My new Facebook Pages:
Colorado Travel Guide:
http://tr.im/Ludy
Gulf Shores, Alabama
http://tr.im/Lucv
Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alabama. Show all posts
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Monday, June 29, 2009
A Coral Snake in Coosa County Alabama
There was an interesting article in the June 29 edition of the Birmingham News. A coral snake was captured and released in Coosa County, Alabama. They are rare in coastal Alabama and very rarely have been sighted this far north.
Coral snakes have the most toxic venom of any snake in North America. However, they are less likely to strike than pit vipers like rattlesnakes, copperheads, and water moccasins.
The saying is "red, then yellow, kill a fellow; red, then black, you're OK, Jack." I think I'd second guess myself with the rhyme. I'd just take a picture from a distance.
Here's a blog account of the story:
http://hogfoot.blogspot.com/2009/04/coosa-coral.html
Coral snakes have the most toxic venom of any snake in North America. However, they are less likely to strike than pit vipers like rattlesnakes, copperheads, and water moccasins.
The saying is "red, then yellow, kill a fellow; red, then black, you're OK, Jack." I think I'd second guess myself with the rhyme. I'd just take a picture from a distance.
Here's a blog account of the story:
http://hogfoot.blogspot.com/2009/04/coosa-coral.html
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Digging for Shells - Orange Beach, Alabama
Kathy and I spent the weekend at Orange Beach, Alabama in my parents condo. My mother is a master shell hunter. She has found tens of thousands of beautiful shells over the years. She spends hours walking the beaches picking up shells, coral, sand dollars and anything else that washes up on the beach. She even gathers abandoned T-shirts and beach towels. No relaxing with a good book for her. When she hits the beach it's all work.
She finds most of her shells by digging. Most beach tourists would love to take home just a few good shells like she finds, but very think to dig. Unless you pay a little attention to detail, digging is not likely to produce much. Find a good spot, and you can take home a bag full.
The majority of the good shells that are found digging at the Alabama Gulf Coast get deposited there by dredging. The hurricanes and tropical storms of the last few years took away most of the sand and leveled the dunes. The State of Alabama has spent millions of dollars putting the sand back, most of it by dredging the sea. Tons of sand has been deposited on the beach, and along with it all of the stuff small enough to get sucked up the dredging pipes.
Occasionally a good spot for digging can be found just by looking for spots where somebody else has dug. Most people are good about filling in their holes, but unless it has recently been smooved over by beach maintenance workers, you will still be able to spot depressions in the sand. Try first at the edges that haven't been dug and work your way back away from the depression. Lots of small broken shells on the surface indicates that there are probably better, unbroken shells underneath.
Don't dig near the shore line in the space that high tide covers. Move back aways. Don't dig in the dunes. That's not good for the beach and will get you in trouble.
You don't need big garden tools to dig in soft sand. Small tools work fine and are less likely to damage shells.
It's permissable to dig small holes on the Alabama beaches. It's not a lot different than building sand castles, Whether you're digging for holes, or building sand castles, fill in your holes when you're done. Holes on the beach can be dangerous.
She finds most of her shells by digging. Most beach tourists would love to take home just a few good shells like she finds, but very think to dig. Unless you pay a little attention to detail, digging is not likely to produce much. Find a good spot, and you can take home a bag full.
The majority of the good shells that are found digging at the Alabama Gulf Coast get deposited there by dredging. The hurricanes and tropical storms of the last few years took away most of the sand and leveled the dunes. The State of Alabama has spent millions of dollars putting the sand back, most of it by dredging the sea. Tons of sand has been deposited on the beach, and along with it all of the stuff small enough to get sucked up the dredging pipes.
Occasionally a good spot for digging can be found just by looking for spots where somebody else has dug. Most people are good about filling in their holes, but unless it has recently been smooved over by beach maintenance workers, you will still be able to spot depressions in the sand. Try first at the edges that haven't been dug and work your way back away from the depression. Lots of small broken shells on the surface indicates that there are probably better, unbroken shells underneath.
Don't dig near the shore line in the space that high tide covers. Move back aways. Don't dig in the dunes. That's not good for the beach and will get you in trouble.
You don't need big garden tools to dig in soft sand. Small tools work fine and are less likely to damage shells.
It's permissable to dig small holes on the Alabama beaches. It's not a lot different than building sand castles, Whether you're digging for holes, or building sand castles, fill in your holes when you're done. Holes on the beach can be dangerous.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Gulf Shores, Alabama Photos
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.
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.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
