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| Beautiful beach at Fort Pickens Florida |
Fort Pickens is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore on Santa Rosa Island, Florida. Randy had originally reserved the campsite thru March 3rd, but later Joyce checked with ranger at the check-in and he found they had an opening for 4 more nights. It meant moving to a different camp site and in A loop but we gladly did so to extend our stay. The roadway out to the campground & fort is 5 miles long following along the Gulf of Mexico on one side and Pensacola Bay on the other. The beaches are within walking distance from the campgrounds. We were fascinated by the nesting Osprey circling above with their screeching as they'd circle in the air.
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| The campground was 6 miles west out from Pensacola Beach |
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| Loop E site 65 |
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| Boardwalk to the beach |
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| It was almost like having our own private beach. Lovin' the sun! |
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| We stayed out for the sunset. It was fabulous! |
Debbie & Len Larson were still staying at Destin, and Len wanted to see United States Air Force Armament Museum at Fort Walton at the Eglin AFB. So Saturday the 25th we met them there. It was interesting to see all the different type of aircraft. Especially the F4 Phantom that Len had once gotten to fly while he was in the service serving in Alaska. The movie that the museum gave us a taste of the sacrifice of the men & women in service. Also the security they provide our freedom here in the US.
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| Debbie's father worked on the design of The Fat Man |
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| Looking across the other side of balcony Joyce & Debbie. |
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| F4 is what Len got to fly while serving in Alaska |
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| Us in front of the museum |
Before Deb & Len left for their return trip thru Texas and home on Sunday the 26th. Kay had told Joyce that Rosella Petersen's grandson was the pastor at the Baptist Church in Navarre.(Rosella had welcomed Joyce into FBR's choir and they became close. Her dedication to the choir till the day she died at 98 years old was legendary!) So since we were planning on attending one of his services, the Larsons and Bradleys decided to have 3 couples from his home church attend that Sunday. Debbie & Kay remembered Jansen Petersen from their time with the youth groups. It was a great service. Debbie & Len needed to hit the road so we just grabbed a sandwich with them while Kay & Vaughn took the Petersen's out for lunch.
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We sat on the end of the arena. Where's Randy? LOL
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Vaughn texted one day & asked if our road out to the campground was closed. We hadn't heard of it but when we went to town that afternoon we saw that it had been closed. The wind had been so strong making large waves in the gulf, that it washed sand and water over the roadway. The road had been closed until they had come in and cleared it. I would guess the sand was at least 2-3 feet deep in places covering the road. This becomes a scary thought after seeing this and realizing you are on an island with no way off. Another day on our way back to mainland we could really see how high the waves had washed over road. Due to the frequency & expense of this happening, they were in process of moving that mile or so of roadway further north behind sand dunes to help keep sand off roadway.
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| You can see were they plowed the sand back off road. |
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| Another day... you could see where the water (beside the sand) had blown across the road. |
We always enjoy the puppy parade as everyone has to walk their dogs by your campsite. We laugh at all the different breeds and attitudes of these dogs. Joyce had seen one large black dog being walked & thought it was a Giant Schnauzer. While riding our bikes thru the campground we were able to meet the owner & dog which turned out to be a Black Russian Terrier. The owner was a wounded vet & his wife had encouraged him to get a hobby and raising along with showing the dogs got him out of the house. He was showing the dog that weekend at Pensacola. We unfortunately never got a pick of the beautiful animal.
