Golf to Beach

 

It was the almost perfect day. 

Chris on Hole 12
Jupiter dunes, Jupiter, FL
March 22, 2023

After our obligatory 1.5 mile morning dog walk, Chris and I managed a round of golf at a local course. The weather was fantastic, as it usually has been lately, and we enjoyed whacking the little ball with our clubs. Chris is doing much better hitting the ball for distance, although her accuracy has suffered a bit--but then that is the same problem for all golfers, the longer the ball is hit, the harder it is to get it to go where intended. Now if I can just get her to complete her follow through she will really see some distance improvement. We took pleasure in being together for the time we spent walking the course. I had an OK round with a few pars, but too many double bogeys. 

Sargassum on the Beach
Carlin Park, Jupiter, FL
March 22, 2023

For the evening, or rather Happy Hour, we headed off to one of our favorite beaches, Carlin Park. The beach was a mess. The advance portion of the massive sargassum belt may be arriving and the beach was definitely in need of some maintenance. Despite the sargassum, the beach was very enjoyable for Happy Hour and we enjoyed quite a show as the rough Atlantic waters hosted a large number of surfers.

Surfer on a Wave
Carlin Park Beach, Jupiter, FL
March 22, 2023

The beach was alive between the surfers and the birds. There seemed to be many more birds than normal. We saw the usual ospreys, seagulls, and sanderlings, but were also treated to pelican overflights and more terns than usual. There were at least 20 surfers catching waves all through the late afternoon and into the sunset. It was fun to watch them and some of them were very experienced. They had to be experienced to survive the rough surf and contend with conditions which resulted in the red flag for highly hazardous conditions.

It was, in short, a great day.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL