Bayshore Boulevard and Pirate Invasions

Bayshore Boulevard is a waterfront road along Tampa Bay, just south of the city. It has what is considered the world's longest continuous sidewalk at 4.5 miles and is very popular with joggers, bikers, roller-bladers, etc.

As such, we decided it might be a fun place to walk the dogs.

Don't they look excited?!

Anyway, we didn't walk the whole length of it (it was a tad hot out), but it was a nice stroll.

You get some pretty views of the downtown area from here.

We made sure to pull off the sidewalk for joggers and bikers.

We saw some pelicans (although I didn't get a good shot of them) and the dogs were completely fascinated  ("What in the hell are those?!")  We also came across this guy, who was unperturbed by the dogs or by me taking a photo of him.

I'm not sure what he is...a blue heron, perhaps? Dad, I think I need your bird guide from Naples.

We parked over by Jose Gaspar's pirate ship. Jose Gaspar, known by the nickname Gasparilla, was a pirate, known as the "last of the Buccaneers" who reportedly raided West Florida in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the fodder for much local folklore and legend. For some reason, some rich bored folks in 1904 staged a fake invasion of Tampa in Gasparilla's name, and now, every year, they have the Gasparilla Pirate Festival, which has been likened to New Orlean's Mardi Gras. It's held in January and is a big thing down here.

Anyway, here's the ship (and you can see our Pathfinder in the parking lot).

Here's a pic from the website for Gasparilla, just to give you an idea...

Anyhow, that's the latest from Tampa. Avast ye, mateys!