May is made for beaches, boating and adventure

We’ve earned spring, and it finally has arrived. Forget cold wind and long, wet days. I can tell May is going to treat us right, in the woods and on the water.

The month has five Saturdays, so it’s bound to be lucky for working stiffs and students. Here are my picks for each weekend. Enjoy.

. THIS WEEKEND: The grand opening of the Bonita Springs Nature Place is set for 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 1, on Kent Road in Bonita. Last time I was at Bonita City Hall, talk of this opening was the buzz. Why not check it out when the festivities are happening?

Walker Farms will sell honey; Royal Scoop will provide ice cream; there will be a raffle, live music and a signing of local writer Charlie Sobczak’s latest book, “Living Sanibel.” From U.S. 41, take West Terry Street east over the Interstate 75 overpass. Kent Road is about a half-mile on the right. What’s it all about? Gopher tortoises, butterflies and bees, for starters. Call city hall for details at 949-6262.

. MOTHER’S DAY: Free aquarium tickets are available for mothers on May 9 at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, a city often thought of as too far away but quite close enough to Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties to merit a visit.

Learn how alpha female seahorses rule, how sea turtle moms lay eggs on Florida’s coasts year after year and how mom (and dad) convict fish get room service meals delivered by their young. To get free admission, mothers have to pay for a child’s ticket. Moms also get a 10 percent discount in the gift shop. This gift shop is fabulous enough to deserve a visit on its own. I do tons of holiday shopping there.

Mote also invites moms and their little ones to a special Mother’s Day session of Mommy and Me on Saturday, May 8, for a 10 a.m. marine education program. Registration is required.

Get details at www.mote.org or call (941) 388-4441.

. MAY 15: If you’re a runner, sign up. If you’re a beach-goer, plan a trip to watch. Lovers Key State Park will host the fifth annual Lovers Turtle Trot on Saturday, May 15.

The 5K course traverses three barrier islands and takes athletes through a shady maritime hammock ecosystem. It ends with a finish at the picturesque beach pavilion.

The race is open to competitive runners, walkers and first-time race participants. Proceeds benefit the Friends of Lovers Key, a volunteer nonprofit group that’s raising money for a visitor education center to be built at Lovers Key.

Registration is $20 - $25. Visit www. FriendsOfLoversKey.com or call 463- 4588. The start is at 8 a.m. and the park is at 8700 Estero Blvd., Fort Myers Beach.

. MAY 22 and 23: Go boating. Get a jump on crowds. If Memorial Day Weekend is amateur fest, then the weekend before is a brilliant time to go shark and tarpon fishing, kayaking, cruising, dining out at island restaurants and barrier-island beach walking. You won’t want to be at the boat ramp or in the Intracoastal Waterway from May 29 — 31, that’s for sure. Unless you like people watching under pressure and lots of wakes.

. MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND: Plan your summer camping trip while you grill your holiday meal. In the time it takes you to barbecue chicken or smoke ribs, you can figure out where to take your family camping. Most parks and preserves with camping options are now available for booking via the online service Reserve America.

Tip: To get the most value out of your vacation dollar, limit the amount of time you waste driving and maximize your actual camping time.

The www.ReserveAmerica.com interface is straightforward. Enter your ZIP code and arrival date in the search form and click. You get a list of campgrounds sorted by distance. Additional information about the campground is provided with graphical symbols that tell you, for instance, if the campground has RV hookups, boating and swimming options or allows pets.

The best part is that you can view a simple map of the campground, which helps select your individual campsite. Camping blogger Roy Scribner offers this tip at Active.com: If you are camping with young children, pay particular attention to what is behind your campsite and where the main traffic arteries are within the campground. “When I am planning a trip to a campground that I have not stayed in before, I always locate the campground on Google Maps and use the satellite view to check out the area,” Scribner says.

Of course, summer is not always considered camping season in Florida, but heat and bugs can end up being memory-builders. Some of my family’s favorite trips involved sticky nights and warm-water swims as well as a few thunderstorms. Give it a try. Plan now. 

— Betsy Clayton is a freelancer based on Pine Island and also is Lee County Parks & Recreation’s waterways coordi nator. Contact her at boatingbybetsy@ yahoo.com