Paul Revere's Late Night Ride

Location: St. George Island State Park, FL

We left the ritzy Emerald Coast with the upscale resorts and headed South. We took the Intercoastal Route which took us through the seaside towns. First up was Panama Beach, a tourist vacation town with lots of miniature golf, waterslides and souvenoir shops. Think Wisconsin Dells or Branson Missouri. Panama City was next which left a lot to be desired. Once you leave this area the water changes from the deep emerald color and looks more like the Gulf waters of Mississippi. Here's a picture of the typical view of the shore. Lots of marsh with no sand.

Pulling into one of the towns we stopped at the Piggly Wiggly. For all my West Coast family and friends, yes, there really is a Piggly Wiggly and not just in the movies. Let's just say Whole Foods has nothing to worry about.

We stopped for lunch at a seaside shack in Port St. Joe's. We ate at the outside bar with the craziest waitress. In fact, most of the patrons were amused by just how wacky she was. One of the customers who had been sitting there for quite awhile said, "We would have asked her for the check, but we were afraid her head would explode." Everyone cracked up and agreed. Ned got a grouper sandwich and I got an ahi tuna salad. It was really, really good. This place leaves a lot to be desired, but it sure has some great, fresh seafood.

Right before we headed onto the island of St. George we stopped for some roadside hot boiled peanuts. I hopped out of the car to grab some. The two guys hawking their freshly boiled "goober peas" were pretty funny. They said to me, "You from California? Why'd you stop and by our peanuts?" I responded, "I heard they were so good that we had to drive across the country for them." They were really tickled about that. They kept saying to me, "You stop for me or my peanuts" and let's just say things went downhill from there. Freshly boiled peanuts...mmm--mmm.

The Island of St. George is off the coast and accessible by a really long bridge. One half of the Island is vacation homes and a typical beachside community. The other half is a State Park. It's really remote and the last time we stayed here we had the place almost to ourselves. Apparently, the word has gotten out cuz this place is packed! We thought for sure arriving late in the afternoon on Memorial Day things would have died down. Nope. Campground is full (yes, I booked this way in advance) and the day beach was pretty crowded too. Fortunately, the portion of the beach near the campground was pretty chill.

Once we arrived I couldn't wait to get in the water. The temp was 96% with 76% humidity. Of course, we rode our bikes to the beach schlepping the usual. They have a mobility mat that is supposed to make the beach wheelchair accessible instead of a boardwalk on the sand. I wasn't too confident that it would really work, but it made me feel like they had laid out the welcome mat for me. Hey, Cousin Cary, how about giving it a try and let me know what you think! Of course if you get stuck, don't say I didn't warn you!

The water is really warm, so different than the ocean in Northern California. We had a blast boogie boarding in the water and swimming in the waves. Here's Ned taking the board out for some action.

 

 

 

 

 

Today I definitely caught some waves and even have photo documentation to prove it! So fun.

 

 

 

 

After dinner Ned got a hankering for some ice cream. Our first date was at Tucker's Ice Cream and Ned wanted to recreate our first date in honor of our anniversary. Since last night's ice cream was such a fiasco he said, "Let's bike up to the ice cream place we saw on the way in.' My first reaction, was "What ice cream place?". If you reference the map above we are pretty far up the tip of the island. A nice bike ride after dinner sounded fun. Wellllll...10 miles later we finally reached the ice cream parlor. It's quite the island event too! Here's a pic of Ned enjoying our anniversary ice cream treat. We have a 10 mile ride back and it's getting dark. I have wi-fi so I'm posting this now. Wish us luck. cya tomorrow...I hope.

 

 

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Red Letter Day

Location: Grayton State Beach, FL

I knew it was going to be a special day, cuz it's our 11th Anniversary and dad's birthday. The extra bonus is that my great-niece was born today too! Ned and I are blessed with 7 very adorable great-nephews that we just love oodles. Today, was our first great-niece. Welcome to the world Isabel Nicole Santos. Here's my baby brother holding his first grandchild. So magical. Congrats to my niece Dani.

 

 

After the excitement of the baby being born, we jumped on our bikes and headed to the beach. Yes, we learned our lesson from yesterday and rode with a LOT less beach supplies. The wind had picked up and the red flag was flying. Ned did his best to plant our beach umbrella, but it was pretty much futile.

 

We did try and swim, but the undertow, huge waves and incredibly strong current were impossible, if not downright scary. I understand there's a huge storm hitting Texas and Oklahoma. I think we're getting the tail ends of it here. No rain, but dang was it windy and HOT! Here's Ned getting pummeled by the waves.

 

 

Unable to swim, and not having any shade from lack of an umbrella, we finally called it quits at the beach and decided a day at the campsite was really what we wanted to do. Our big event was getting spruced up (beach style) and riding our bikes to the tiny town of Grayton for an Anniversary Dinner Date.

This little beach side town was quite the scene on Memorial Weekend. We ate at Shorty's, a popular bar and restaurant and had so much fun watching the steady stream of people, cars, bikes and surfboards cruising the one block main drag. Here's one of my favorite pics. I almost felt like we were in Calif. It was a hoot watching the girls and guys checking each other out.

 

 

We had a fun dinner with peach margaritas, crab cakes, hush puppies and arugula salad. Love this picture of my honey.

Notice my margarita is empty and Ned's is still full. What can I say, it was a hot day and I was thirsty.

To continue celebrating our anniversary we rode our bikes thru this little town looking for an ice cream parlor. No luck. After our too many peach margaritas I didn't have it in me to ride our bikes to the next town, so we went exploring in the local little grocery store. Ned spotted this gem and we had to try it out.

Basically, it's just a micro-wave that zaps your frozen ice cream to make it a milk shake consistency. Oh Ned, you romantic you.

We enjoyed our ice cream al fresco sitting on the outside picnic tables. Only the finest dining for our anniversary dinner!

 

 

 

 

We ended up this special day by taking a walk on the beach at sunset. (Sounds like an internet dating sight, doesn't it? Oh wait, that's how we met!) A local couple snapped this shot of us. Nice end to a great day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Fun in the Sun

Location: Grayton State Beach, FL

We rolled into our campsite pretty late for us, close to 9 pm. As anticipated the holiday traffic coming into the Emerald Coast of Florida was heavy. Good thing we called the campground (fifteen minutes before closing!) and got the entry code for the gate. We reserved this campsite almost a year ago and are so glad we did. The last time we were here, five years ago to the day, we rode our bikes around and looked longingly at this sweet little spot in the shade. Happily, this time it's ours. We're now settled in for the long holiday weekend and are enjoying our little home.

] ]\This beach is rated one of the top beaches of Florida and rightly so. It has sugar white fine sand next to clear emerald water. Ned says it reminds him of the fancy cigarette bins at ritzy hotels where the logo is stamped in the sand. So true! drcdFunny guy that Ned.

Here's our first glimpse of the ocean once we finally made it to the beach.

Our campground, while close to the beach, is about half a mile away. Just about everyone here has loaded up their vehicles with all their beach paraphernalia. Oh not us, that would be admitting defeat. We decided that schlepping all our stuff on our bikes was the only way to go. We brought with us, two snorkel sets complete with fins and mask, a double wide bamboo mat, two towels, boogie board, umbrella, camera, suntan lotions, books, water bottles, lunch and a blow-up floatie. Piece of cake right?

We about killed ourselves, mostly from laughing, as we tried to ride with all our stuff to the beach. Ned said that we looked like, "The Stupids Step Out." True 'dat!

Here's our set up at the beach. Quite impressive I'd say.

 

 

We tried to boogie board in the big waves. Some of us didn't quite master the skill at first. Gotta give the ol' girl credit for trying!

 

Ah finally, Debi caught a wave...well almost,

 

 

 

 

 

but about died laughing in the process.

 

Ned, true to form, mastered this beautifully.

 

However, the attempt at putting on the snorkel gear...not so much.

After a long day at the beach, we took a break at the campsite and then rode our bikes into town. Mainly because we ran out of booze...and aloe vera for our sunburns. It's sooo much easier when we don't have to carry anything! We peddaled to the town of Seaside. What a zoo! It's an upscale beachside community and everyone was in town. The food stands are all airstream trailers, there were bands playing and lots of people shopping. We finally managed to make it back to the campsite in time for burgers and corn on the cob.

We tried to watch the sunset on the beach tonight, but just missed it. Instead we took a sunset picture over the marsh area. We did manage to get in a quick evening swim after dusk and we had almost the entire beach to ourselves. Life is good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Gulf - Mississippi Style

Location: Grayton State Beach, FL

Today was all about playing in the Gulf. I had read that one of the fun things to do on the Mississippi part of the Gulf was take a boat out to Ship Island. It's touted as having great beaches and an historic fort run by the National Park Service. Okay, sign me up coach! We had an early departure from our campsite to make the 9:00 launch time, but it was worth it.

 

We were impressed with how few people were onboard, especially for a holiday weekend, and then...180 students from a New Orleans High School pulled up in busses. So, suddenly the chill factor went out the door, but it was all good. The kids were actually pretty entertaining.

 

Here I am doing my best captain imitation. (Note, we hadn't actually left the dock yet. Mmm, maybe I was pretty entertaining to those kids too).

 

 

Fort Massachusetts has a really interesting history. Following the war of 1812, America was really concerned about protecting its coastal defense. Congress, being the speedy legislative body they are, didn't authorize the construction of a fort until 1847. Construction began in 1859 under the Army Corp of Engineers. In 1861 MIssissippi seceded from the Union and took over the fort. It was soon abandoned and retaken by the Union Army and used as a prisoner of war camp. In 1866 the fort was turned over to a fort keeper until 1903, when it was officially shut down. Here's Ned standing in front of the fort, when we first arrived on the island.

 

 

 

The amount of bricks used in this fort is overwhelming. When the Confederates had the fort the bricks were brought in from Louisiana. When The Union took over, they continued construction and the bricks were shipped from New England, down the East Coast and around the Florida peninsula. After the war ended the bricks were again procured from Louisiana.

There were no official tours of the fort so we had fun poking around and exploring on our own. Hardly anyone was touring the fort. Everyone on the boat headed right for the swimming beach on the opposite side of the island.

This gives you a great perspective on the intricate designs and how many bricks were used.

The middle of the island is pretty much all marsh. You have to take a boardwalk across the island to get to the swimming beach, snack bar and showers. There are no other facilities on this island, you can only do daytrips no camping allowed.

The U.S. National Park Service has an office, but they run everything off a generator.

The cloudy morning and cool temperatures (60's) finally transformed into a warm and sunny day. We spent the rest of the time sunbathing and swimming. We brought our snorkel gear with us, but this was not a good snorkel island. We needed to catch the 2:30 ferry back cuz we still had a long drive to Florida this evening. We were expecting a good 4 hour drive in holiday traffic. Here's Ned waiting for the return ferry.

 

 

Yes, a good time was had by all!

The one thing I really don't get, and if anyone reading this blog can explain it to me, please do! There were a lot of people coming to Ship Island throughout the day, mainly to hang out on the beach. And yet, when you drive along the beautiful pristine sugarwhite sand beaches of the Gulf, they are virtually empty. Why would you pay $25 for a ferry ride to a deserted beach with very little amenities when you can just hang out on the mainland?

P.S. This is us driving along the Gulf on the way to Florida with the Texas Bandido Motorcycle "Club" riding next to us. Note - We made a point of giving them the right of way and avoiding any parking or other disputes.

 

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Cajun Country

Buccaneer State Park, MS

After spending the night at Lake Fausee State Park we came to the conclusion that it hasn't aged well in the seven years since we've been here. To be fair, the harsh tropical climate has taken its toll, but the State Park system hasn't exactly held up its end of the bargain. I think this park is off the radar, the employees don't seem particularly ambitious and they sure turn a blind eye to a lot of sketchy stuff. That being said, having our morning coffee on our campsite dock as we watched the parade of alligators swim by can't be replicated anywhere else. It's just surreal to be communing this close with alligators.

We took as many obscure roads as we could find through Acadian Country. It's really interesting to see all the people living on the bayou. Almost all the homes have the bayou in their backyard, with pirogues tied to a dock and smokers out front. We passed through lots of sugar cane and corn fields. Loved seeing this little stand next to the road. I'm still kicking myself that I didn't try the gator jerky - and just what the heck is bourgeois beef jerky anyway?

As we came closer to Morgan City and then New Orleans we started to encounter the dacquiri drive-throughs. May I suggest a jello shot before you drive-off????

 

 

 

Our destination today was ultimately Mississippi, but as we got closer to New Orleans we started to get a hankering for a muffuletta. Soooo, we decided to brave the French Quarter craziness before a holiday weekend and go for it. Took a bit more time than we anticipated and we finally arrived mid-afternoon. The good thing is we were good and hungry and couldn't wait to partake. Here's Ned being happy we finally made it!

Love, love this Italian Deli - Central Grocery.. So many cool things in here, but of course the jackpot is eating one of these sandwiches. We couldn't wait to dig in. In case you wondered, a muffuletta is served on a round of Sicilian sesame bread and has layers of marinated olives, mortadella, salami, mozzarella, ham and provolone. The whole sandwich will feed 4 people! We opted for a half and split it.

 

 

It's so fun to eat at the counter amongst all the Italian deli stuff - Olive Oil, jams, wine, and pastas of every shape and size.

We did a quick walk-through the French Quarter, mainly to work off our late lunch. New Orleans never disappoints with its ecclectic culture, crazy people and charm.

 

 

 

 

 

I did manage to pick up a cute roadtrip t-shirt before heading out. With all the snorkeling and beach time coming up I figure it'll come in handy.

While I was checking out t-shirts, Ned was interested in other things. That guy.

The thermometer read 92 degrees with 86% humidity. After our little walk-about it was definitely time to head for the cool breeze of the Gulf.

 

 

 

Our final destination tonight is Buccaneer State Park in Waveland, MS. This place was ground zero for Hurricane Katrina. The good news is that the State Park was completely rebuilt so it's really nice. The bad news is that the town still hasn't recovered. The wide sandy beach and warm water is welcoming, but there isn't a touristy feel here like other beach towns. There are very little tourist attractions and hardly any grocery stores, other than the occasional convenience store. Hey, that's okay in my book! We just feel bad for the local people still trying to get on their feet.

 

We spent some time biking along the shore. Yes, we got silly again trying to take selfies with the Gulf behind us.

 

 

 

 

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