Monday

A local non-profit in Clearwater began a project called "Art Wrapped Signal Boxes" that has now spread throughout Pinellas County.  The one above is the signal box at Curlew and Bayshore, right next to the Pinellas Trail, one of the busiest intersections in the county since Curlew becomes the Dunedin Causeway on the other side of the street. Click on the link above to see the many designs on area signal boxes. What a great idea to take a drab metal box and make it a work of art!

 

After lunch, we took a bike ride south on the Pinellas Trail, all the way to the Alt-19 crossing in Clearwater. It was a beautiful afternoon, 82 degrees, the perfect temperature for bike riding.

 

  

We saw manatees swimming in Stevenson Creek beneath the trail.

 

 

They are huge! 

 

 

This one had an injured tail. Because they are so slow, they often get hit by boaters accidentally. Another guy on the bridge said they are hard to see when you are on a boat. He once jumped in the water from a boat and nearly saddled a manatee. 

 

This is the view of the creek west where it empties into St. Joseph Sound.

 

 

This is the view east where the creek flows out of Clearwater. 

 

On the way back, we cut over to Edgewater drive and rode along the park sidewalk so we could enjoy the water view and breezes. The wind was light today, about 7 mph. 

The tall palm trees along Edgewater always remind me of California, which John tells me just learned they would be losing a seat in the house while Texas is slated to pick up two. North Carolina picks up one.

 

 

Edgewater Park becomes Hubbard Park close to downtown Dunedin. We turned in at the marina.

This is the opening of the Dunedin Marina, recently dredged of silt.

 

 

Harbor view with the opening to St. Joseph Sound in the distance.

We rode down Victoria Drive to enjoy the shade and view. 

Victoria Drive ends at Weaver Park and the pier.  The sound is very shallow, about 4-6 feet depending on the tide, except for the channel.

John wanted to stop and see the new retention pond in Hammock Park, so we rode along the boardwalk and took more pictures.

It's a very interesting and creative solution; I'm not sure if it's apparent in these pictures how brilliant it is.

The bridge has been fixed where the city had to dredge to get the water to flow in and out of Cedar Creek, which flows out of Hammock Park and into St. Joseph Sound.

 

Our morning walk on the causeway was nice. It was 70 degrees when we began and 73 when we finished; afterwards we headed to Publix for a few items. (We were on our bikes.) 

 John, who is a much better photographer than I am, captured these birds from our causeway walk. He studies the view, fine tunes it, and then snaps the picture. I point and shoot. And for good measure, I'll take 6-7 of the same thing, hoping that at least one of them will work.

 

 

 You can see the amazing clarity in his pictures. I wish I had his patience.

John saw this clump of wildflowers growing in the yard of the house on the corner down from us and took this picture as well. My guess is that they are flipping it to re-sell. They've replaced windows, lights, and cabinets. They've painted inside and outside.

I think this might be a kit car made to look like an old Ford. But I'm not sure.

 

  

This dog is the real deal, who loves to cuddle in the mornings. I think he may finally be outgrowing his crazy chewing phase. He hasn't destroyed a toy for a while now, and he's leaving our hands, legs, etc. alone.

Today's bike routes to the causeway, Clearwater, Victoria Drive, Weaver Park

Miles walked: 8.9

Miles biked: 17.76