Day 38 on Captiva

Sunrise from the Dock on the Bay

Tuesday began with going out for sunrise on the bay side of the island.  We took a walk over to the beach on the gulf side to check out the tide and to see if there were any shells. We then returned to the porch for coffee and scones. Then we took a drive through Ding Darling. We finally saw some roseate spoonbills which we have missed seeing on our drives.

Roseate Spoonbills

Great Blue Heron

Mottled Ducks

One Happy Duck!

Anhinga

After a lunch of tuna salad, we headed back to the beach for a couple hours.  We were excited to see a pod of dolphins  - 5 to  6- swim by in the gulf. The flock of ibis were there again but had gained in number. 

We attended the Sanctuary Members Art Show to see the oil paintings that Helene was exhibiting.  She had  paintings ...a still life of an apple, snow scene, autumn scene and a beach scene. We enjoyed seeing the art that she did this past year.  We then had dinner with Mike and Helene and a couple of their friends in the clubhouse.   It was a fun evening and great food.



Day 37 on Captiva

We went out early this morning to see the sunrise over the bay.  The morning was filled with sounds of birds waking and sights of the early fishermen on the bridge and in the bay. This is a wonderful way to start the day.

The pictures of the sunrise say it all.....no commentary needed here. Our day was rather quiet spending time on the porch and at the pool.
We met Mike and Helene for dinner at the nearby Sunset Grill, a favorite of all of us.  I had seabass encrusted in a lattice crust with risotto and Al ordered the lobster tail also served with risotto.    Mike had grilled swordfish with mashed potatoes and Helene ordered the seafood pasta. The wine was ZD Pinot Noir which was new to us.

Day 17 on Captiva

Tuesday began with early rise to a beautiful blue sky and warm temps. Enjoyed Al's coffee with pastries from Jerry's bakery.  I spent time catching up on posts to this diary and editing some photos. We had a late breakfast of eggs and ham with hot biscuits.  We spent a couple hours at the beach .....the waves have settled down to a gentle roar so no surfers are in sight today.  Several pelicans were feeding near the shoreline diving into what must have been  schools of fish swimming. The number of beachcombers had dwindled to just a few compared to yesterday's crowd here for President's Day.  I finished reading a third book today, "V is for Vengeance" by  Sue Grafton one of an alphabet series about an PI Kinsey Millhone.


Tonight we joined friends Mike and Helene for dinner at their club The Sanctuary. We spent the evening catching up on the past year and enjoying being together.  We enjoyed a great dinner at the club as always.  In case you are wondering, Al had Osso Bucco with risotto and I had King Salmon with couscous and spinach.
                          

Day 41 Captiva

It rained all day  but we made the best of the day by packing for our return home. It was time to pack anyway since we leave on  Saturday.....at least we did not waste a day of sunshine. We did some laundry too.  This was a  stormy tropical rain ....had a real downpour all day. 
We went to Mike and Helene's to view the sunset from their home on the gulf and did not expect to see one. But the clouds moved aside and we saw a lovely sunset.
We went to Sanibel Steakhouse for dinner.  We remember when this was a restaurant called "Fish Anyway You Wish" many years ago.  No, I did not make that up.

Mike says Sanibel Steakhouse has the best oysters on the half shell so we had to give them a try and they were the best!  Al ordered lamb chops, two double thick with cinnamon fig demi-glaze served with house vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes. Mike ordered grilled filet medallions with mushroom demi-glaze. Helene had blackened ahi served rare with Wakame and Asaian style vegetables, finished with a Soy Wasabi sauce. I chose Chilean sea bass Parmesan crusted  served with wild mushroom risotto, grilled asparagus and dill cream sauce.  We finished dinner by sharing a chocolate lava cake.  This was a fun evening with great friends and great food.

Day 39 Captiva

Today was by far the very best day on the beach so far......weather was perfect with a great breeze and perfect temperatures. There also were more people on the beach...looks like peak season is in full force.  We just spent the day soaking it all in. Even the dolphins seemed to be playing more and enjoying the day.  A lot of sailing was happening in the gulf.

Sailing, Sailing!

Great Blue Heron taking a stroll.

Great Blue Heron visiting with the sunbathers.

As we were leaving we noticed this beautiful cloud formation in the sky.  Can you believe the size of this house with the blue roof?  It was one of the most recently built.  So many of the beach houses have been torn  down and replaced by these Mac Mansions.

What a lovely cloud formation we saw as we left the beach.

In the evening, we met friends Mike and Helene at the Sanctuary Club where they are members.  Helene was exhibiting her first oil painting in the club's 2nd Annual Sanctuary Member Art Show.
Her painting were quite good for a first. We viewed the art and then went to dinner at the Sunset Grill.
The four of us sat at the bar for dinner...best seats in this small restaurant. I dined on Macadamia nut encrusted fresh local Grouper, pan seared, on a bed of julienne vegetables, coconut rum butter, Mango fruit salsa and key lime burre blanc. Yum!!! Everyone else had flame broiled Gulf Lobster tails served with mascarpone risotto cake and a vegetable side of perfectly cooked asparagus, carrots,and zucchini. Delightful dinners. We shared Key Lime Pie which Helene vows that it is the best on the Islands after having sampled this pie everywhere. This was a delightful evening spent with friends, wine,  and great conversation.