Day 40 Captiva 2019

Thursday, Mar 14
We were out early at 7 for to see the 7:30 sunrise...we drove to the nearby Castaways Marina but was  not a good spot to see the sunrise so we headed to DDWR where we got a good view of the sun rising just as we entered the drive.

We continued our drive not seeing many birds but there were a lot of photographers waiting for more white pelicans.  Saw several roseate spoonbills. This will be the last trip to DDRW for this trip.

While we were at the pool this afternoon, the flock of Ibis returned for another visit.  One Ibis was brave enough to come to the pool for a drink.   It was a very hot day in the 80's so we guess they were lookin for a cool spot to hang out.

The Ibis were not the only ones looking for a cool spot:

We went to Doc Ford's on Captiva for an early dinner at 5.  Of course we started with a dozen fresh oysters on the half shell. Al ordered a new item on the menu- Steak Salad Chimichurri-marinated steak, asparagus, and red onions, over mixed greens tossed in chimichurri vinaigrette and topped with avocado and bleu cheese crumbles with dressing on the side. Very Good!  I ordered the appetizer of Calamari and we combined our orders.   Very good dinner.  Would order this again but the calamari salad is still my favorite item on the menu.

We arrived back at the cottage in time to walk across the street for the sunset.

Day 20 Captiva 2019

Friday, Feb 22
We were up by 7am.  We went out to the beach from 9-10 and found a few shells and saw a lone dolphin swimming by but no birds on the beach.

 Dolphin in the center

We had a breakfast of poached eggs, sausage, toast, juice, and strawberries.   We went to South Sea shops about noon. We bought Al Olukai sandals slides with velcro straps at Regatta. Headed back to porch and then back to the beach about 3pm. We saw another dolphin just as we arrived and he was swimming closer to shore between waves and shore.

Al on the beach

We had dinner at 5 at Doc Ford's Captiva.  Arrived before the crowd and were seated in a quiet booth. We shared a dozen fresh oysters on the half shell. Al ordered Mussels appetizer - Steamed in a broth of roasted garlic, shallots, Roma tomatoes, fresh basil, white zinfandel and a hint of cream and butter.  I had Calamari salad - Lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed Everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons.  We shared the dinners. Manhattan and Mojito for drinks.  Enjoyed a delicious meal and great service.

Day 8 Captiva

Today we spent Sunday morning at the Sanibel Farmers' Market purchasing tomatoes, okra, red pepper, red leaf lettuce, green onions, garlic, and fresh cut flowers to mention a few of our purchases.  The market was crowded with shoppers, a mix of locals and tourists.

We had a sandwich lunch on the cottage porch having my homemade tuna salad with fresh tomatoes and lettuce.  

The afternoon was spent at the pool and we were glad to find out the heater is now working as well as the pool sprinkler.  Enjoyed our time swimming.

Tonight we went to Doc Ford's at about 5:00 for dinner.  No wait for a table inside but there was a wait for outside seating.  We had no problem taking an inside booth.  As usual the service was friendly and prompt.  We shared our fave appetizer...oysters on the half shell-Fresh Gulf oysters, shucked to order and served chilled with fresh lemon and cocktail sauce.  Al ordered Mussels-Steamed in a broth of roasted garlic, shallots, Roma tomatoes, fresh basil, white zinfandel and a hint of cream and butter.  I had my fave-Calamari Salad-Lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed Everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons.  Dinner was delish!!

  

The restaurant was very busy when we left with a lot of people waiting to be seated.  Glad we came early.

Day 36 on Captiva

Sunday morning brought an early walk on the beach.  There were several families already set up for the day with gazebos, tents, umbrellas, and chairs and staking off their space for the day.   Lot of people were shelling even though there were only small and broken shells.  No birds except for a small group of ruddy turnstones and a few willets. 

After our walk and checking on the eagles who were not seen, we had a brunch of French Toast and Maple syrup with grapefruit and juice.  We then settled in at the pool for the afternoon.  We went to Doc Ford's for dinner at 5:30 and quickly were seated in a booth inside without a wait.  There would have been a wait for the popular outdoor seating.

We seem to like to order and share our favorite items....fresh oysters on the half shell,  calamari salad -lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed Everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons , and the mussels- steamed in a broth of roasted garlic, shallots, Roma tomatoes, fresh basil, white zinfandel and a hint of cream and butter. 
We had great food and service.

Day 14 0n Captiva

I was out to the beach early again to check for shells but found nothing but broken pieces and the birds were very few.  Where have all the birds and shells gone this February?

This is a photo of all the willets that were here last year.

 

2016

 

Our friends and neighbors from home, Mike and Pam,  arrived for a visit this morning around 11:00.  They are spending 2 months this winter in a condo in Naples about one and a half hour drive to here.  We settled in at the pool under the cabana catching up on life in Florida and other events enjoying conversation and the warm, but not sunny day. We had a lunch of sandwiches, potato salad, and ice tea at the pool while watching the eagles in the nearby nest. 

 

 

We spotted 2 chicks in the nest....up to now we had only seen one chick at a time as in the picture above and were surprised that there were actually 2.   The afternoon was a bit overcast with clouds but we took a walk over to the beach about 3:00 and found an almost deserted beach but we did spot a dolphin in the gulf.

 

 

We returned to the porch for gin n tonics and chips with salsa and more conversation.  Mike left at about 6 to meet his brother and his fishing buddies for dinner at the Timbers.  Al, Pam, and I went to Doc Ford's in Captiva for dinner.   The place was busy and we had an 18 minute wait for a booth but the service was friendly and prompt.  Al ordered a half dozen oysters on the half shell and Calamari salad -lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed Everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons.  Pam ordered Ford’s Famous Clam Chowder-a rich, creamy chowder chock full of sea clams, sweet onions, carrots and diced potatoes and Captiva Crab Cakes-pan-fried beach-style, served with jicama cole slaw and finished with a  Key lime butter sauce.  I opted for the Chicken Taco Salad-crisp romaine lettuce tossed in avocado feta vinaigrette and topped with Jack and cheddar cheeses, Cuban black bean salsa, grilled chicken and tomato pico de gallo, surrounded by corn tortilla chips.    I liked my salad but prefer the Calamari salad which I nearly always order here.

 

We all four  arrived back at the cottage about the same time.  We spent the rest of the evening on the porch until Pam and Mike retreated to the bedroom suite downstairs. 

 

Note:   We have renamed the cottage to "Red Bucket" Cottage since we hung a red beach bucket to the post with the house number so that everyone can find the cottage more easily with this "landmark".

Day 4 on Captiva

Another restful morning on the porch with coffee while thinking about the inches of snow at home.  I took a walk to the beach which was very quiet.  I was alone with no birds or people.  And no shells either.

 

 

After lunch of sandwiches on the porch, we spent time at the beach....... a bit breezy.  And then came back to the pool for drinks with homemade salsa and chips.

Dinner tonight at Doc Ford's in Captiva.   We shared a dozen Fresh Gulf oysters, shucked to order and served chilled with fresh lemon and cocktail sauce.  I ordered  Calamari Salad-lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed Everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons.  I always order this salad.  Al had Mussels steamed in a broth of roasted garlic, shallots, Roma tomatoes, fresh basil, white zinfandel and a hint of cream and butter.  We shared our orders and really enjoyed our dinner.  I must find the recipe for the mussels dish...it was scrumptious!

Day 32 on Captiva

After nearly seeing the Great White Pelican  at DDNWR yesterday,  I wanted to try again to see her today.  We headed to the drive around 10am and watched for her near the observation tower where she been spotted on Sunday and Monday,  but she did not appear.  As we waited, we started conversing with a lady who looked to be a serious photographer and she shared some photos that she had taken on Monday afternoon of the African visitor.   Roberta, the name of the lady,  had returned in hopes of seeing her again and capturing more photos.  She was a very interesting person and had lived in the area for about 40 years and yes she was a photographer and a previous model.

While on watch out, we made a few photos of the regular residents:

 Reddish Egret

 Shore birds and White Pelicans

 

This is the bird we were hoping to see:

From DDWR Facebook

Finally giving up on our "stakeout" we returned to the house for a brunch of Lox and Scrambled Eggs with toast and sliced tomatoes.  One does work up an appetite when staking out birds.  After the morning's activity we relaxed the afternoon away at the beach.

Dinner tonight was at Doc Ford's .  We shared some Oysters on the half shell which were very good.  Al ordered Fried Panko Shrimp served with fries and coleslaw. It was very good also.  I went for lighter fare by ordering Maine Lobster Roll which was supposed to be diced lobster piled high on a toasted brioche roll.  I was very disappointed ....the lobster was bland and not even on the roll.  It had been "thrown" on the plate next to the untoasted roll.  Poor choice!  And it was very overpriced for what it turned out to be.  This was the first disappointment we experienced at Doc Ford's.