Fort Myers is So Cool!

~Friday, January 29, 2020~

Day 229

Another beautiful, sunny day in Florida. Pretty cool to be sitting here writing, with a view of the moderately trafficked river and the sound of native birds mixed in with the occasional sound of the swinging bridge. A few large yachts came through as well as a few speedboats, with their drivers enjoying a little rush! Host Larry was on the bank of the river doing a little shrub trimming oh so carefully so as not to collapse any part of the bank. The other guest with the skoolie was getting ready to depart making room for the “air plant lady”. Last night, Larry was showing us a special delivery of air plants he got from his incoming guest, a token of appreciation. I’d love to pick her brain about these interesting varieties of plant species. Us, we’re getting ready for our day in Fort Myers.

After we’d done a little research of the area, we’re really becoming intrigued with it. It’s quite the place with a lot of beauty, amazing weather, and plenty to offer in terms of outdoor activities. Should we put this on our potentials list? Done. Fort Myers has a mix of small-city charm, history, and a beach culture like no where else. Only about 45 minutes from our stay in Fort Denaud, it is situated on its own island. There is dog-friendly Fort Myers Beach, lively Times Square where most people don’t act like there’s a pandemic going on, the nostalgic Edison Ford Winter Estates, The well-preserved historical River District and the Six-Mile Cypress Slough Preserve, just to name a few. Today…...Jeff’s haircut (finally!! he says) and Fort Myers Beach.

After Jeff’s amazing transformation, we headed to the beach along with other like-minded individuals, waiting in traffic on a beautiful Friday afternoon. The weather really is incredible. As you approach the island, you drive over the Matanzas Pass Bridge, that immediately drops you down into Times Square. The challenge is parking. Jeff is not one to fuss over trying to find free parking, so we ended up spending $20 for unlimited parking right in Times Square, only a few steps from the beach. There apparently is a free shuttle service from the Beach Park and Ride lot that bypasses the traffic, and brings you right to the beach area, but we weren’t sure if that would work with Sadie.

This certainly is a trendy, festive atmosphere chalked full of non-mask wearing patrons, plenty of restaurants and bars (some right on the beach) and sun seekers.

You can also rent beach chairs with some restaurants offering food service so you don’t have to sacrifice your perfect little piece of “real estate” on the beach. The sand is a fine, creamy white powder that feels oh so good. And I’ve never seen a beach laden with this many shells before….some whole, some just fragments, prompting us to put our sandals back on.

Since it is an on-leash beach, no ball throwing this go-around. It’s better for Sadie anyway, as she tends to drink too much salt-water in the process. Even so, she had an amazing time and was quite the attention getter as many tourists asked to get their dog fix, being away from their fur babies.

Mmmmm so many fun tiki type bars, so little time. With sunset on the way, most places were packed to the gills, so we opted for a more inland spot, still able to see it somewhat, but far less crowded. But man, as soon as that sun goes down, many flock to the next block over. Lucky us, we already had our spot. Mango Rita’s had one of the best Pina Coladas I’ve ever had. Jeff enjoyed a Long Island Iced Tea. With the live reggae music going and our sliver of a view of the beach, why leave. So we decided to get a few nibbles while there. Mahi Mahi burger for me and Jeff a Club Sandwich. Sadie may have gotten a few samples as well. I tell you, this dog has quite the life! We have one more spot we’d like to try another time called the Liki Tiki BBQ which is one block over from the beach and looks pretty entertaining.

The highlight of our day was doing a FaceTime call with my sister Tracy and brother-in-law Tim. They’re hangin’ in there like everyone else, staying hunkered down in their lovely abode, waiting on their vaccines, hoping life resumes to some normalcy soon!