We were expecting to leave tomorrow to head toward Washington, DC to meet Brendan by Easter weekend. But because of the COVID-19 scare and after many emails that tours are cancelled, and museums are closed, we’ve decided to stay put for another month. We’ve even heard stories of people getting kicked out of parks. Some states are using them for emergency quarantine areas if necessary.
I’m not too disappointed. The weather has finally changed. We sit outside, sunning ourselves like turtles on a rock, soaking in the vitamin D. I’ve taken to putting on sunscreen EVERY morning so I don’t leather like some of the folks here do.
Spring Break is here! The average age of the crowds has come down significantly. Although there are many college kids, there seem to be more families, especially now that their holiday has been extended. The traffic to the beach has doubled. There’s loud music and car horns and sirens well into the night. Even so, there aren’t as many people on the beach as I had expected. I still walk down every day, past Wade Ward Nature Park and look for alligators. And look what we finally saw on Thursday! Evidently the weather is finally warm enough for them to come out of hibernation, too!
The second gator we heard about at dinner Monday night, and headed right over to Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. There’s a bayou on the side of the road, halfway to the beach. A lady with a telephoto lens waved us over, pointed her out and showed us where the year-old babies usually can be found. We didn’t see the babies, but the beach at the end of the street was nearly deserted. We stayed and watched a glorious sunset! Amazing shells!
I’ve grown to love every mood of the beach. The clear, sunny days are beautiful, but so are the storm-cloud, windy and foggy days. Each one affects the water and sand in its own way, and I can’t take enough photos. I can only post so many on this blog, but if you follow me on Instagram @toberving, you’ll see many more.
Also, even though I have plenty of shells, I can’t keep myself from stopping and looking and picking up the very best ones. I’ve gotten very picky! Some of the tiniest shells have holes in them so I can string them onto bracelets. Sadly, I have not found one whole sand dollar the entire time I’ve been here. The waves must be too rough. I find huge hunks, that if complete, would make sand dollars at least six inches in diameter.
So, if we need to quarantine, this is a pretty good place to be. We plan to go out to eat a few more times before they close the restaurants. As long as I have my beach, I’m happy!
