Grayton Beach State Park

2 March 2013

Yesterday’s drive from Fort Pickens to Grayton Beach State Park was slow-going through about 70 miles of continuous beach towns, none that impressive, and all too touristy for the taste of us tourists. At least the slow driving gave us excellent gas mileage while towing—20 mpg.

This is a very pretty park with spacious, well-separated sites, gorgeous white sand beach, and beautiful dunes which are being preserved and are forbidden to human trespassers. We talked to a ranger who was shoveling white sand into a wheelbarrow from the boardwalk before dumping it back onto the beach. It reminded us greatly of some other white stuff that Great Husband was shoveling just last week.

There's our little Escape 19 across the brackish waters of Western Lake.

Hiking the Dune Loop Trail at Grayton Beach

Grayton Beach dunes that survived Hurricane Katrina

Sand and sky

This morning we counted four Airstreams camping here at once. Almost everyone is here with enormous fifth wheels, trailers, or motor homes. On the front of one was an appropriate sign that said, “Ultimate Behemoth.”

We are in Site 12, with our “back yard” on Western Lake. We are taking it easy while we are here, and I’m trying to get more calories into Great Husband who has been losing too much weight while he avoids an extensive list of possible migraine triggers. For his second breakfast of the morning I made a batch of buckwheat pancakes. And our little slow cooker is out on the picnic table right now, filled with beef stew.

It is still colder here than we anticipated, although at last today there has been some much-appreciated sunshine. We are wearing our winter coats with the hoods up and are thankful for our little electric space heater, which has been getting a workout. We would vote for less wind when walking on the beach or out on the nature trail.  Weather reports here include the predicted highs and lows, but also the “chop forecast” (how choppy the water will be in the Gulf) and the “rip current forecast” but we don’t see anybody going out on the water. A park ranger told us that when it warms up, dolphins will be here, visible from the beach. Wouldn’t we like to see that!