With a sunrise run along the beach high on my To Do List, I raced out the door with camera in hand and sprinted to the bay side of Captiva Island for a quick snapshot of the sunrise Tuesday morning.  However, clouds in the horizon hindered my highly anticipated view.

After snapping a few pictures of the cloudy sunrise, I darted back to the gulf side of the island for a run along the beach.   The soft sand prevented me to get a good footing and given that Captiva is the seashell capital of the world, I found myself distracted by the volumes of shells that glistened on the shore.  As I stopped to collect a few shells to bring back as presents for my daughters, a Great Blue Heron searched for breakfast along the shore.

After about a quarter mile of struggling with the soft surface on the beach, I cut through public park to find a path to run along.  As I followed the path, it gave me an opportunity to explore some of the private roads that wind through Captiva.

For the next couple of miles, I weaved in and out of private driveways and backyards of vacant vacation rentals.  My husband would have scolded me for snooping and being nosy, but at least I made a mental list of places I would love to stay when we visit Captiva again.  And fortunately, I had my camera to remember them all!

Between sneaking through admiring vacation rentals, snapping pictures and collecting seashells, my running time suffered a bit.

3 miles

Time 31:10

Pace 10:24