Sunset in Hernando Beach - As if the Sky is Playing Ball Friday evening we had dinner at the Hernando Beach Club that is located right on the Gulf of Mexico in Hernando Beach with fantastic views across the Gulf.    It was a nice evening out and after dinner, we went outside on the grounds to watch the evenings sunset. It sure was spectacular.  I took quite a few photos and was able to zoom in with my camera to capture the shape of the sun as it went down. The sky was a little cloudy and as the sun seemingly passed through these bands of clouds, the colors and images changed.  The sun appeared as a huge perfectly round sphere in the sky, it was as if the sky was playing ball!   Needless to say, I couldn't decide which of these photos I should share, so I'm sharing a few.  Hope you will ... 04/27/2013

Friday Foto:  A Real Mouth Full   Yesterday was a good day for fishing here in Hernando Beach, Florida.  The water in the Gulf of Mexico is getting warmer and mullet, trout, and snapper are all coming back into the area.  This pelican took advantage of someone's fresh catch and ended up with the leftovers after the fisherman was done cleaning. He sure has a real mouth full!     Interested in living in a waterfront community?  In Hernando Beach, Florida, you can enjoy boating, swimming, fishing, and water sports all right from your backyard.  Please contact me for more information about living in Hernando Beach and homes for sale in Hernando Beach, Florida.   04/26/2013

Another Dolphin Encounter Up Close in Hernando Beach Florida   It's not unusual to see dolphins cruising through the neighborhood canals of this waterfront community of Hernando Beach, Florida.  They are always a great sight to see although hard to catch on camera.  Most of the time, by time the trigger has been pushed, the camera catches the dorsal fin sticking out of the water or all you see is just a big swirl in the water where the dolphin had been! It was different yesterday evening when my husband and I were outside doing some work in the backyard.  The waters were churning where two or three dolphins were hunting together for their evening meal!  This particular dolphin came right up to our seawall swimming back and forth under the dock even coming out to the water for a split se... 04/16/2013

Annual Blessing of the Fleet in Hernando Beach Florida   When:  April 20, 2013,  3 PM Where:  Hernando Beach Yacht Club, 4163 Shoal Line Blvd, Hernando Beach, Florida Contact:  352-228-2709   Open to the Public - Free Admission   Annual Blessing of the Fleet - Have Your Vessel Blessed! The Hernando Beach Yacht Club is hosting the Annual Blessing of the Fleet again this year.  The public is invited to watch and boaters are encouraged to bring their boats for the blessing behind the club in the Snapper Canal.  Each blessed boat will receive a certificate of the blessing. After each boat is blessed, the vessels will parade through the canals of this waterfront community to the Gulf of Mexico for a wreath laying ceremony honoring mariners who have lost their lives at sea.   Long Seafarer Tr... 04/14/2013

Foto Friday:  Spring Duckling in Hernando Beach Florida With the warmer weather I am enjoying the outdoors again and of course, my own backyard is my favorite backdrop for Florida Wildlife Photography. The other day I was amusing myself feeding the fish and the sea gulls when this little duckling came bobbing along. The first baby duck of the season!  I was surprised to seem him all alone - Mama Duck was nowhere to be seen.  But little ducklings are born relatively independent, they can swim and find their own food immediately after hatching the egg.  This one nibbled a little on the bread that was floating on the water giving me time to get my camera and get a few nice shots.  Meanwhile, the drama intensified as a grey heron got interested in the action as well as a white egret... not ... 04/04/2013

Flipper Pays Visit to Hernando Beach Florida You just never know what you will see when you live on the water.  With the weather and the water getting warmer every day, the fish are coming back into the Hernando Beach canals followed by the dolphins hunting for the next meal. Yesterday, I saw three dolphins chasing through the canals of the waterfront community of Hernando Beach on two different occasions.  They are fast movers - especially when dinner is on their mind - and I was lucky to catch this one camera! The distance between the two ramps leading to the dock is about 9 1/2 feet.  That makes this dolphin about 6-7 feet long!         Interested in waterfront living?  Please contact me for more information about the waterfront community of Hernando Beach and available homes for sal... 04/03/2013

Home Prices in Hernando Beach Florida March 2013 Real estate market data for Hernando Beach, Florida provided by Silvia Dukes of Tropic Shores Realty.    Hernando Beach Home Prices   There were two waterfront home sales in Hernando Beach in March 2013,  one of these homes was located in the Central Hernando Beach neighborhood with indirect access to the Gulf of Mexico, the other was located in a direct Gulf access neighborhood.       The Hernando Beach Central home was a foreclosure sale with two bedrooms and two baths and 1244 square foot living area located on a freshwater canal.  The list price was $99,900 and the sales price was $100,000 with $3,000 seller concessions, buyers used FHA financing.    Home owners who located in indirect access areas of Hernando Beach and are interested... 04/02/2013

Sunday Reflections:  Good Night!   It's been a crazy week with several new listing, a contract, one early closing and one delayed closing.  Even today was a pretty full day although one of my goals is not to do business on Sundays.  Well, it does not always work out.  My blogging was pushed to the late evening hours every day including today so here's a good night with a gorgeous Florida sunset and wishing you a great week ahead!     03/10/2013

What is that Strange Bird On the Rocks? Usually, I'm pretty good identifying birds but this bird "on the rocks" in the Gulf waters by Hernando Beach has me guessing. I was thinking this strange bird might belong to the tern family that is distinguished from gulls by pointed bills and wings yet it seems to have somewhat longer legs than most terns and the coloration is not like any tern. Consulting my trusted field guide finally revealed the identity of this guy!  It's an American Oystercatcher and I don't remember seeing one before! Oystercatchers feed on mullusks that they dig for on coastal beaches and mud flats.   Isn't he pretty?     If you love bird watching, living in a waterfront community like Hernando Beach, Florida, will provide many birding treats and surprises!  We have wate... 03/09/2013

Home Prices in Hernando Beach Florida February 2013 Real estate market data for Hernando Beach, Florida provided by Silvia Dukes of Tropic Shores Realty.    Hernando Beach Home Prices   There were only four waterfront home sales in Hernando Beach in February 2013.  Two of the homes sold in Hernando Beach in December were located in the direct Gulf access neighborhoods and there was one each in the indirect Hernando Beach areas of Hernando Beach Central and South.     With 10 properties currently under contract, this number increased again for the second month in a row. Five homes went newly under contract in February still indicating good buyer traffic in this waterfront community.     Four of the homes under contract in Hernando Beach are awaiting the removal of contract contingencies ... 03/01/2013

Ducky Dock - Birding in Hernando Beach Florida These two Mallard ducks were settling in on a dock in Hernando Beach, Florida the other day during a rather rainy day.  You can see the raindrops creating rings on the water in the background.  The female on the right looks like she would rather not get her feet wet - or at least not both of them at the same time.      Mallard ducks are quite common in the Hernando Beach area in both the saltwater and freshwater canals of this waterfront community.  If you are a bird lover and enjoy bird watching, Hernando Beach is home to a many bird species from the smallest hummingbird, to the exotic wild parakeet, and the mundane mallard duck to the majestic bald eagle! You don't have to go far, birding in Hernando Beach, Florida, begins in your own bac... 02/22/2013

Letting Sleeping Ducks Float... in Hernando Beach, Florida   It is a well known fact that here in Florida we get a lot of snow birds - people from up North spending their winters in our warmer climate.  But we also get a nice variety of feathered winter visitors - real birds who are also escaping the cold. The other day I noticed a bunch of ducks floating around on one of our canals in Hernando Beach - they sure didn't look like the normal Mallards that are quite common around here.     These ducks are Redhead ducks, normally woodland ducks, who winter not only in Florida but across the entire southern United States and Mexico.  They seemed sleepy, drifting for hours in the same general area and resting.  In the sun, the males' red heads looked almost like polished copper in striking co... 02/19/2013

Home Prices in Hernando Beach Florida January 2013 Real estate market data for Hernando Beach, Florida provided by Silvia Dukes of Tropic Shores Realty.    Hernando Beach Home Prices   Hernando Beach home sales improved in January 2013 with seven closed transactions, more than double than the previous month. Five of the homes sold in Hernando Beach in December were located in the direct Gulf access neighborhoods and there was one each in the indirect Hernando Beach areas of Hernando Beach Central and South.     There are currently 9 properties under contract.  This also is an increase over the previous month.  Four of the homes under contract in Hernando Beach have direct Gulf access, two are located in Hernando Beach Central and three in the deed restricted neighborhood of Hernando Bea... 02/09/2013

Sunrise in Hernando Beach Florida   We have wonderful sunsets here on Florida's West Coast but early risers are rewarded with sunrises that are just as spectacular!  I took this photo yesterday morning coming out of our street while driving to an early morning appointment.  The sun came up like a huge glowing disc behind the tree line and turned the morning light into gold.  I just had to stop and get a snapshot!   Hernando Beach is a great community to live in and it is a community where you will frequently see your neighbors walking their dogs or just for exercise and fun.  Early risers sure are in for a morning treat in Hernando Beach!       Waterfront living is a lifestyle.  Working with a Hernando Beach Realtor who lives and stays active in the community will give you the local per... 02/07/2013

Leslie's Bistro - A Heart for Art in Hernando Beach Florida     Where:  3306 Shoal Line Blvd, Hernando Beach, Florida Breakfast & Lunch:  Monday to Sunday 8 AM to 3 PM Dinner:   Friday and Saturday 5 PM to 9 PM Special Events:  By arrangement What:  Casual Dining Restaurant, Daily Specials Cost:  Moderate Contact:  Leslie Phone:  352-610-4410        Leslie's Bistro Offers Great Food with a Heart for Art Leslie's is soon celebrating its first anniversary of serving up delicious meals in the beautiful waterfront community of Hernando Beach, Florida.  I wrote about the dining experience at Leslie's before and you can read about it here.  But the owner, Leslie, is also very engaging with the community itself and especially the art community. No wonder then that Leslie's Bistro has developed... 02/07/2013

How to Properly Dispose of Fishing Line   Fishing is a popular pasttime and sport in a waterfront community.  Living in Hernando Beach, we often find pieces of fishing line, short and long, left on a dock, on a shore, entangled in plants or even floating in the water. But the importance of proper disposal cannot be stressed enough.  Wildlife living around or in the water such as birds and fish will often get entangled in fishing line and eventually die, sometimes agonizingly slow, because the line is preventing them from swimming, flying and eating.  Sometimes you will see a bird with fishing line stuck in his feathers, fish with line hanging out of its mouth, or even turtles that get line wrapped around their feet or neck.  Unless they can somehow rid themselves from this line, these a... 01/29/2013

Foto Friday:  Ruffled Feathers Florida is usually nice and warm but temperatures can still fluctuate quite a bit in January, after all, the calendar says it's winter time!  We were able to enjoy a few weeks of summer-like temperatures going as high as the low 80's but yesterday a cold front moved in with wind and rain. While we can stay comfortable by turning on the heat, other creatures have to bear nature's changing moods.  I caught this heron by a dock in the waterfront community of Hernando Beach with it's ruffled feathers from the wind, trying to stay warm.  You can see in the background how the wind has whipped up the water in this waterfront community.   Lucky for us, these "cold spells" are short lived.  The weather forecast is calling for a warm up into the mid 70s this weekend... 01/17/2013

Riding into the Hernando Beach Sunset Another beautiful Florida January day comes to an end. Temperatures were in the high 70s with a pleasant breeze.  For a while it looked like we had dark clouds coming toward us from the north but they dissipated just in time to reward us with a peaceful sunset over the Gulf of Mexico.  We took this picture from the Hernando Beach Club watching the boats go by as they were riding into the Hernando Beach Sunset.  Enjoy.     01/13/2013

Home Prices in Hernando Beach Florida for December 2012  Real estate market data for Hernando Beach, Florida provided by Silvia Dukes of Tropic Shores Realty.    Hernando Beach Home Prices   The sales trend for waterfront homes in Hernando Beach remained stable in December 2012 with three closed transactions.    Two of the homes sold in Hernando Beach in December were located in the direct Gulf access neighborhoods and one sold property is located in Hernando Beach South with indirect Gulf access.   There are currently 8 properties under contract.  Are you thinking about buying a waterfront home in Hernando Beach, Florida?  Be sure to work with a REALTOR who knows the Hernando Beach neighborhoods and how they differ.  The size of your boat may determine where you want to conentrate on l... 01/04/2013

It was a beautiful winter day today in Hernando Beach, Florida, although it was a bit on the cool side with daytime temperatures only reaching into the mid 60s.   We decided to put the boat in water at the public boat ramp in Hernando Beach and take it for a ride through the Hernando Beach canals to the Gulf of Mexico.   It was late afternoon and the sun was already low on the horizon.  Only a few boaters were out braving the cool wind coming from the water making for a leisurely ride along the coast passing Hernando Beach waterfront homes.   Getting on your boat whenever you feel like it at a moment's notice - it's one of the pleasures of waterfront living.    Waterfront living is a lifestyle.  Working with a Hernando Beach Realtor who lives and stays active in the community will give ... 12/27/2012