9 miles ...... uninterrupted
St George Island State Park
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We finally re-started our adventure very late on Monday evening after flying back into Fort Myers from Boston. The POD was waiting in the parking lot and we drove thru driving rain to position ourselves well north of Tampa before bedding down for a bit of sleep. The next day was clear and warm as we hugged Rt 19 up the coast into the panhandle arriving - only one day late - for our extended stay on St. George Island. Ahhhhh.
one of the 6 open pavilions along the beach - perfect for sunsets!
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perfectly blue, sunny skies
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This is our third visit to the Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park and, yes, it still offers new vistas and unexplored trails! 60 campsites sit tucked behind the dunes and among scrub pines. The grounds are well kept, quiet and peaceful. It is a short walk or bike ride out to the gulf coast beach where you can walk, fish and explore and there are numerous trails thru the pines, on boardwalks in the salt marsh and, of course, the 9 miles of undeveloped beach!
through the salt marsh
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fog along the marsh grass looking bay side
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Each year our beach walks here have yielded new discoveries. During our first visit we found the beach littered with sponges of all kinds and since then I have barely seen any along the miles of beach. This year the shores are filled with starfish! And yesterday while visiting the St. Joseph Penninsula we found huge clusters of sea urchins washed ashore. Cold water? Normal cycle?
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stranded
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We normally settle into a rhythm of activities when we stay for an extended time here. However, the weather over the last 4 days has been varied - from sunny, mid to high 60's (the norm for this time of year) to dense fog, pouring rain and this morning we woke to 38 degrees !! - with expected temps going down to 33 tonight! Not so conducive to a routine ….. but we have been able to do a bit of biking, get in our 5 mile walk all but one of the days, have a day trip to Apalachicola (more on that city in my next post) and checked out the facilities and trails at the nearby St. Joseph Penninsula State Park. (I’m kind of planning next winter's getaway……….)
gulf view as the rain approaches
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bay view as the rain cleared
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Tonite will be our first time ever of using the T.V. in the POD! We are planning to watch the playoff game and if all goes well - antenna facing the correct direction, clear skies…… - then all will be well! We shall see.
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Knowing that both Tim and I LOVE to cook everyone always asks me: "do you cook? do you eat out all the time? how do you manage?" With a small refrigerator and a tiny freezer.... it is challenging. But not impossible. We are definitely NOT cooking over an open fire althou that is something that I would like to try....someday.
Maybe.
We try to keep it simple. Breakfast is usually homemade yogurt with granola and dried fruit or (grilled) toast. Tim makes our yogurt in a small Salton yogurt maker using grass-fed whole milk. It's easy to do once you are settled somewhere for a day or two.
We rarely eat lunch, often we'll just pack some granola bars for our day’s activities or make a tortilla roll-up with whatever is leftover from the eve before.
Most cocktail hours will find us sitting down to some sort of cheese/dip, crackers and other easily stored “delights” such as olives, cornichons, marinated artichokes, eggplant - pretty much any little jar holding a delicious bite!
I like to keep 4-5 different jars on board - a new little surprise every few days.
Dinner is often a salad with canned tuna, boiled eggs and/or other protein on top like fresh local seafood that we happen to stumble upon. Pasta, rice and eggs are all staples and easy to make. They can also be the base - with veggies and protein - when we feel like more than a salad. Hot soup (unfortunately not homemade) and sandwiches are the dinner option
when we “don’t want to cook - but need comfort”.
And, depending on where we are, we do indulge ourselves and enjoy the local restaurants.
sharing a flight at Oyster City Brewing Co.
Apalchchicola, FL
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