The Pier

Just back from a holiday in Florida.  Not a photographic trip, but as usual I took my 100-400 lens, my old camera body and was rarely without my pocket camera (which now has pocket dust inside the lens!).

As last year we went to Naples on the west coast; relaxed atmosphere, some good beaches and, for me both a fishing pier and a sprinkling of birds that can be snapped without having to disrupt the holiday.

The pier is one of those places that has rapidly become special to me.  It's near where we stay, and most days I head down to catch the sunrise and hopefully a few fish while Kay catches a last few ZZZs.  The sun wasn't always out

but when it is the location is just great.

My first morning the dolphins were in (only one fish snatched this year), a shark cruised past and at one stage 3 ospreys were circling overhead.  A snowy (little) egret has realised there can be easy pickings from the fishermen, and one day it looked as though an osprey was trying the same gig.

 

The more unusual sighting from the pier this year was of several magnificent frigate birds, one of which cruised close enough to enable some snaps.

So what more could you want - a sunset maybe?  The pier does that too.

No surprise then that this was the spot my friend Simon and I chose to visit to ease the sorrows of the last morning.

I'll post a few more shots in the next week or two (god knows I don't see me taking many here unless the weather changes substantially) but if you want to have a browse through the photo album just click HERE.