Clearwater Florida Vacation- Of Girlfriends and Dorkfish

Once again we were able to trade our timeshare for the warmth of Florida. Indian Shores is located between the gulf and intercoastal waterway near Clearwater. We flew into Tampa and had no problems finding our way to the resort. Once checked in, we moved to the room which was comfortable although not luxurious by any standard. Six of us made the two bedroom unit a little tight. The gulf was across the street, an easy walk away, and the condo property had its own fishing dock located on the property. That allowed me to fish without having to buy a license. Just down the street was a miniature golf course which is an additional hobby my family shares. Many restaurants ran up and down the strip so there were lots to choose from.

As soon as we were settled in, it was off to the beach, me with my metal detector and my wife ready to find shells and sand dollars. We were also told to keep an eye out for sharks teeth that washed up periodically. The detector finds were meager at best. We ended the week with about enough for a cup of Seven Eleven coffee and one silver necklace pendent. Needless to say, that won't be the focus of the story. We did some better on shells with many scallops, slippers, and sharks eyes (a shell). We were NOT however, finding sharks teeth.

We decided to get a bite to eat in town so that I could stop at the bait shop and buy a setup to do a little fishing. Exploring a bit more, we found a nice shell store where we could identify what we had and look for rarer items for our collection. We spoke with the store owner, mentioning in passing that we had not found any sharks teeth. "Keep trying, they're out there."

We returned to the condo in time to head out onto the beach to watch a spectacular sunset. This was a real plus compared to the Atlantic side. Sunsets just seem to be a little more breathtaking than sunrises. I'm a morning person though, so I enjoy both. Heading back to the condo, I picked up the pole and headed out on the little fishing dock. I stuck a shrimp in the line and tossed it out. Within 30 seconds, I had a bite. No luck setting the hook. This went on a few times, all in short order before I got my first fish. It was a small salt water catfish. I took him off the hook and let him go. I would catch a couple more catfish and a small drum before I called it a night. At least I was getting bites. I looked forward to the next morning and another try.

If you have never listened to the comedy of Bill Engvall, you are missing something. I almost laughed myself off the road one time in Oregon. One of his stories is of the possibilities that dorkfish exist. As I walked out onto the dock in the slowly increasing light of morning, I could hear the occasional splash of fish jumping to grab the flies and mosquitos that got too close to the water's surface. I settled in, baited up and tossed the line out. Again it was only a very short time before I had my first catch on the line. This one felt kind of wierd, however. I pulled it in and lifted it out of the water and, lo and behold, there was a nice blue crab refusing to surrender my shrimp. Well first, I didn't have a bucket and second I didn't know if I could keep him legally so back he went. Fish continued to jump around the dock and out into the waterway. Then I heard it. Bill's dorkfish!. First I heard the splash, then the heavy thump as he hit his head on the bottom of the dock. I'll bet that set him swimming in circles for a while.

I tossed out again and as I waited for my next bite, I heard the heavy sound of flapping wings behind me. I looked back and there was a Great Blue Heron standing on the deck behind me. I grinned, said hello and went back to fishing. Pretty quickly I landed another small drum. That got her attention and she moved closer. I tossed the fish over and she quickly swallowed it down. The next was a large catfish that gave me a good battle. I turned him loose and soon hooked another bait thief. I tossed it over and down it went. By now she was standing about five feet from me watching every cast. Things slowed down and I headed back to the condo. I think she was sorry to see me go.

Once the family was up, it was back to the beach. The kids had plans for swimming that were dampened somewhat by the fact that the area was undergoing a red tide. Dead fish dotted the beach. We decided to move up the beach and see it if was any better. It wasn't. Looks like miniature golf time to me, then dinner, the beach and fishing time again. This night, though, the fish weren't interested.

The next morning, I snuck out for more fishing time trying to keep from waking anyone. I got down to the dock as the sun started to light the sky. I had barely baited the first hook when I heard familiar wings flapping. My girlfriend was back. Being the honest husband that I am, I had told my wife about my girlfriend. Shortly, down she came to meet her. I hooked into another small drum and tossed it to "Chica" as my wife named her. She quickly swallowed it. Next I hooked another small catfish. Lois (my wife) said, give it to her. I tossed it over to her. You would have thought I had thrown something foul her way. Her beak went into the air and she stalked away from the catfish, never even glancing at us. OK, I got the message.

That day would take us into Tampa to the Salvadore Dali museum. This was at my daughter's insistence. As it turns out, this was a high point of the trip. I was pretty unfamiliar with his work but as we made our way through the museum, it became more and more apparent that this man was a genius. If there was any doubt left in my mind, it was gone when I saw the large portrait of Lincoln that could only be seen from a distance. From close up, it was a series of very small pictures of various things.

We would travel to Disney World and Epcot the next two days, taking our walks on the beach each day and watching each evening sunset. As I went fishing each morning and evening. Chica would join me. One time a male Heron came-a-courtin. He did his little dance but she just chased him away. She already had a provider. I would catch a three pound drum which was my big catch. In addition, two large fish broke off. One was a ray I believe judging from the way the water was disturbed by the swimming. The other took my line screaming off my reel until I tried to slow it down. PING- it broke that 40 pound line without bending the pole. My guess was a shark.

By the next to last day, we had lots of shells and memories to file away. No sharks teeth though. We made one last stop to say goodbye to the shell shop owner (and his cat). "Find any sharks teeth?" "Not a one," I answered. "What are you looking for?" he asked. My wife pointed out one of the sharks teeth on a necklace on the counter. "That explains it. The ones on the beach are mostly fossil which are either black or grey."

Our last two walks o the beach produced three nice BLACK sharks teeth. Lois found the first so she gets the prize for this trip. Then I found a nice Mako tooth, small but perfect. We watched our last sunset for the trip. One the horizon was a cloud shaped like a mermaid. We watched her fade into the night. I found the silver necklace on this last night also. Overall lots to remember

Hope you have Treasured Pasts

Stuart (and Lois)