Day Eight - Clearwater Beach

We all woke up later today. Yesterday's heat and lots of walking must have tired us out.  Fortunately we were still at home (but up and dressed!) when the management company knocked on our door at 10:30am. There was an engineer outside our house needing access to fix the phone line. Apparently the boxes were very old and we weren't the only ones to have lost service completely following the storm. It must have been a severe storm because they've not had this problem before. Anyway, box was completely changed and line up and running again in 20 minutes.

We decided to head west today to visit the coast near Tampa. The traffic into Clearwater was very slow due in part to yet more roadworks! This state is going to look very different in a few years time.... It looks as though another six lane road is being built adjacent to the current one. Judging by the amount of traffic, I think it'll be very welcome!

Having said that, it's all very well making it easier for people to access Clearwater Beach but you also need to make provision for them to park their vehicles. The main car park next to Pier 60 was supposedly full. It was coned off and had a policewoman in a golf cart type buggy guarding the entrance. We could see several empty spaces which was rather frustrating as there was nowhere else to park near the main beach. We cruised up and down the promenade hoping that somebody would relinquish their parking space but nobody did. We carried on into the less 'attractive' part but decided that it would be too far to walk back to the beach in sweltering heat. Harrison's nose has been streaming again for the past couple of days and the heat is making walking quite hard going for him.

Lunchtime view

As we drove back towards the nicer area we spotted an entrance into a well screened open air car park with an empty space! In actual fact there were a few spaces and it was reasonably cheap to park ($2.50) considering it was right next to the beach. This suited us even better than the other car park. We walked straight out onto the beach and headed for the sea. We didn't bring any swimming gear or towels with us because we knew that Harrison wouldn't want to be in direct sunlight for very long.  

We didn't plan to stand in height order! 

Once at the water's edge I kicked off my sandals and waded into the sea. It was sooo warm. Much warmer than our pool. I wished that I had brought my swimming things. It would have been worth it, even for a very quick dip.  There was a strong backwash though and a lot of shell pieces and seaweed were being dragged backwards each time the water receded. Not a nice feeling around my legs! Despite that, I really enjoyed my brief paddle. 

After that, we went for a short walk along the water's edge and then headed back to the car as Harrison was finding it hard going. He didn't say anything (in fact he didn't speak at all - just nodded and shook his head) which made me specifically ask him how he was. 

It was a lovely outing, even if it was only a brief visit.  The drive in and out of Clearwater was very picturesque too:

Meet Winter, Hope and Nicholas. All orphaned as calves and now residing in Clearwater Marine Aquarium (a marine rescue centre). Winter lost her tail and was the star of the film 'Dolphin Tale'. Hope, who lives in the same tank as Winter, has joined her for the sequel filmed last month - Dolphin Tale 2.

We had our second meal at the villa tonight. It's actually quite tricky to cook a proper meal here with just one saucepan (no lid), one frying pan and no baking trays. There is a blender though!  

Whilst we were eating dinner the phone rang so Bernard answered it. This morning's repair didn't last long because the line is dead again! 

We're currently sitting outside in the dark by the pool. It's still about 30C at 21:30 but without the sun burning down on us, it's completely bearable. Bernard is keeping an eye on the weather reports because another storm is due and just north of us a flood warning has been issued!