We took another quick trip to Gulf Shores over the weekend. Two weeks ago I cut one of my fingers while washing a drinking glass. I need to learn how to
gently handle a glass. Fifteen stitches, not fun - even worse than getting them was having them taken out. Even worse it didn't heel correctly, resulting in a trip to the doctor at the beach, and one the next day, just before we arrived home.
Anyway, we made the most of the trip with the time we had.
A lot of people were fishing, but we didn't see anybody catching anything. This time of year is hit and miss from the shore, mostly miss. There are not any bait fish close to shore to attract bigger fish. Fishing structure in deep water will catch some fish on a good day this time of year. Otherwise, if fishing from a seawall like this, the occasional hungry fish swimming by will grab the bait.
This guy was perplexed as to whether he had a fish on the hook or not. He'd open his spool, and line would come off; he'd reel a little and all he could get is a tugging resistance. My experience has been that if I am fishing in current like there is here and wonder whether I have a fish on the line, I haven't got a fish on the line.
Blue herons are a common site on the coast all year. This one is resting on a seawall near a marina waiting on something tasty to come floating his way.
Canals like this weave all though Orange Beach and Gulf Shores, Alabama. Living on a canal is great if the homeowner has a boat. From here, he could be in the Gulf in minutes or in Mobile Bay in less than an hour via the Intracoastal Canal.
This man wasn't catching anything either. If he were in that same spot a couple months from now it would probably be a different story. It's nice to be on the water on a pretty last day of January. Always nice to bring a fish home though.
It is hard to tell by this photo, but this is Robinson Island.
Robinson Island is part of a three island chain near where Terry Cove meets Perdido Pass. The other islands are Bird Island and Walker Island. In 2004 the City of Orange Beach bought Robinson Island for $3.46 million. The previous owner had tried unsuccessfully for several years to get all of the necessary government approvals so that he could develop the island. He wanted to build an island community - no bridge; the owners would have to be ferried from the mainland. Anybody who would pay what it would cost to live on a barrier island at the mouth of Perdido Pass would have had to have been crazy (IMO). The city will keep it in its natural state for the good of both wildlife and boaters. In the summer these island beaches are very popular.
Perddio Pass Bridge
The new Turquoise Place on the Gulf is in the background. The Turquoise was originally going to consist of four towers. The state of the economy, including plunging coastal real estate values, has put the other two on indefinite hold. The four towers were going to be built to varying heights - the tallest at 33 stories. One sold preconstruction in the first tower for $4.3 million. Others were selling for as little as $2.5 million. The patios of these condos are bigger than most beach condos once were on the Alabama Gulf Coast. I'm not sure how much one could be purchased for today from a motivated seller, but it might be
considerably less.
We didn't see many shells on the beach, but on her last trip, my mother must have. She has shell collecting down to a science. Out of tens of thousands of shells she has picked up, she hasn't found one artifact. I would guess that she has her eyes trained for shells, not rocks and metal. She doesn't care. She loves shells.
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