Wow this is a pesky Non Tropical Low.  Since about 1am Friday, we've seen 4.34 inches of rain.  Granted, I'll take it over a hurricane, but at least those are in and out and we see the sun again !

SO, in lieu of a warm Sunday Morning walk on the beach, I bring you a warm sunset from Friday night.

Certainly the great fireball in the sky will return, and our slow lazy days on the beach will return.

I look forward to getting out there after the rains, as I love walking on the hard and squeaking sand.  Yes, our sand talks.  The regular crystal shape of our white quartz sand, when wet, rubs together as it is compacted and squeaks.  The Squeaking White Sands of the Emerald Coast takes on a whole new meaning now doesn't it?  LOL!

Needless to say, the ocean is still at RED Flag. 

For those of you visiting town, and stuck inside with the rain, we do have other things to do.  Check out http://weartv.com/sections/community/ for things to our west, and http://www.nwfdailynews.com/sections/showcase/ in the local and eastern area. 

And for the Awwwww factor...Come on now, practice your "Awwwwwww....." I bring you

And before you get TOOO overly excited on this cloudy, grey, dreary day, this cute little sea turtle isn't one of ours.  In fact, it's not a sea turtle at all.  "WHAT?" I hear you exclaim.  "what does she think it is?  A purple butterfly?"  Nope, I don't.  It's a ...wait for it....... ......... a CAKE made by Love to Cake !  Brought to my attention by my good friends over at cakewrecks!  (Sunday is for the NON wreck cakes)  So again, if your stuck inside, and cruising the net, and need somewhere else to go, go entertain yourself at http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/

I hope to see you on the beach Monday, when the rain stops.  Have a great day everyone!

The BIG Move

Well here they go.  Tonight we, Florida Fish and Wildlife- The Turtle Patrol- a DEP member- and I, moved two of our turtle nests.  The Kemps Ridley at 12, and the Leatherback at 4.  They were carefully recorded, dug up, and extremely carefully packed.  The coolers hold a thick layer of sand, no more than 60 eggs, and then more sand and a temperature probe.  The coolers are then closed and placed in a specially designed holder that keeps them elastically suspended.  These nests and others from GulfBreeze, with be put on a specially designed FedEx truck, climate controlled, special suspension, the works, and driven to the hatching facility in Cape Canaveral and then will be released.

I was at the nest on WO 12.  Sadly the FFW people do not give this nest a high probability of hatching.  While it was HIGH at the top of a dune, which protected it from the surf, it was in the vegetation.  Sadly, it's our precious sea oats that are a problem.  The root system that protects the dune, sucks so much moisture from the sand that it also effects the eggs.  Instead of being white and full round with turtles near to hatching, they were sand toned, and soft like a newly hatched eggs.  FFW will continue to incubate the eggs to the 70 incubation date.  Those that don't hatch will be examined for a reason. It is possible that the eggs were laid, but not fertilized.  Circle of life.

As soon as I get some kind of word from those down at WO 4 on that nest's condition, I'll pass that on.  I heard they did have quite the crowd of on-lookers as that is a very busy part of the beach! Well enjoy the photos and the video !

Notice the egg in the cooler.

The hole was only about a foot deep.