Beaches

A trip to Florida would not be complete without some trips to the beach.  We spent an entire day, (including sunset) at Indian Rocks Beach near St. Petersburg.  We also spent some time at Cocoa Beach on the Atlantic Ocean, St. Augustine Beach, also on the Atlantic and St. Pete's Beach on the Gulf of Mexico.

We really enjoyed our trips to the beach.  We have already decided we will spend more time at the beach on subsequent trips to Florida.  We liked the theme parks a lot, but the beach was even better.  It was very relaxing to hear the waves come in and to walk along looking for shells and watching birds.  We swam in the Gulf of Mexico, which was a lot of fun too.

From the beaches we visited, there seemed to be more seashells on the Gulf of Mexico than the Atlantic.  We found the best ones at St. Pete's Beach.  St. Augustine Beach had the best sand of any of the beaches we visited.  

While at the beaches, we saw many different birds and animals.  It was fun watching tiny clams dig their way back into the sand when the waves would expose them.  We saw brown pelicans glide through the air, laughing gulls, sanderlings, terns, snails and many other critters.

Recommendations

• Stop at several beaches.  Each one is different.  Try to see at least one  on the ocean and one on the gulf if you can. 
• Watch a sunset over the gulf or sunrise over the ocean.  Both if you can.  It's very beautiful and very peaceful.
• Look for the different critters there are to see.  There are a variety of birds and you may see crabs, clams and fish too.  

Did you know Florida is second to Alaska in coastline for a US state. Including indentations, Florida has over 8,000 miles of coast.