FTJ, Entry 58: It Must Be Destin - y

Tomorrow we are moving a few miles west on the Panhandle, to Miramar Beach, part of Destin, FL. The campground, Camping on the Gulf, costs a bloody fortune compared to where we have been in this area so far, and frankly, other than being directly on the beach, does not seem worth it. But we will be happy to be beachside, regardless.

So far the weather has been erratic during our stay here at Topsail. Yesterday, it was glorious. This morning, it was glorious again. This afternoon, cloudy, cool, and threatening rain. The rest of the week is supposed to be nice - in the 70s and sunny. We are NOT complaining.

We took a couple of photos down near where we will be staying next -- Miramar Beach. Not too shabby.

 

Of course, I also have to include an oddity or two from our travels whenever possible. Note the truck below, spotted by my eagle-eyed Republican husband. It is called an "INFIDEL," as you can see on the bottom left side of the tailgate.  Hmm - I am not familiar with that model, are you? And check out the lovely and elegant tow hitch decoration. Yuck. 

For my part, I have to point out the irony: The truck is parked in a Walmart lot and the bumper sticker says "Got Patriotism...Buy American."  

Yeah? Well, tell that to Walmart, buddy!  Hypocrite.

Then there is this oddity parked along Highway 98. Ah yes, the pickup limo! Just perfect for the big ol' redneck wedding party. Yee hah!

Finally, we were somewhat awestruck by the massive Bass Pro Shop here in Destin. As impressive as it is, though, Beau cannot wait to visit its competitor, Cabela's, while we are on the road. I doubt there will be much difference between them, but that is more his schtick. 

The facade of the imposing Bass Pro retail store.

(A quick aside that has nothing to do with this blog and is relevant only to the mention of Cabela's -- I used to know the founder/owner, Dick Cabela, quite well in the late 1990s when I was the editor of Catalog Age magazine. Quite a character! Ah, the bad old days of high stress and 50+ hour work weeks. Not missing any of that!)

Beau as shark bait outside Bass Pro.

All our best.

Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 57: Sailing into Topsail

Our present campground is the beautiful Topsail Hill Beach State Park in Santa Rosa Beach on the Panhandle. 

Before I get into this locale, however, one final goodbye video from Carrabelle Beach. We love it there, as our blog followers have probably surmised by this point. 

Miss it already....

But, gypsies that we are, we said adieu and moved west. 

Buddy missed most of the 2 1/2 hour trip.

Our campsite location is great, but while it is closest site to the beach, getting there still means walking nearly a mile. The first time we trekked there it seemed like it took forever. The next time, it was a snap. A tram can take you, but so far, we tend to walk it. The downside is that Buddy cannot come on the beach. I have some choice expletives for that policy, but whatever.

The site we have is very private and quiet. Perfect.

This is the kooky coconut art that we hang from the awning (a souvenier we got while visiting
Matlache (an artist colony) near Ft. Myers Beach.

We tired Buddy out walking to and from the beach!

Ho hum. These beautiful beaches are becoming boring -- NOT. First, check out these magnificent dunes on Topsail Hill Preserve -- almost like the Cape, just not quite so tall.

Then, note the incredibly crowded beach conditions. We hated it, as you can imagine.

Too crowded, don't you think?

And the weather! Hated that too. It was crystal clear yesterday with temps in the low 70s. Blecch. Can you imagine our irritation of having to deal with that?  HA!

Two views of Beau.   Pensive...

And moronic.

The Santa Rosa; Destin; Beaches of South Walton areas are decidedly upscale (expensive!). This is truly a lovely part of the world. 

Just two oddities to finish up. (You know I love the weird stuff.)

This is a building off Highway 98 on the way to Santa Rosa. Cannot fathom what goes on there, can you?

And this is a boat-storage warehouse near Destin. All four sides are covered with a gorgeous mural of life-size whales and other marine mammals. The walls are about 50 ft. tall!  Quite arresting.

Weather was cool and cloudy today, which was okay. We needed a break from the sun.

Till next time. Miss all of you!

Tanks, Panky.

FTJ, Entry 56: History, by Accident

So who knew? We saw a sign here at Carrabelle Beach that explained this location was a training ground for amphibious landings during World War II. Beau was of course fascinated, as was I.

Apparently Carrabelle and Dog Island (off the coast here) -- while they were a part of Camp Gordon Johnston -- were used by the U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division to train for the Normandy Invasion on D-Day (June 6, 1944). The amphibious training on Carrabelle and Dog Island was the last stop before shipping out to England for the invasion.

What's more, Carrabelle has a World War II Museum, a wonderful small exhibit of all kinds of 1940s memorabilia related to the war years and what happened not just in Carrabelle, but also throughout Florida -- which was a very important strategic location during WWII.

So how cool is this? Beau on a "duck," an amphibious vehicle that brought in
supplies and troops and took out wounded during landings.

We were very lucky that two terrific volunteers were at the museum. 

Linda, below, is extremely knowledgeable about the war years and what happened at Carrabelle during that time.

Linda had so many wonderful stories of the training at Carrabelle -- the museum is lucky to have her. Thank you, Linda!  We so appreciate your taking the time to talk with us and show us the museum's vehicles as well.

 

Mary, another volunteer, served as a Navy nurse during WWII. She was stationed at San Diego, where she cared for soldiers returning from the Pacific theater. Thank you for your service, Mary!

Both women were extremely gracious and kind to us during our visit. Again, we marvel at all the interesting and hospitable people we are meeting on this trip.

The Gorrie Truth

More history: Do you know who obtained the first U.S. patent for mechanical refrigeration? Aha! We shall tell you.  Dr. John Gorrie, who lived in Apalachicola. Check out this sign that explains his significant place in history.

An important inventor motivated by the scourge of yellow fever back in the day!
Now when you get ice from your freezer, say "Thank you, John Gorrie!"

There are streets named for him on St. George Island, and there is a statue honoring him in Apalachicola.

See, this trip is fun AND educational!

We will close out this entry with some pretty photos. Sunrises, weird beach sand patterns, pelicans...and check out the fog. We had an entire day of a cool, wet fog here at Carrabelle. Weird and eerie.

Love how these birds are in formation.

This fog was like pea soup and lasted all day long.

 

Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 55: Carrabelle-ahhh

We are thoroughly enjoying our stay here at Carrabelle Beach RV resort. The facility is upscale, super-clean, small, and across from a beautiful white beach.

Views from our site, which is directly across from the beach.

A little cold the first few days (I am shivering in this pic big time!), but it
should be in the high 60s or low 70s the rest of the week.

Typical homes on the upscale part of Carrabelle.

Nearby Apalachicola is a cool little town, where we recently went to a concert by world renowned ragtime pianist Bob Milne. He is known as the "best ragtime/boogie-woogie pianist in the world," in fact. And he is a bit odd, in that he says he never practices, just hears the music in his head. He was studied by research neurologists at Penn State University College of Medicine  to determine how he hears entire symphonies in his head -- a process known as synesthesia. He is amazing indeed and we thoroughly enjoyed the show. Here is a video snippet that doesn't do him justice.

This sponge diver oddity (the sign says "retired Apalachicola sponge diver--priceless") is near the Dixie Theater, where we saw the concert. The significance of this is unknown as yet to us.

The entire "forgotten coast," as this area is called, is known for its fishing industry -- and wow, the oysters are incredible! The people are primarily employed by the fishing and oystering industry in some way, or in the service industry that is based around the seasonal visitors.

Yet despite the emphasis on seafood, we found a little joint that had some of the best barbecue Beau has ever had. Hog Wild is not fancy, and it is highly affordable. Don't know how they make a profit, in fact.

Typical kitschy pig stuff on display.

Love this oddity in Carrabelle: The world's smallest police station.

Falling in Love with St. George Island

Between our RV place and Apalachicola is St. George Island. What a discovery. Beau and I are even considering renting a beach house there next November.

Are we getting sick of amazing beaches? NO! This one goes on
forever -- seemingly the 23-mile length of the island.

Bridge to St. George. In the morning, the bay is peppered with oyster boats.

Buddy relaxing on the deck of the Blue Parrot restaurant,
a very dog-friendly establishment on St. George.

Beau and I had super oysters at Eddy Teach's, a funky place on the island.

The St. George lighthouse, from the early 1830s, I believe, has been rebuilt three times.

We saw a pod of at least six dolphins off the beach at St. George.
Some came in as close as 20 feet from shore.

Enough for now...all our best.

Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 53: Old Cars and Big Oaks

We ended our short stay in Tallahassee with a visit to the Antique Car Museum. It was amazing. 

There was a Tucker (my favorite), old Chevys (including Corvettes), Model Ts, Dusenbergs, and scores of other and often rare old automobile models. Some of you may know these on sight.

Elvismobile

Batmobile - check out all the models from the different Batman movies.

A 57 Chevy Belair

Note the bag Beau is carrying -- we broke the rules AGAIN by bringing Buddy.
Note the gorgeous Dusenberg, bottom left. And isn't that a great Tucker, bottom right?

They also had Lincoln's hearse -- amazing!

Not sure why an electric car leads to a contented woman, but...

This museum had more than cars -- old sports equipment and memorabilia, pianos, trains. You name it.

Pedal car used by the Little Rascals

An amphibious car

Football signed by Joe Namath (I loved Broadway Joe in the old days!).

Here are a couple of pics of the Tallahassee RV park we stayed in -- Big Oaks.

We checked out the capital building as well.

The old capitol building at Tallahassee

Buddy got sick of the old cars and Tallahassee pretty quickly.

Next time, photos of the beautiful beach setting in Carrabelle on the Florida Panhandle. We are here until the 21st.

Tanks, Panky