THE PAINTED TORTUGA IS A SECLUDED OLD FLORIDA BEACH COTTAGE.

THE STORY: Though one hasn't been spotted in years, there was once a time when the surrounding land of the Painted Tortuga was 'decorated' with multicolored painted turtles. Decades ago, the neighboring children would capture the local turtles and paint their shells before releasing them back into the wild. These gopher turtles which are endangered and whose descendants still live in and around the sandy palm -tree covered property on Mound Road, are just one of the variety of tropical animals that call this place home. Lizards hop around the back porch; ospreys fly through the fig trees and palms. Next door, on the 15 -acre church grounds, birds quietly float along the pond. The Painted Tortuga is a castaway secluded home, that no one would ever know that you are just 75 yards from the Beach and Gulf of Mexico.

Walk outside through the French doors of either bedroom. To the beach, with white sand that span for miles and offer a seemingly new and different sunset.