Gulf Islands National Seashore

We thought we were done with Florida but things happen. The last two times we headed West from Florida we tried unsuccessfully to procure a camp spot on the National Seashore. This year’s plan was to head to Alabama and camp on the Gulf. Out of curiosity, we checked the Natioal Seashore website and found there was one spot available on the days needed. We grabbed it. We spent two nights here and realized that we’ll need to head back at some point to explore the area more completely. What we did find during our stay was miles of white sand beaches and crystal clear turquoise water and an abundance of wildlife.

The beach was a five minute walk from camp, across the dunes on a boardwalk.

This guy made sure we stayed on the boardwalk when we crossed the dunes.Both evenings we walked the beach we watched schools of Rays riding the waves into shore eating as they went. Quite a show.The beaches are as deserted as they look. One evening we had to share the beach with this guy.

This Park is across the bay from Pensacola and has a long military history. Fort Pickens is located a couple of miles from the campground along the Florida Scenic Trail.

We saw lots of birds along the trail. Particularly impressive were the numerous Osprey.

But it’s also fun to see the familiar as well. Fort Pickens is a brick and mortar structure competed in 1834(construction was done primarily by slaves) and remained in use until 1947. From 1886 to 1887 Geronimo was held prisoner here. The Fort was active in Mexican- American War, Civil War, Spanish American War and the two World Wars.

The Blue Angels are based across the bay from the Fort and practice every Tuesday. We weren’t there for practice but did see them fly over the campground in formation. For us the attraction of this area is the the beach and wildlife.

While we didn’t see many people there was evidence that we weren’t alone.

Hopefully, we have the opportunity to come back for a longer stay.