the island, then we turned northward and drove several miles to reach Bowman's Beach.  The parking lot was busy.  No matter the temperature, there were lots of parked cars and people heading to the beach laden with beach equipment (more on that later.)  The park has pavilions with shaded benches, bathrooms, water stations to rinse sand from your feet, and informative billboards about what you can potentially see strolling to the water along wooden boardwalks and sandy paths.  Pausing on a bridge crossing a canal, we spied two manatees in the water below.  Nicknamed “sea cows” as their noses resemble a cow’s nose, these gentle creatures rose to the surface to breathe often enough that we were able to photograph them, as fish jumped in the water around them.

As are most Gulf Coast beaches, the brilliant white sand spread out before us north and south as we reached the water.  Indeed, there were lots of shells, and we spent some time picking up several pretty ones.  Still being careful to not spend too much time in the sun to avoid sunburns, we headed back to the car with our shell prizes.  A late lunch was in order then, and we found a hotel nearby with a restaurant called “BRGR Kitchen and Bar” which not only had a great atmosphere, but good service and burgers that were truly delicious.  

We headed home, and ended the day with a beautiful sunset.  The alligator in the pond behind our house made an appearance, gliding by in the silver water just before dusk set in.  We’ve since learned that they feed at this time of the day and it is more likely to see them in the early evening, or sometimes in the early morning as daylight arrives.  Kris was impressed and spent many moments looking for “Albert” during her stay.