Out and About

Tuesday, November 21, Sunny and 84

After dropping off my bike at the repair shop, we took our first "check this out it's amazing" trip and headed to the Manatee Viewing Center at Tampa Electric's Big Bend Power Station.

Every year between November and April, when Tampa Bay's water temperature reaches 68 or colder, the warm-blooded manatees migrate to the water discharge canal of the Big Bend Power Station.  Manatees are an endangered species and they were fun to watch, swimming lazily about, coming up for air every few minutes.. 

But there were more amazing creatures to watch and I was totally fascinated by the little red crabs as they skittered on the shore.  There was a shore bird of some type wading close by and the smorgasbord feast of crab was too much for him.  He would dart in, they would scatter en-mass, he would grab a tasty morsel and carry it back to the water.

We watched the huge tarpon fish flashing in the sunlight and walked the tidal walkway through the mangrove, enjoying the flowers, crabs, and the ocean.


The average adult manatee or "sea cow" is about 10 feet long and weighs approximately 1,000 pounds. It has a large, seal-like body that tapers to a large, spatula-shaped flat tail. The two forelimbs or flippers of the manatee are paddle-shaped with up to four nails at the tip of each flipper. The finely wrinkled skin of the adult manatee is gray or gray-brown. The hair is thin and far apart, except for the stiff, brush-like facial whiskers, which help the manatee forage for food.

HURRY BEFORE HE MAKES LUNCH OF US!

OOPS, TOO LATE!

NEEDLENOSE

TAMPA ELECTRIC BIG BEND STATION

LOOKING DOWN THE CANAL TO THE OCEAN

TINY TARPON

HANDSOME DUDE ON THE END OF THE TIDAL WALKWAY

If you would like to learn more about the manatee, click on the link below.  They also have a webcam where you, too, can watch the manatees with us.  http://www.tampaelectric.com/manatee/funstuff/webcam2/

From the Manatee Viewing Center we headed south on 301 toward Ruskin and Bahia Beach. About 52 years ago I played on this beach while my dad either managed the restaurant here or worked on it while it was being built.  I remember it was brand new at the time and I don't know why we left and went back to Colorado - not questions that an 8 year old would ask and by the time I got around to thinking about it, my dad was no longer around to answer my questions.  Gosh how I miss him!

We ate lunch at the Sunset Grill and plan on coming back one of these evenings to sit on the deck with our Mai Tais and watch the sun go down over the ocean.

ST. PETERSBURG ACROSS TAMPA BAY

BAHIA BEACH

Back home to sit and delight in what the day had brought us.

 

Dick, Jo & Harley

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