Do hurricanes bring more shells to the beaches in Florida? Would it be silly/stupid to fly down to Sanibel next week in the hopes of collecting a variety of shells?

If shells are that important to you, then go ahead and do it. Personally, I wouldn't spend the money just for that.

I am not sure about Florida, but last year, DH and I went to Cape Lookout in NC after a hurricane and there were no shells. I talked to people who run the boat to the island and they said it depends - sometimes there are more shells, and some times not.

Any Floridians out there?? Thanks.

sometimes 'canes just wash the sand and beach away. They also can bring in huge amounts of shells closing in passes, etc. Blind Pass between Sanibel and Captiva was closed by a tropical storm some time ago and there were piles of shells at that point.

I'd wait for the water to clear anyway. The water at the Sanibel beaches has been brackish looking and not clear at all. Too much rain and the release of water from Lake Okeechobee is a problem all along the river out to the gulf.

LMF