We had planned for four nights, but unfortunately we only had about 24 hours on Sanibel Island. Tropical Storm Eta has officially derailed our plans for shelling, biking, birdwatching, and a BBQ birthday party with old friends. We are worried about high water and high winds in an RV. Even if we are fine in the RV while parked, we will need to leave here on Wednesday and driving an RV in the wind is challenging and potentially dangerous. Also, as we found out upon arriving, our campsite doesn’t have wifi or cell phone service (!!!), which would leave us stuck in an RV in stormy weather for days with nothing to do. So it was a difficult decision, but we only stayed one night and are now on our way out of town. More on what we are doing instead later, but for now here’s what we did do in our short time on the Island.
We dropped Zellie off with a boarder in Ft Myers because the only RV park on Sanibel Island doesn’t allow dogs. Thankfully, the RV park is beautiful and well located, and there are bike paths winding all through the island that are separated from the road, so are super safe and scenic. The island itself is so wonderful! I pictured gated communities and gaudy mansions (barf) or even tacky beach strip malls, but instead it is quaint and lush, with adorable beach bungalows and cozy cafes everywhere you look. We decided to take advantage of the few hours without rain and rode our bikes to the lighthouse beach where the shelling was SPECTACULAR. Zach was in heaven. He was so occupied that he didn’t even take any pictures, so I took a turn on the lens.
The water was a deep and unsettling red color. We debated the cause: I thought maybe a boat had just dropped a load of fish chum into the water to attract sharks, but Melina was certain that it was a group of ladies that gathered here for a monthly swim (if you know what I mean). Either way, gross, and I really didn’t want the girls to go in above their ankles. However, keeping these girls out of the water at a beach is a task I was not willing to take on with the intensity required, so I caved and they splashed around a bit. Ewww (I made them shower afterwards). We found out later the red color is an algae bloom that can cause respiratory issues. Wonderful.
We finished our day with a seafood dinner at the Lazy Flamingo. It was a celebratory meal, since in a quick moment of cell service we got updated on the election results!! WOOHOO!! We had a fun and festive evening.
Despite the easing of my election anxiety, that night I could not sleep. I worried constantly about the tropical storm Eta and what would happen if it intensified to a hurricane and hit us dead on, or even stayed a tropical storm and we had to drive across the Sanibel bridge to the mainland in high winds (high winds and RVs do not mix well). Or, best case, what we would do if we were stuck on Sanibel island in an RV in the pouring rain with no wifi or cell signal for three days, one of which was Melina’s birthday. Zach and I talked it over during an early morning shelling trip to a nearby beach, and sadly decided to pack up and move on.
Other than shelling and beaching, another activity I had been looking forward to was biking and birdwatching in the Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge. Since it was already raining and windy, we decided to drive the RV through the refuge instead. Unfortunately, that plan was a non-starter.
After one more quick trip to a shelling beach the weather was getting more and more ominious, so we hung out on the patio of an ice cream shop to use their wifi for almost three hours while the girls caught up on schoolwork and Zach and I planned out the changes in our itinerary.
Then we picked up Zellie from the boarder and popped over to Ft Myers to see my college roommate Jen and her husband Noah in the church where she is now the minister. The church is huge and beautiful, and they are so so lucky to have her! Melina especially was enamored with Jen, and we were all sorry that we couldn’t stay longer.
But we had to get going as it was a three hour drive to our next destination…a place safe(r) from the hurricane…where Melina can have an amazing birthday…a place we NEVER intented to visit on this trip…[can you guess?]
I’ll leave you with some pictures of Jen and me doing what we do best.
Traveling Together 