Across the bay

Posted on September 23, 2021 by dinajohnston

The view of downtown Tampa from Ballast Point Park. It wasn’t that early in the morning in the beginning of August when I stopped by. I had been out running errands and had my camera in the car so I stopped for a quick walk on the fishing pier. The park sits down in south Tampa and from the pier you can see across to downtown.

There wasn’t many birds around the pier but I caught this scruffy young grackle with a snack left over from some bait fish.

I caught this “fever’ of stingrays cruising by the pier.

The views from across the bay include the Tampa port, the electric plant over in Apollo Beach, the downtown skyline and some buildings going up on Bayshore Boulevard.

I caught this squirrel with a snack in the parking lot next to my car.

One last snap of Tampa through the trees (this was taken with my phone so you can see how far away I was).

Late day walk at the pier.

Posted on February 18, 2021 by dinajohnston

Another “get out of the house” moment. I headed down to the St. Pete Pier late in the day in early December. I knew it would be crowded but went early enough before the dinner crowd. Standing out on the pier, I could see Tampa across the bay in the bottom shot.

The new cool sculpture on the pier. The first commercial airline started right here back in 1914 with a commercial flight from St. Pete to Tampa with paying customers.

Heading towards the end of the pier.

Looking up at the back of the building on the pier, it looks a little like a space ship.

Looking towards St. Pete, the sun was just starting to go down.

Walking around past the park, I could see a dolphin swimming around by the pier.

Looking out on the bay, the sun had gone down behind me.

As it gets dark, the netting over the grounds before the pier turns pink. The crowds were starting to come in so I headed home for dinner.

Tampa across the bay.

Posted on July 30, 2020 by dinajohnston

A fever of stingrays came by just as I walked out on the Safety Harbor fishing pier. They must call a group of stingrays a fever because you’re going to get a fever if you step on one. I’ve seen grown men cry from getting stuck with a barb from one after not doing the stingray shuffle. It’s supposed to be very painful. Luckily I don’t know that personally. Brett and I saw a man get stuck in the ankle at the beach a few years back. He could barely talk and was turning blue. It was a big barb. I helped his wife pack up their stuff and 2 sons and Brett helped him walk back to their car. We told them to stop at the ranger station on the way out to get some relief. The rangers would have put his foot and ankle in a big bucket with the hottest water he could stand to help stop the pain along with pain relievers.

Standing at the end of the fishing pier, I could see Tampa. Zooming in I could make out the airport and the football stadium. It was hot and hazy in early June.

Not many people on the pier.

I found some osprey taking a break in the water in the shallow area and one flew right over my head.

People have started putting locks on one end of the boardwalk. What they may not know is that so many people were putting love locks on the bridge in Paris that part of the bridge collapsed. They have since removed all of the locks in Paris but now people are putting them everywhere. This is symbolic of “locking” in your love for someone. Eventually the rangers will take them down so the rail of the boardwalk doesn’t collapse and cause injury to someone. And those locks are going to rust quickly in the salt air.

A small mangrove growing along the water.

Grasshoppers are everywhere.

More from the sailboat sunset

Posted on May 14, 2020 by dinajohnston

More shots from my stop over to Davis Islands to get some sunset shots. These were taken earlier in then night near the Marjorie Park Marina.

Tampa late in the day.

Across from the yacht basin.

Downtown Tampa far off to the right of the yacht basin.

A beautiful night to be out. This was in mid-March when the weather was still cool.

Almost dark.

“Don’t let the sun go down on me”

Posted on April 30, 2020 by dinajohnston

Royal terns and willets on the sea wall across from the boat ramp at Davis Islands.

Pelicans and a great egret hanging around the island.

The view of Tampa across from the Davis Islands yacht basin right before sunset.

Watching the sun go down early in the quarantine in late March.

It was a quiet night. Most people were sitting in their cars watching the sun go down instead of getting out and walking around the small beach there. I kept saying I was going to get back over there but I just never did.

SkyWatch Friday

Crossing Tampa Bay

Posted on January 16, 2020 by dinajohnston

It’s funny that we took 3 ferry rides while we were in Boston but have never taken the ferry across Tampa bay. It’s hard to do fun tourist things when you are working and on a schedule. When my sisters came to visit we booked the ferry from St. Pete to Tampa. It’s a little less than an hour each way. It was fun hanging out and being a tourist. As we headed to Tampa we got close to the TECO electric plant. It was so nice out that there were a lot of boats on the water.

In the middle of the bay you could see Tampa.

Passing by the ports and Davis Islands yacht basin.

We were close to the big boats at the port.

Heading into the channel. I took a ton of pictures on the trip so more to come.

SkyWatch Friday

Ballast Point

Posted on December 26, 2019 by dinajohnston

I found some older picture that I took with my phone from the fishing pier at Ballast Point park in south Tampa.

Taken back in the summer, I had stopped for a quick walk before meeting Brett for dinner after work.

Dark clouds were moving in and you could barely make out the Tampa skyline across the bay.

Of course I shot one of the crow with the missing foot sitting on the end of the dock. He came pretty close. I think he was looking for a handout.

SkyWatch Friday

The Tampa art festival

Posted on November 18, 2019 by dinajohnston

Several years ago Brett and I went to an art festival in downtown Tampa and I just recently found these old pictures. In late February it’s usually beautiful, sunny and cool.

Looking across the bay at Davis Islands.

The University of Tampa minarets in the sun.

Most people are there looking at the art and I’m running around taking pictures of the birds. Mostly gulls.

image-in-ing: weekly photo linkup Our World Tuesday Graphic

Sunsets never get old.

Posted on November 7, 2019 by dinajohnston

These are some older pictures I took years ago on a sunset walk around the yacht basin at Davis Islands in south Tampa. I have not been over there in a long time and was recently thinking I needed to go over there to walk. I’m sure the view is the same.

Sunsets with boats never get old.

SkyWatch Friday

Walking across Tampa bay

Posted on September 6, 2018 by dinajohnston

A common loon swimming under the bridge. Loons are usually only here in the winter so this guy is either really early or really lost.

The usual pelicans hanging around the bridge.

Royal terns were also there.

Far off in the distance we could see dolphins. It looked like they were playing but I think they were herding the fish close to the causeway to feed off of them.