Return to Sanibel

Finally!


Zoe here after almost 2 years....

Papa's got a lovely lap

I bet you thought I forgot how to type, right?  Well, not exactly, but without Phaedra yipping at my heels to get busy, it's been really hard.  I bet some of you know what it's like to lose a best friend and how you just look at the world differently.  Anyway, lots has happened since Phaedra left me and I think it's time I to get this "traveling dog" back on the road again.

So, I guess the most radical happening is that my Mama just knew I needed another sister.  I could have told her that I was just fine on my own with getting all the treats, all the attention, all the love. She knew better, though, I guess.


So, I wasn't really too worried because Papa said he absolutely didn't want a big dog OR a puppy.  So no worries, right?  Wrong!  Mama knew what a wonderful place I lived in when I was first born, so that was the first place she looked at for a new dog.  Of course, fate usually intervenes, and it did that day, too.  At the top of the page, "We've Got Puppies!" jumped out at her.  She tried to resist and kept away for about a week.  Then, one day, she told Papa that this little puppy had stolen her heart. That was IT!

My 2-legged mom

Dakota and her mom

Last December, Dakota became a part of my family, and one week later we left for Sanibel.  With a puppy!!! OMG, you have no idea!  At least she was  smaller than I was.  For a month!

What a job I had teaching her what she needed to do!  She's still working on it.  It's really good that I am 'Zoe, the Great" and know how to teach her everything.  I guess I had a great teacher myself for 9 years so I'm trying, but Dakota is challenging, believe me!

This is the second year in Sanibel with Dakota.  She's huge!  She's a Border Collie mix, and she "ain't small"!  You'll see.  She's fifty pounds and big.  I can walk right under her and she doesn't even know.

For the first time ever, we rented a house on Sanibel and didn't live in our RV.  That was a challenge for Mom, especially, because we had to ALL ride in the Subaru - tons of suitcases, two dogs, everything we needed for 3 months - plus both of our large cans of food.  (We wouldn't get into the car until we saw our food on board, of course!)

When we ride in the truck with the camper, anything goes!  Paradise!

So, this year was really different on Sanibel.  Have you ever heard of Red Tide?  It's a really, really bad thing that happens to water ways when the environment gets out of balance. These pics are all from the beaches of Sanibel or the water nearby.  When we got there, the months of dead animals washing up on the beaches had passed.  The legacy of this Red Tide is that there were VERY few birds on Sanibel.  If there aren't fish for the birds to feed upon, the birds go away until the food returns.

Clean-up on beaches

Dead Sea Turtles wash up on beach

One of the things that made Mom cry was learning about all the dead or sick Sea Turtles.  You know, Sea Turtles can't reproduce until they are mature.  That means that a Loggerhead Sea Turtle has to be 25-35 years old before it can mate.  The majority of Sea Turtle deaths this year were overwhelmingly males.  They eat fish and other food while they come to shore - the females don't which is good.  But Mom's friend who is part of the Sea Turtle Watch says she's afraid that generations of Sea Turtles have been lost. The one fortunate thing is that female Sea Turtles do not eat as they come in to shore to nest.  And, the hatchlings hatch and scurry to the water, then swim as quickly as possible, not eating anything, until they reach the Sargasso Sea.  They float around there until they are larger juveniles which can be until they are 10 years old or so.

Whale shark washed ashore

Guess what! These hatchling sea turtles (which once into the ocean/gulf start swimming as fast as they can) and go all the way out to the Sargasso Sea and cross the Atlantic all the way to the Azores in less than a year sometimes.  I bet Dakota and I could swim that far, too, don't you think?

That's another story of Mom's but you can check it out if you want to here. It is kinda cool about how these little turtles live inside this floating island of seaweed going around the Atlantic spending what scientists call their "Lost Years"!

So, usually Mom shows tons of pictures to us.  Well there weren't tons birds this year. But, here's some of what we did.  Hope you enjoy the sights!

Zoe in the Catbird Seat

Dakota, Zoe, and the "kitchen sink"!

Rented house on Sanibel

Dog yard

Staghorn Fern growing on palm

There were over 80 orchid blooms in our back yard

Life is good with a Papa like this!

Hope you'll join us on Sanibel next winter!  For now, may every day you have be a surprise and a blessing!

Zoe and Dakota (and Phaedra, their "spirit dog"!