"Do you feel it?" our neighbor asked. "The humidity is down. It's about to become perfect weather!" Seems like everyone is almost giddy as the extreme heat and humidity are moving along and the sunny days in the mid-80's are pushing their way in. Our lawn guy informed me that starting October 1st, he will only be coming every two weeks because the grass just doesn't grow that fast in the winter. Sounds like an added bonus!
Jay and I took advantage of the break in heat and humidity to stroll along the harbor. The brackish water and the indigenous vegetation growing (and subsequently dying) give the water a brownish tint, resembling a giant pot of brewed tea. The harbor is not incredibly deep. The deepest parts are 18 - 22 feet deep, and mostly in the middle. It's well marked for boat navigation, and as we walked, we watched the boats zip under the bridges and head out to the Gulf of Mexico. Many boats come from one of the channels that were dug out to give waterfront access to properties in the area. This is the area Hurricane Charley wrecked havoc on in 2004 when it took a surprise turn up the Peace River instead of making its forecasted landfall in Tampa. The communities built back up, and we can tell that quite a few buildings are quite new.
Along the path, we stumbled across these artistic palm trees. One is standing upright while the other is bent over, almost to a 90 degree angle, sitting on a sun dial, in remembrance of the exact time Hurricane Charley hit Punta Gorda.
We stopped by Harbor Scoops for ice cream on our way back to the Jeep. We kept laughing that we are now entering into the busy season. It's the complete opposite from up North, where the winters are the off-season and summers are peak. As we are into our first week of autumn, I keep hearing the local joke "The only things that changes color down here are the license plates!" Looking forward to what "snow bird season" will bring.
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