Finally, I arrived at Daytona Beach, one of my favorite spots in America. One of the reasons I love this place so much is that you can drive up and down the beach. The sand is packed hard enough to support ongoing traffic. So, without a second thought, I immediately hit the sandy shore as soon as an opportunity presented itself.

During this time of year there aren't any large groups of people swarming the beach. But that will change shortly with the advent of the Daytona 500, Bike Week and Spring Break. For now, however, I pretty much had the tranquilizing waves of the beach to myself. Being in a hurry to reach Flagler Beach I didn't stay very long, just long enough to stroll down to the ocean's edge and look for a shell or two.