Stump Pass Beach State Park

After such a beautiful day at Gasparilla State Park we thought we would move north a little and check out Stump Pass Beach State Park which incorporates the southern tip of  Manasota Key, along with Peterson Island, Whidden Key and the protected channels between them.  Admittedly, we were a little disappointed. 

 The beach itself was not very deep and the sand was more gray than on Gasparilla.  There was quite a crowd here, many of them "shelling" (like the man in this photo).  They even make a "Florida snow shovel" which is a mesh basket on a handle.  These are used to scoop up sand so that it can be sorted out and that perfect shell or sharks tooth will be unearthed unsanded!  People walk the beach with their shovels and bags for hours looking for the perfect shells.  For a great picture, check out this blog.

As you can see, there are more than enough shells to go around and many of them are unbroken. 


We were much better prepared today, having packed our bag with towels, hats, sunscreen and books.  We took a couple of different chairs but I have come to the very uncomfortable conclusion that I need to purchase some decent beach chairs.  We spent about 30 minutes chillin' there.  Mr. Bill had a nice rest and I listened to my iTouch.  I'm still working my way through the book I downloaded several months ago...Brisingr

We slogged our way to the tip of the island on a trail consisting primarily of beach sand.  The round trip of 2.5 miles wore us out.  We have been walking every day but walking through sand is a whole different story.  Quite frankly, the end of the island wasn't very exciting.  We think that much of the area is probably under water at high tide as the sand is quite hard.

There were some nice properties across the channel...

and Mr. Bill looked good there.


We did stop on our way off the island and checked out Englewood Beach, although we didn't stay.  Overall it was another great day but probably not a place we would visit often.


Thanks for stopping by...
;o)