Weddings on Sanibel Island

I’ve been wanting to make this post for awhile since one of my friends got married here on Sanibel last year and it was so gorgeous that I wanted to tell as many people as possible so that they could experience the “magic” as well.

Apart from the beautiful natural surroundings and relatively predictable nice weather conditions, Sanibel Island has a long history of being a romantic getaway and there are several wonderful wedding organizers (which I will list below) living right here on the island.

Weddings are stressful enough, which is why people are opting for a more relaxed “casually elegant” approach enveloped in nature.  The beach has always been a crowd favorite.

Low winds, sunset and sunrise options and plenty of exclusive resorts to choose from for the guests to stay and enjoy a vacation while attending YOUR wedding, is all the more reason to choose Sanibel to say “I do”…

So, here’s the list of the top wedding locations and resources to everything that you will need:

• Casa Ybel Weddings
• Sundial Resort Weddings
• Sanibel Island.com Resources
• Weddings By The Sea
• Holiday Inn Wedding Resources

Enjoy and spread the word to anyone looking for a destination wedding and tell them that this is the place!

Have a great weekend,

Sandy and Robert

p.s.  Don’t forget to make your way over to our main website for all of your Sanibel and Captiva Island Real Estate needs.  See you soon!

“Thunderstorm Fay” Came and Went

Well, all the hooplah and thank goodness, “Miss Fay” decided to come ashore a bit milder than expected (in our neck of the woods at least).  We only got about 4-6 inches of rain (if that), with most businesses and schools back up and running pretty close to normal the next day.

No complaints here.  Rob and I were both on the island and stuck it out for Hurricane Charley back in 2004 and Fay was nothing in comparison to that!  So, another day in Florida passes…

As September approaches, many people always get very nervous with it being the high point of hurricane season, but being in the Gulf, on the west side of Florida, (knock on wood) we get pretty lucky as far as storms coming our way, at least directly anyway.

Here you can see for yourself a broadcast of Tropical Storm Fay in case you aren’t from Florida and didn’t get to experience it personally…

You can also see my post on Hurricane Preparation if you want more information on the topic…

So, until the next post, stay dry and have a great week,

Sandy and Robert

p.s.  Don’t forget to make your way over to our main website for all of your Sanibel and Captiva Island Real Estate needs.  See you soon!

Baby Turtles Find Their Way Home

There is nothing sweeter than to have the chance to watch a baby turtle hatch and make his way to the ocean.  This nearly always takes place at night, but as you can see in the video, it can occassionally happen during the day as well.

This year has been an exceptionally successful year for sea turtle nests on Sanibel beaches, with more than 300 active nests to date.  This is also good news for future nesting (albeit over the next hundred or so years, mind you) because female loggerhead turtles always return to nest on the beaches that they were born.

Another incredible fact that I found over at this nifty article at the Sanibel Advisor is that the temperature of the sand determines the sex of the turtle hatchling, with warmer sand producing females and cooler sand producing males.  Isn’t that wild?

The best sites on Sanibel Island to learn about and follow the activities surrounding our loggerhead turtles are the TurtleTime folks and the San-Cap Conservation Foundation group, they are both incredible in their efforts and we take our hat off to them!  Thanks guys!

Well, that’s it for this week…  Oh, here’s another beauty for you!

Have a good one,

Sandy and Robert

p.s.  Don’t forget to make your way over to our main website for all of your Sanibel and Captiva Island Real Estate needs.  See you soon!

Keeping Sanibel and Captiva Beaches Clean

There is so much to say on this topic and it is of such great importance to those of us who live on Sanibel and Captiva, that I don’t even know where to begin.

It goes without saying that the common sense rules of picking up your own trash and not allowing your pets to run wild or “do their business” on the beach, should be the easy part.  But, there are still a few, more than likely tourists, that do not abide by the rules and many pay the price for these irresponsible actions.

More than humans, the wildlife and plant life suffer the consequences for our careless mistakes and seemingly innocent overlooking of even just one or two of the rules.  “It’s just this once…” can negatively affect an ecosystem forever, so please keep the beach rules at the forefront of your mind at all times.

Here is a website of a non-profit certification council called Clean Beaches and their BlueWave Campaign for all national beaches.  Their site has some very good rules and guidelines, not only for beach-goers, but for beach community managers as well.

Sanibel and Captiva have not applied for their certification as of yet, but will more than likely apply in the future, guaranteeing once again how conscious our local government is about maintaining our pristine environment and reputation here on these islands.

Here are some simple beach rules that I found over at Sanibel Island.com

Oh, and I almost forgot to attach a surprisingly good pdf document here from the Florida government on Clean Marinas in Florida… on page 19, you will see Sanibel Island in all her glory!  It’s actually a very interesting document, you can download it or simply read it right here at Clean Marinas Booklet.

Ok, that’s it for now, until next week, have a good one…

Sandy and Robert

p.s.  Don’t forget to make your way over to our main website for all of your Sanibel and Captiva Island Real Estate needs.  See you soon!

Kayaking Off Sanibel Island

Bet you didn’t know about all the great kayaking adventures in and around Sanibel and Captiva, did you?

Well, I’m here to tell you that they are awesome and certainly for all ages and fitness levels.

There are a number of outfitting companies all ready to get you lined up and on your paddling way, whether striking out on your own or with a scheduled group excursion.  I’ve done both and they are each individually unique and great fun!

Here’s a list to the top 11 kayaking outfitters in and around Sanibel Island and their websites.  There’s even a fun interactive map located on the right side of the page.

Oh, I almost forgot, there’s also a 190-mile marked paddling trail through Lee County known as the Great Calusa Blueway that takes paddlers on an historic journey of the Calusa Indians that lived on these islands for centuries.  Really fascinating!  Be sure to check out their site!

That’s it for this week… Happy Paddling!

Until next post,

Sandy and Robert

p.s.  Don’t forget to make your way over to our main website for all of your Sanibel and Captiva Island Real Estate needs.  See you soon!