Day Off at the Beach on Dauphin Island, Alabama

April 22, 2013 enjoying the sun without a bike

    Today I woke up in my bedroom with the floor to ceiling window overlooking the ocean, where some gas or oil rigs are sticking up in the distance and the only other things to see are the sand and the sky. The schedule for today: clean the bike, walk the beach, find food, and relax. Sounded good. I'm sharing the condo with three Bicycle Babes and we all did whatever we felt like.
     I had leftovers for breakfast - some garlic bread from dinner last night, an orange from the snack pack and some apricots, and some coffee made in the apartment  using the microwave. I ate it sitting on the deck and looking at the view. Then I took Ricardo the Bike down for his weekly cleaning, which was not too complicated. I realized he'd lost a bike screw  on the rack. While I wondered about that, Judy R. magically produced a spare bolt AND the correct tool to screw it in with - and now my bike rack for the bag is in perfect shape. Tomorrow we're near a bike store and I will buy her a new one to replace it.
       Then I went for a lovely long walk along the deserted beach on the soft white sands. The water curves round and comes to a peninsula with lots of birds. I saw two giant big blue herons standing on their spindly legs with their striped faces watching the water intently for any passing fish. There were lots of white-headed and black-winged gulls standing around, flying, watching, standing. And there were seagulls flying in the air, swooping over the water.  As I walked along, a young woman was walking along behind and when she caught up, I said "Hello - do you live here?" She said: "Yes, I work for the Coastal Service and someone reported seeing a dead loggerhead turtle that had washed up on the shore so I'm checking but I haven't found it yet."
      She told me that the turtles lay their eggs on the beach in May but last year's big storms destroyed all the nests so they hope that turtles will come back this year. She waded through the water to get to the far side of the inlet and looked along the shore. I paddled through to the other side and walked almost to the end. The water was definitely cold - nice on the feet but chilly on the legs.
      The waves rippled on to the smooth sand. Birds flew in the air or stood on the sand. A big blue heron eyed me suspiciously as I went by and then flapped its enormous wings and settled in the water away from me. Two others left the water as I approached, and flew low over the sand to the dunes and scrub.
      For lunch, Judy and I went over the road to the Bienville Bar and Café and I had an excellent chicken and cheese Panini.  Then I wandered into the three stores along the road. There was a surf store but not a lot I wanted to take back to Colorado. In the souvenirs and art store, I bought some postcards. Then I went into Marita's dress store, and started to look at fun summer clothes. So I ended up buying the first swimsuit I tried on which fit persfectlyy, and a teeshirt with no message at all. Imagine that.
      I came back to the condo opposite, put on the swimsuit, and went down to the pool and swam - briefly - in the somewhat cold water of the pool (the ocean was even colder) for a few lengths. Then I sat in the sun and read the beginning of the biography of Roseanne Cash, which was a fascinating story of a life as the daughter of someone famous trying to find her own voice and her own path.
     There was a group outing to a restaurant but Our Peaceful Condo decided we'd rather get some food and eat here without all the hassle of being part of a big crowd in the restaurant. So we went back to the Bienville Bar and I got an excellent chicken salad and some chips and salsa, and each of us had something we took back and ate at the big table. A couple of other people came in to join us - and it was relaxing, friendly and fun.
       .Around 8 p.m. we read the condo owner's list of things we have to do to clear this place up tomorrow. I'm in charge of getting the towels in the washing machine and turning it on. Breakfast is in Linda and Carol's apartment at 6:45 .a.m., snacks at 7:15 and then we leave to ride to the ferry at 7:30 a.m. for the 8 a.m. ferry and on to Pensacola, Florida. Only 68 miles I think - piece of cake.