Boca Grande, FL Day Trip

I like day trips. And from my location in S.W. FL I can get to a lot of beautiful locations and back home in one day. So, now that I don't have to be to work at noon (or just getting out of work then), Bob and I took a day trip to Boca Grande (Gasparilla Island), just about 5 miles via Charlotte Harbor - but 30 miles (one way) via car - which is how Bob and I went.  Interesting detail about getting there - there is a $4.00 fee to get over the bridge to the Island but my Lee County transponder isn't accepted - we were told this is a private bridge. (I don't understand a private bridge with a fee on a public road but decided to not hold up traffic while I questioned the fact.)

Locally Boca is known for a couple of things besides fishing and beaches: it is 1. the Bushes' Florida winter vacation site and 2. Iguanas.  I didn't go to see either of these attractions but to see the private Johann Furst library I'd read about some time ago.  

It was built (or endowed by) Mr. Furst who wanted it to be a library, resource center and community center for his favorite FL vacation location.  At the time there was no public library on this small island - which is a part of two different counties (the southern half is part of Lee County, the northern portion is part of Charlotte County).

The library is charming as you can see in these photos.  With doors made from the hard local cypress trees and the landscaped courtyard, it is a charming, relaxing place to visit.  There are two display cases of named local and national sea shells, a small lending library, a nice selection of local history books that cannot be checked out and a juvenile book room.

There is also a locked displayed case with a page from the Book of the Dead ( "The Book of Dead" is the usual name given to the ancient Egyptian  funeral text, a page from the Gutenberg Bible, a page from the Vulgate (early Catholic translation) and a "stone tablet" (literally a stone with text) http://www.bl.uk/treasures/gutenberg/makingbible.html .   These are all very nice holdings for a small community island library!

Lee County has since opened a small lending library on the island in a very nice building so the small year 'round  community does have access to a lending library with access to the books in the county-wide system.

There were lots of tourists, the day was beautifully sunny and warm, the beaches were windy and the water cool but since we weren't there for shopping or the water, we were very pleased with the day's outing.  We visited both libraries, didn't stand in line to eat and didn't run over an Iguana - or tourist (both of which  you just have to watch out for) so we had a successful day trip.  I'll try to add a couple of the very nice photos I was able to take.