As soon as I saw this huge LION’S PAW, I wanted to grab it and run down the beach. Unfortunately for me, I had to remain calm and admire it in the hands of the guy who found it… Bob from California.
He couldn’t believe his luck when he found it on a sand bar off West Gulf Drive this morning. He pointed out the nodules were broken off but then we all said “who cares!”. That’s a fantastic find.
Congrats, Bob!
I also saw local sheller Liz with some killer finds of her own… a FLORIDA CONE, TRUE TULIP, FLAT SCALLOP and a perfect SCOTCH BONNET with great color.
I think the cooler weather was bringing lots of the locals to the beach this weekend. We saw our friend Jean collecting COCKLE shells to line a walking path in her yard. Good idea!
Shelling guide Louise Alt from Waterwoman Adventures was shelling with her trusty first mate Darla. I always love to run into Louise!
Jane was shelling off East Gulf Drive for black SCALLOPS to make a frame for her husband John’s picture…
Darlene (Pine Island) found this 7 inch LIGHTNING WHELK on the sand bar at Blind Pass…
Barbara from Long Island, NY had just gotten started shelling for the day and found a nice SHARKS EYE…
April from PA loves the WORM ROCK like I do…
Yep, I can say “Yee Haw!” for Bob and all of the other successful shellers this weekend. There were some mighty good seashells out there for the pickin’. :)
Congrats to all the Sanibel Shellers on their awesome finds ! I’ve got a very bad case of sanibel withdrawal , maybe someday there will be an antidote for it !! LOL !!
I will be walking that beach this Sunday!! So excited I can’t stand it!! Woohoo!!!
What a bunch of great finds! That Lions Paw was huge.
Oh my gosh I would be crazy if I found that!! I see you say West Gulf Drive a lot. Is there an entrance there? Is it called West Gulf Drive entrance?
It’ the beach right off West Gulf Drive . there’s a long stretch of beach. No, there’s no public parking there…..sorry! The best thing to do is ask if there are bikes at your hotel/condo and if not you can rent them on the island. It’s a perfect place to enjoy a great bike ride. Here’s a map to show you where it is…http://maps.google.com/maps?tab=Xl . Throughout the weekend, I was at lighthouse beach, along East Gulf Drive, West Gulf Drive and Blind Pass. I like to beach hop!
Bob looks like a nice guy…I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you ran down the beach with it, you know, as long as you gave it back. ;)
I’m so excited…3 more weeks till we’re in the happy lane!!!
Hi Pam, Would you like a disc of all the artistic creations from the Philadelphia shell show this weekend? There were also some nice displays of Sanibel shells but I don’t have photos of those. Let me know how to send it to you. We met last January at Mitchell’s cottages with my granddaughter Kaitlyn and her cabrit’s murex and my husband Mitchell. We’ll be back again this January. week one at Pointe Santo and the 2nd and 3rd week at Mitchell’s again. Hope we run into you!!
Sue Bunkin
PS I’ll also add some photos to the disc of how I display Sanibel Shells and some of my artistic creations. S.
Sue,
I’m from the Philadelphia area too. I didn’t make it to the show but I heard it was good. Do you think it’s worth going next year (sometimes it’s a real pain to get into the city)?
I am staying at Mitchell’s for the first time this coming spring. Can I assume that since you are going back there it is a nice place to stay? I’d appreciate your feedback. Thanks.
I love that Lightning Whelk. I am soooo jealous!
Only 29 more days till we are on Sanibel, but, who is counting!! Love that big Lion’s Paw.
Lee
Oh my word!!!, what a find for Bob, congrats, hope you left a couple good ones fir me to find…. I’ll be down oct.20th-28th..it’s all about the hunt!!
Feel free to meet
If on sanibel those dates!! Can’t wait!!
Thanks so much Pam for sharing these wonderful stories, good people & treasures!!
I’ll be there soon,
Mary Ann
I’ve never seen a real Lion’s Paw!
only 2 more days until we r finding our own treasures! that lions paw was GORGOUS!
I found a nice small Lions Paw last time I was at Sanibel . It was the shelling highlight of my trip
Hi Pam,
Remember me I’m the one who found the sharks eye. It was great meeting you and Clark “The Super Sheller” that day. The next day I was back out there and just like Clark said because of the winds blowing in from the north the shelling was great. I found a big whelk shell like the one he show me.
I was so thrilled. Hope to see you both again on the beach next time we’re there.
Take care,
Barbara
Linking to this post on my blog – man, that’s a great Lion’s Paw! What if you had grabbed it and run off… I bet you could outrun him. hahaha…