So Exciting! When I arrived at Blind Pass Captiva yesterday morning, I saw that guy catch a fish while everybody else was wallowing in the joy of the big shell pile. Happiness.
Chris (Calgary, Canada) found this very big WENTLETRAP right there! I was thinking the same thing as you are right now….. a WENTLETRAP at Blind Pass? I don’t see many people find them right there so that was a really good find in my book.
His daughter Kyla found a piece of JUNONIA. Any piece is a good piece!
My friends Courtney and Eileen (Sanibel) were having a blast soaking in this gorgeous day with the bonus of a huge shell pile…
Eileen found this very colorful FLAT SCALLOP … but hold on… I know you will notice that tattoo just like I did so I’ll tell you what it “says”. It’s her mother’s signature. Is she cool, or what? She is definitely a piece of art work!
Courtney found my favorite shell of the day.
I hope yall dont think I’m crazy but it’s an awesome ATLANTIC WING OYSTER with both sides still attached.
Look at the inside of this shell…it’s like opening up a beautiful pearl!
I found lots of The Sanibel Six shells but only one ALPHABET CONE. It has this crazy pointy hat on top! I know it’s old and worn but I still really like it.
Barbara was doing an excellent job of the Sit ‘n Sift filling up her kitchen strainer. So smart! One less step when she gets home to clean them. ;)
There were lots of CHESTNUT TURBANS mixed in with WHELKS and FIGHTING CONCHS…
A pretty BITTERSWEET CLAM!
And CORAL…
I think there was only about 5 shellers when I got the “mound” but within an hour, it was a ShellFest!
I’ve got several videos so I here’s the first one. Happy Weekend!
Great pictures – and video – of course I’m drooling now – can’t wait to get there in October.
Save some for us! Eric and I will be there on Easter Sunday to spend 5 days of blissful shelling! Hope we run into you and Clark on the beach again!
That shell pile is HUGE!! Did you hear my friend Traci found 2 junonias there last week?
whaaaaat? No I didnt hear! Wow!
….AND a Scotch Bonnet!! She was there when it started filling in!!….!!!! Man I wish I could be there during those shell mounds!!
Love the sound of the waves in your video. And that Wing Oyster is really beautiful. What a find! Thanks, Pam. Have a great weekend…looks like there’s alot of shells to look through at Blind Pass.
OOOOH my … soooo wanting to be there … come on July ! Thanks for sharing Pam !
Wishing I was there right now!
What a great day! Wish I was there!
Smiles,
Lesli @ BeautifullyCoastal.com
Yes, what an incredibly beautiful day! Sanibel is the best! It looks like heaven to me! Ahhhhhhh.
That’s a gorgeous bittersweet, seems to be pretty big too. Do you ever fin them bigger than that Pam?
I love the picture with all the happy shellers on the shell pile all the way into the distance…!
It’s chilly up here in NYC today, brrrrr, in the 30s and low 40s. But two days ago it reached 70, and next week is supposed to be in the 60s. Pretty good.
I’ve been raking leaves off my flower beds; I’d much rather be there raking shells! Great video, just enough of the sights & sounds to make me feel like I’m there.
i came for just a week but am staying 6 more days!!! will be hitting that shell pile next week when i move from sanibel to captiva. not only have i found shells, but made a friend!! she lives in seattle right up the road from me. and it turned out she was staying at gulf breeze cottages, where i was staying! she left this morning much to her dismay so i gave her two bon voyage gifts from my morning out with capt b…a baby’s ear and a venus something-or-other. shelling on sanibel is the most fun i have ever had being with me myself and i!!!
Oh Judy! I’m so happy for you!
i’m happy for me too!!!!
Thank you for posting Pam. I am patiently waiting to drive down at the end of March. I took 3 weeks off and will be doing as much shelling as I can! It’s over 3400 km /2100 miles one way for me to get from Winnipeg to Sanibel, but will be so worth it. Hoping to see some other places like Ocracoke Island as well. Have shell, will travel, lol. I’ve mentioned your blog to everyone I know. Maybe one day they will also visit.
A wentletrap at Blind Pass? Well now I’ve heard it all!
I was on that pile last Sunday! It was way bigger and you couldn’t help but find one of the Sanibel Six everywhere you looked. I found my very first Junonia………piece (!) and I am thrilled! Spent 5 days combing the beach and found nothing but scallops and a few murex, hit Blind Pass at low tide last sunday and filled buckets of beautiful Sanibel Six in 1 hr! Of course the wind was blowing about 40 mph and the Gulf was really cranking, but it was so worth the sandblasting my poor legs took! Unfortunately it was time to head north on I75, or I’d still be on top of that pile! Absolutely LOVED the Shell Show and Fair, thanks Pam for broadening my horizons!
Found my first Top Shell last week and a tiny Scotch Bonnet. Met a young man who had an almost perfect 3 inch Junonia that washed up on his feet at Casa Ybel.
Looks like a fabulous time for shelling at the Pass!!
Pam, I see you got my message about the shell pile. I knew you had been busy with the shell fair and I had wondered if you knew of the shell pile. I heard it came in Sunday but I didn’t make it out until Thursday but it was still huge and if you could go about 2 feet deep you found a whole layer of fighting conch. It was great…What a wonderful day…Happy Shelling
Yvonne!!!!! I can’t THANK YOU enough!!! Yes! I’ve been so busy that I couldnt make it out to Blind Pass to check on it and hadn’t heard from anybody else that it was rockin. You are a DOLL for contacting me to let me know. xo
Thank you for the video. I love the sound of the waves rattling the shells. It helps us Northeners (Ohio) while we count off the days till we get there!