Ode to Wonderful Mandahl Bay

I love getting home before 5 pm, and I try to make this happen as frequently as possible. It is equally rewarding to wake up at 5 am. Why do you ask? Well, because that is the time I sit on my porch and stare out at wonderful Mandahl Bay.

What an incredible place. There are sure to be dozens of pelicans flying in formation, divebombing the baitfish in the bay below. Red tailed hawks screech overhead. Kestrels are abundant and hang out watching me from the powerlines above my house. Between my and my view, I have seen as many as eleven iguanas tanning in the trees. I especially value the changing colors of the water. The photo attached here is from a day where the waves were crashing especially hard, but other days are completely calm.

Knee surgery in December derailed my running regiment, but it has finally picked back up as I put laziness on the backburner. Running down the hill and out to the beach is a pleasure only increased by playing Led Zeppelin through my earphones. Who knew exercise could be relatively painless when you mix in some environmental love?

Over the coming months, I will try to give details on how we almost lost this incredible bay to development. I consider myself pro-development, also. But to concrete and dock such a valuable environmental asset was too much for me to take. I was lucky enough to find hundreds, maybe thousands of people that shared my point of view and were (and are) willing to work hard to preserve such a place. I often talk to these people about our favorite things to do- which involves sitting on our porches and watching the life in Mandahl Bay. What a truly incredible place. Tourists and locals alike, take the time to check this place out, you will not be disappointed.