Someone who lived in Fort Myers once said she found Sanibel Island to be the most redeeming part of the experience. It was like going to Hawaii by crossing a bridge.

The shrimp-shaped barrier island, connected to the mainland by a causeway, is full of pristine beaches and tropical lushness native to Florida, but seldom seen anymore due to various stages of development.

The island is beautiful enough to have once inspired Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young to write a song about it. How's that for memorable?

MAINSTAY ATTRACTIONS

' She sells sea shells. Sanibel is renowned for its seashells, and has an entire Web site devoted to shell collecting on the beach. Careful, though. It's illegal to take live shells, and they must be returned to the water. Still, you're likely to see roaming packs of searchers, buckets and nets in hand, picking up such treasures as sand dollars. There's a reason the position collectors find themselves in for hours is called 'The Sanibel Stoop.' Speaking of beaches, Bowman's Beach, at the north end of Sanibel Island, is one of the prettiest. No hotels as far as the eye can see. It's pristine and has barbecue grills. What more do you need?

' The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, which takes care of the wounded animals from a large swath of the southwest coast and rehabilitates them with the goal of re-releasing them into the wild, has numerous educational opportunities for animal lovers of all sorts.

COMING ATTRACTIONS

' Every October, the J. N. 'Ding' Darling National Wildlife Refuge, named for Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist and pioneer environmentalist Jay Norwood Darling, hosts Ding Darling Days, a birding festival and 'eco-event.' Even on other days, the refuge has, at last count, 238 species of birds, more than 50 types of reptiles and 32 different kinds of mammals.

<< Previous Page