The Sarasota County Convention and Visitors Bureau has just installed a new high-definition BeachCam on Siesta Key beach. Watch beautiful panoramic views of the beach as the camera pans back and forth 180 degrees.  You’ll be amazed by the clarity of the video. See for yourself why our sugar white sand and pristine gulf waters bring more than 1 million visitors per year to Siesta Key!  Â
Click Here to View the BeachCam
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I have lived in Sarasota county for over 25 years but until today had never been on Mote Marine’s Nature Safari. It was amazing! My best friend from high school was here from Missouri visiting for the week and she booked us this wonderful boat ride. There were six of us. Three adults and three children, we had the boat to ourselves along with the boat captain and his seven year old daughter and our wonderful marine biologist Sondra.
Yesterday,I joined nearly 1000 people on Siesta Key beach for “Hands Across The Sand” a non-political protest against off shore drilling on our coasts. Saying NO to oil dependency and YES to clean energy.
It was a gorgeous day on the beach. The water was 90 degrees and I believe the air temperature was 95 but felt like 105. I know I was feeling like I could melt and that cool white sand was begging me to lay down on it.
The water was again crystal clear as it has been the last several times I’ve been to the beach this month. There were very small waves but for the most part it was a calm day on the water. That may change with some up coming storms in our forecast but not for long.
Here are a few pictures from my day on the beach.
Hands Across The Sand-Siesta Key Beach
Today I ventured down to Casey Key Beach in Nokomis. We manage a few properties there and I find it very peaceful and private. Nokomis is a few miles south of Sarasota.
The water was crystal clear today. I saw a family of Manatees swim right in front of me! The fish were out in full force and swam very near to the shore which made some very interesting snorkeling! I wish I had an under water camera to share those pictures with you.  Â
  Today and tomorrow, anglers in Florida can fish for saltwater species without fishing licenses. The state promotion, designed to change perceptions about Florida waters in the wake of the oil spill comes just in time for Father’s Day! I saw a lot of boats out on the water today with people fishing, so it must be working.
This live video of our Siesta Key area beaches was taken from the air on Saturday, June 12. As you can see, our waters are crystal clear and we have No Oil on our beaches.  Our appreciation goes out to the folks over at crystalclearflorida.com for providing us all with these amazing videos of our beautiful beaches. If you would like to see their other videos please head on over to their website.Â
Enjoy the view!
A quote from their website “Hands Across the Sand is a movement made of people of all walks of life and crosses political affiliations. This movement is not about politics; it is about protection of our coastal economies, oceans, marine wildlife, fishing industry and coastal military missions. Let us share our knowledge, energies and passion for protecting all of the above from the devastating effects of oil drilling.” to read more from their website and to find a location near you please click http://www.handsacrossthesand.com/.
Vic and I will be going to the Siesta Key Beach for this show of support on June 26th and hope to see many of you there that live in this area. NO to Offshore Oil Drilling, YES to Clean Energy is what the message is all about.
This movement started in Florida but you can set up a meeting place anywhere you live. Go to the hands across the sand website and there will be instructions on how to set something up in your area. Please get involved.
Here is a video of one such gathering at St. Pete Beach…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhU7_edQ2Wk
If you’ve watched the news at all lately I am sure you’ve seen the oil covered birds and beaches and even talk of the oil reaching Florida beaches. Let me start by saying WE HAVE NO OIL on our white sandy beaches here in Sarasota County. Had to get that out there in case you don’t read the rest of the blog.
We just had friends visit us from Oregon and were surprised to hear that when they told their friends they were coming to see us 90% of them said “why would you want to go to a beach with tarballs.” The media is not our friend. It is very similar to hurricane season. If a hurricane is any where near Florida people think the entire state is being blown away.
As someone that lives here and depends on tourism to make a living we are constantly watching what is going on in the gulf. I spent all last weekend on the beaches with my company. I smelled the sand, looked at every black rock , watched the pretty white birds fly by and felt sad for all that has changed for the people in areas that the oil has struck.
If you are worried about your vacation plans I suggest looking into insurance plans. Unfortunately, man-made disasters are not a covered reason to cancel or interrupt your trip. Therefore, the only kind of trip cancellation plan you can get that will cover you at all is one with the “Cancel for any reason” coverage. Keep in mind that it’s a “Cancel For Any Reason†and not “Interrupt For Any Reason†plan. Be sure to research your options with an agent. One I found online was http://www.tripinsurancestore.com/
If you would like to follow the progress on the deepwater horizon response here is a link to their facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DeepwaterHorizonResponse?v=wall
We will be posting daily updates about our beaches on our Beach Conditions page: Click Here for updates. As for yesterday, the water was warm (88 degrees I believe) the sun was even warmer (90 degrees) and the sand was white and cool as ever! Welcome to June!
No Oil on Our Beaches
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Comments From Our Guests
Author: Home & Condo Rentals May 06We would really love to hear from the guests who have stayed in our rental properties! Please take a moment and share some of your Siesta Key vacation experiences and memories with us. What did you do?  Where did you stay?  Where did you eat? Did you take home any special treasures? How did you like our gorgeous white-sand beaches? What is your favorite memory? What would you say were must-sees and must-dos for others planning to visit our beautiful island?
Come on folks.. share your memories with us!
Many thanks!
Vic Harris
FindSiestaKeyRentals.com