Archive for December, 2012
2012 Top 10 i Love Shelling Posts
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s that time again to look back on our fabulous year of shelling! After revisiting each blog post of 2012, it was hard to narrow down the 10 best days on the beach this year because I met so many incredible shellers, saw so many beautiful seashells, witnessed amazing sea life and learned so much about the world of shells. Counting down from #10 to #1, click on each title or photo to see the final fave days of the year. I hope they are your faves too!
CLICK ON EACH PHOTO FOR FULL STORY
#10
2012 New Year Brings BIG Shells!
#8
Calico Scallop Color Name Game
#7
Buckets Of Seashells On Sanibel From Tropical Storm Debbie
#6
How To Find Wentletrap Shells On Sanibel
#5
i Love Shelling After A Storm!
#4
#3
Our Adventures Of Collecting Seashells In Thailand
#2
Fishing For True Tulips At Sanibel Pier
#1
Blind Pass Changes Again!
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Do you remember that shellacious shell pile at Blind Pass Captiva I showed you on yesterday’s post “As The Seashell Piles Turn“? If those photos of the changes in the beach knocked your socks off yesterday… hold on to your flip flops today. It’s now gone. Wiped clean. Covered with sand. Goodbye shells.
Both yesterday and today, I took these photos at low tide in the morning about the same time. All these changes happened within 24 hours! But the good news is… the shells shifted to the other side of the jetty rocks. Crazy! Look at the change for yourself on this video.
The hide-n-seek seashells couldn’t hide from Lauren and Jesse from Atlanta.
This BANDED TULIP was Jesse’s fave shell along with a few other beauties…
I had to giggle at Rhonda from PA (lots of shellers from PA lately!!) sittin’ ‘n siftin’ in a wet suit while the waves brought the shells to her. It was 45 degrees this morning!!! Seashells or Bust!
Then I heard a voice behind me that said “Shello, Pam!” LOL It was Mike Ryan again. Remember he found that beautiful SEA FAN the other day?
The shore was peppered with LADY-IN-WAITING VENUS CLAMS so he was picking them up and so was I. They aren’t uncommon to find on our beaches but it was amazing to both of us that there were thousands. I don’t know… errr… maybe hundreds… whatever, there were oooodles of them washed up.
My fave of the day was this dark brown LACE MUREX…
This is always a special find since we rarely find this blackish dark brown “LACIE”.
I couldn’t wait to show you the changes today but check in with me again tomorrow because I’m working on the 2012 top 10 iLoveShelling days to finish out the year before we move on to 2013. Wow. Another year is about to begin. It’s gonna be a good one!
As The Seashell Pile Turns
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The shell pile at Blind Pass is growing bigger and bigger by the day. Literally! I saw cutie Shelling Sisters Martha, Janet and Lois sifting through the millions of KITTENS PAWS and ARKS to find OLIVES, WHELKS and CONCHS. Check out Martha’s Tank and Lois’ cap! Adorable!
Look how high this shell pile is now.
I know I’ve shown the changes in the beach at Blind Pass Captiva before but …it blows my mind how dramatic the changes can be in one month. Here is exactly one month ago November 29…
Then I took this photo on December 5…
Then on December 18…
December 22…
December 23…
Then again today December 29…
Isn’t that wild? So the next time you step foot on the beach at Blind Pass Captiva, you will probably see drastic changes as well and will probably find different shells than you did before. That’s what keeps it interesting!
Thank you so much for all of your lovely comments on my photos on the last post Sanibel Sunrise Whekcome Mat ! In the last photo on that post, I showed a girl with a bucket bending down to inspect a shell while the sun was rising, remember? I looooved her perfect Sanibel Stoop. Well I saw her again at Blind Pass today! Here is Alexa with her mom Laurey from PA (too).
PS- As I write this post, the wind has shifted from east winds to strong north west winds gusting up to 20 mph. Yippee! That’s a good sign that even more shells might be pushed on to our beaches and that this nice shell pile at Blind Pass Captiva will be staying for a few more days.
Sanibel Sunrise Whelkcome Mat
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As our year of 2012 is winding down, Sanibel Island is bustling with tourists this week shellebrating the holidays with sunshine, clear skies and plenty of empty souvenir seashells on our beaches. At sunrise, low tide exposed a “whelkcome” mat of large live WHELKS, CONCHS and TULIPS at Gulfside City Park this morning to view these magnificent living creatures for just a few minutes before the incoming tide covered them up again.
A true gift to see the miracle of a living MOLLUSK.
Peace.
Shellebrating The Season On Captiva Florida
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Santa brought seashells for Christmas on Captiva!
Blind Pass Captiva was still producing shells yesterday which always makes me happy because when the shells arrive, so do lots of shelling friends too. I met iLoveShelling Facebook friend Mike Ryan (Fort Myers) for the first time.
He found this perfect SEA WHIP with an ATLANTIC WING OYSTER and a ONE-TOOTH SIMNIAattached. Nice find Mike!
Connor, Natalie and Jim (aka Elvis!) from Virginia found Santa’s seashells stash!
They collected lots of the Sanibel Six but these were their faves…. lots of GIANT BITTERSWEETS, part of a JUNONIA, CONES, CANDY (HORSE CONCH), a FLAT SCALLOP, a CALICO SCALLOP and a WORMIE!
I introduced you to some of these girls on Friday, but I didn’t realize they were all together. They met in Sanibel while shelling 7 years ago and they have gotten together every year since to shell together. Isn’t that fabulous??? Shelling Sisters forever… Joan (TN), Dawn (NJ), Glenda (England) and Bonnie (NJ)….
It was nice to see another lucky family shellebrating the holidays on the beach collecting seashells- Travis, Jill, Keith and Aden (MI). Good to see you again, Jill!
Clark and I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and send lots of warm Florida sunshine and shells. Will cyber shelling warm you up, (Parker)??? Find all the shells you want by clicking on the next photo to enlarge…
Merry Christmas!
Jumpin Junonia!
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Throughout every year, there are many days the seashells rush onto the beach forced by waves from the Gulf Of Mexico forming mounds of shells deeper than you can dig. Every single time it happens, I’m in awe. I have to stand still and stare at the power just like this little girl.
I get mesmerized by the shells rolling onto the beach where some remain then watch the rest roll back out into the bubbling sea foam.
Mesmerized. The waves never stop… in and out, in and out. Back and forth, back and forth… the shells roll on the beach. Beautiful.
I’m so happy I could film this amazing sight with my video camera to share with my shelling friends. But Whaaaaa! I see a familiar pattern and shape! My brain wakes up and my heart starts pounding! Is that? Is that? Then my mind goes blank and all I can think about is the next wave taking away my treasure. With the camera rolling, at lightning speed I spring off my jetty rock perch with wet flip flops, cold drenched pants and nothing but brown spots in my vision. Looook oooouuut beeeelooooowwwww!!!!
You’ll have to see the rest for yourselves… LOL .. here’s my video from yesterday and you’ll see Eric find a HORSE CONCH and give it to Michelle (I showed both of them in my last post)… then hang on, the view gets a little bumpy. hahaha
Heehee… Okay, so you see it was only the top of the JUNONIA, but I didn’t know that at the time of course! You just never know and you have to be quick to get the good ones when the shells come in that way.
Today was another excellent day at Blind Pass Captiva so I have more photos to show you tomorrow!
Happy Holidays, y’all!
