Our first stop in Florida was Pensacola Beach, just across the bay from Pensacola. There is a $1 toll to cross the bridge. Almost seems silly to charge a single dollar. If you are renting a car be aware that some rental companies (like Hertz) will charge you as much as $30 just to process your toll. Fortunately my former boss John added us to his Florida toll account so we don’t have to worry about Hertz screwing us with fees, but now I owe John $2 ( went across the bridge twice).
After checking in we made our way down the beach to Drift restaurant, where we opted for some pre-dinner cocktails. William and Myra are changing out drinking habits!
The view from Drift is excellent! The food was great as well. Nice spot right at the base of Pensacola Beach Pier. Odd that they actually want to charge you a few bucks to walk out onto the pier?? We’ve not seen that before, and why is it more expensive than the huge bridge we just crossed??
The sky was beautiful as we walked back to our hotel.
This heron was posing in the surf.
We stayed at the Pensacola Beach Resort, which is a nice place positioned perfectly on the island, within easy walking distance to plenty of restaurants.
Here is the view of the beach from our balcony. Gorgeous, and we actually had some minor surf due to Hurricane Melissa! There was zero surf the day prior.
On our first morning we had an early lunch at Paridise Beach Bar and Grill, which sits right on the inner bay. It’s easy to miss as it sits in the parking lot of an old motel. I had to try the local beer, Rip Tide Amber Ale. Pretty good!
We then drove east along the beach to Gulf Islands National Seashore, with some absolutely pristine (and nearly empty) beaches.
Look at those selfie skills!
A view from the small dunes along the beach. Beautiful spot, and we could not have asked for better weather. We had always thought Florida was going to be humid, but not at this time of year, at least not on the panhandle. We are loving how nice it is!
We still had free time that afternoon, so we headed back across the bay to the city of Gulf Breeze and did a short hike along the “Shoreline Park Nature Trail”. It meanders through a forest, and meets up with a boardwalk over marshlands.
Stunning scenery! The background is nice too!
This plant was everywhere! This is the American Beautyberry, and it was out in force! The roots, leaves and branches were used by Native Americans to treat malarial fevers and rheumatism. In the early 20th century farmers started rubbing crushed leaves on themselves to repel mosquitoes. As soon as I read about that Kim rubbed numerous leaves all over herself!
Every beach community seems to have one of these beach balls with the name of the city. Pensacola is the home of the Blue Angels, and while we saw several jets flying around, it seems the Angels have been likely been grounded by the Schumer Shutdown. Still a beautiful beach to visit!
Coming up next, we head to Rosemary Beach, another gorgeous spot along the Florida panhandle.
