Beach Explorations - Day Two

Day 2 - Saturday, June 6, 2026

“Albert”, the name we’ve given to our alligator in the pond behind our condominium, made an early morning appearance again on this day.  He passed through the pond slowly in an unconcerned manner, with his tail propelling him along using back and forth motions that hardly made a ripple.  Kris regretfully missed this event, and that only heightened her desire to spot him again.  Even though she made frequent trips to the lanai to search for him, he had slipped away to his daylight hiding place, having apparently finished his nocturnal wanderings for this day.

After breakfast, we decided that another trip to the beach was in order.  Dressed in shorts to facilitate walking in the water, we also grabbed hats to ward off sunburn potential.  Slathering on sunblock lotion, we felt ready to head off to the beach.  The destination this time was Englewood Beach on Manasota Key, located due west of our condominium and a forty-minute drive.

     

Seashells are not as prolific at this beach, but Kris diligently searched for them and was rewarded for her efforts.  The water was warm, and the beach was fairly full with Saturday leisure seekers.  We walked for some distance on the sand and got our feet wet in the water with some waves reaching our knees.  Finally,  we crossed over the highway from the beach parking lot to the “Sandbar Tiki & Grille” for lunch.  This was a return visit for us, and we felt Kris would enjoy the outdoor dining, the live band, and the food.  We had a good meal, and then Kris changed into her bathing suit for the return walk up the beach.  She enjoyed the water, searching for more shells, while we watched from the water’s edge.  Sadly, when we reached our parked car, we realized that there were no water showers to wash off the powdery white sand that clung to our feet and legs.  We rubbed off as much as we could with a T-Shirt, and then headed home.

En route, we found a geocache location near our route, and stopped so Kris could claim her first Florida find.  Hidden cleverly by people, these items require a signature on a paper list enclosed in the small container.  Then an online report can be made in an App for recording the find.  An electronic badge is then assigned in the App commemorating the finder’s effort.  Watching was fun and interesting to the uninitiated observers that Jim and I were before that moment.

We finished the day with a stop for ice cream at Culver's, completing yet another good and satisfying trip to the beach.