Mighty Rhine

And here's a photo of the Rhine itself. I'll admit its not the best photo: but its the only one I have. It was shot on our way to the airport in Dusseldorf.

Rhine Bridge

Speaking of international water bodies, here's a photo of a bridge that crosses over the Rhine River, in Germany.

Wetlands are not wastelands

I had no idea they had wetlands in the Bahamas: but they do have a lot of coastline, so they must have their fair share of mangroves.
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The sign says it all.
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This photo was submitted by Todd Hopkins.

The call of the gulf

The turtles cover quite a bit of sea between there short stay on the beach. Yet again another topic I have to research. This day the gulf was very calm, almost glass-like.

Another turtle nest

Here's another view of a sea turtle nest. It's a painstaking job finding and fencing off these nests. Hats off to the team and individuals that do it.

No lifeguard on duty

I've never been to a beach in southwest Florida that had a life guard on duty. That's a big difference to what I remember growing up and vacationing along the Maryland shore.

Shells of paradise

Never remove a live shell from the beach. Collier County Code Chapter 246, Section 246 - 28 (b) (13)

Do not disturb

Sea turtle nests are protected by Florida Law Chapter 370 and the US Endangered Species Act of 1973.

Turtle nesting season

Here's a photo of a protected turtle nest along the beach at Naples Lowermilk Park, looking north

Muscovy duck

This muscovy duck looks hungry. Someone once told me that the muscovies are the only ducks native to north America. I'll have to check up on that.

Do not feed ducks

But whatever you do, don't feed the ducks. That would be in violation of City of Naples Ordinance Section 26-4(c) ... and we all know that feeding leads to nuisance behavior.

Lowdermilk Park

Collier County has very nice parks, Lowermilk Park being

one of them.

Sea oat

If I'm not mistaken, here's a photo of a sea oat.

Florida statute 161.242

Sea oats are protected in Collier County. They provide habitat and keep the beach dunes stay stable. One day I'll memorize all the statutes. I've always admired the people that can rattle off the statutes by heart.

tourist attraction

Clam Pass get's quite a bit of us: not only by Collier residents, but also by visiting tourists from all over.

White mangrove

Recylced

Clam Pass

Clam Pass can get some tricky currents flowing in from the Gulf. Its a fun place to watch the tide flow in and out of the mangrove channel.

Turbulence

Speaking of strong currents, how about the vertical wind sheer you sometimes feel flying into a cloud. It's always hard to tell from the side windows of the plain whether the clouds ahead are going to be bumpy. I thought this one would bring us some turbulences, but it was a pretty smooth ride all the way through.

Gulf shore beaches

Speaking of strong currents ... that's one thing we typically don't get along the gulfshore beaches of southwest Florida. But currents can be tricky going in and out of the coastal islands.

Strong currents

Always be safe when swimming in any water body, particularly when currents are strong, or you are unfamiliar with the water body. This photo was taken at Collier's Ferry. It was a Sunday and many people were swimming around and jumping from the dock. But flow rates in the river were low: its summer and July rains had been scarce prior to Dolly.

Collier's Ferry, TX

Prior to bridges, the only way to get across the Neches was by ferry, thus the name of this park. The current can be swift at times. Prior to upstream Dam B, it routinely flooded above 30,000 cfs during the spring. That may have made the river impassable. But I would have to check up on that.

Water recreation

But that's not stopping these river recreationalists from having fun. Actually, this photo was taken a few miles downstream of the saltwater barrier at Collier's Crossing.

Do not anchor or dredge

Here's a view of the saltwater barrier from the freshwater side. The sign on the right is a warning not to dredge or anchor, because of the oil and gas pipeline crossing.

Stopping the salt since 2003

If you look closely, you can see the saltwater barrier in the background.

LNVA

Here's the sign along the road leading to the Saltwater Barrier on the Lower Neches River, in Texas. It was built as a joint venture between the US Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District and the Lower Neches Valley Authority.

Another shot of Dam B

Here's a zoomed in photo of Dam B. The river downstream of the dam is managed by Big Thicket National Preserve, a unit of the National Park Service.

Dam B

As promised, here's Dam B. It's managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers Ft Worth District. Interestingly, the Saltwater Barrier 80 miles downstream is managed by the Galveston District.

Bluff View Park, TX

Here's the sign at the bluff that looks over Dam B in Town Bluff, Texas ... along the Neches River. Tomorrow's photo will show you the view.

Sanibel beach

I took this photo from the airplane window, a few minutes before landing at RSW airport in Ft Myers. The way the islands sticks out from the coast apparently causes a gyre in the shallow gulf to the south, which is part of the reason that shelling is so good on the island -- the gyre is like a shell trap.

Windock 2

Wind sock pointing to storm cloud moving in from East onto Ochopee.