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Monday, March 15, 2010

Thank you, Dellora, for land preservation





When the wind was buffeting me mercilessly on my bike ride I found shelter - thanks to Dellora.

I never met Dellora.

But in 1964 she and her husband, Lester, bought beachfront property here North of Naples and gave it to Collier County to be a nature park.

And what a wonderful respite on a long, grueling bike ride. The mangroves protected me from the beastly wind. Through the dense thickets led a path to the lovely beach - fairly deserted this blustery day except for a mixed flock of birds all lined up to face into the wind. I don't know why.

The thickets of mangroves are a perfect buffer from the wind. If my land were getting hit by a Katrina I would be glad to have mangroves between me and the hurricane!





Al and I had been here before. A year ago on a family vacation we had canoed down the Cocohatchee River for a picnic on this very beach. Oranges, as I remember. And maybe some nuts.




Today I ventured up the lookout tower to see the expanse of mangroves all around. Perfect spot for today's snack.

This was a gift from Dellora and her husband to the future - a little sanctuary of nature protected from the endless development of the Florida coast.

We hope to leave our own gift to the future - a little patch of prairie in east central Indiana.

And maybe some day a lone biker will stop at the Steussy-Williams prairie and thank us for our gift to the future.

2 comments:

KC SW said...

fiatso birds! lol! and watch out for mangroves they have those spiders in them!!! gorgeous little sanctuary tho

Unknown said...

Yes, KC, and if you lean over to avoid the spiders you might tip over your kayak.