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Showing posts from 2018

Destin, Panama City Beach and the panhandle

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The beach at CampGulf Resort in Destin. The sites are narrow but...who cares? We're on the beach :) This is the closest we've ever camped to the ocean.  The sand was over 6" deep in spots so Lyle put it into 4WD to back up into the site. Henderson Beach in Destin, right at the campground, rivalled Miami and Bradenton's bright white sand. Panama City Beach, where we stayed, is just west of Panama City which experienced huge devastation from Hurricane Michael. Panama City Beach had a lot of damage to roofs and debris waiting to be removed.   The Red Tide was bad today (the toxins become airborne in the wind and are a respiratory irritant). I was grateful that this was the only day. Gorgeous Panama City Beach at low tide Our Tommy Bahama beach gear Panama City Beach sunset with parasailer in the distance. This what's left of one of the boat storage buildings at the marina in Panama City Bea

Mobile, AL

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Mobile, AL All About Relaxing RV Park Early morning spent in the park's tornado shelter. No damage to the park, but some nearby buildings were wrecked.  Dauphin Island sits at the entrance to Mobile Bay The Red Tide was quite strong here but we didn't link it to the respiratory symptoms we were having until later. Oil and Gas Drilling The "Mighty A" (USS Alabama), permanently anchored in Mobile Bay, is probably the most accessible museum ship we've ever seen. They cut an access door through 18 inch armor plate so you  could easily go inside the 16 inch main gun turret.

NOLA, Bourbon Street

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We've been to NOLA many times (past and present lives) we've visited all of the famed bars and restaurants and even stayed at the Bourbon St. Sheraton, right in the middle of the action, so this is a just a short coverage. We crossed the Mississippi on the Algiers Ferry and walked up Canal Street (using our high danger protocol). The area seemed "safer" than previous visits. We took the steamer Natchez the last time we were here. Jackson Square in the background. Impromptu marching band near the riverwalk, we don't know why. The weekend before Halloween Our dinner spot Second Lines are a popular tradition. Bride and groom first and Dixieland band second. A second, Second Line a few minutes later. The balcony was leaning, surely a risk of collapsing. Jackson Square

NOLA, Swamp Tour

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Swamp Tour. We're staying at Bayou Segnette State Park just outside of New Orleans. It's a huge wildlife preserve and there are many tour companies operating wildlife tours. We decided to take an "airboat" tour. The airplane engine is really loud but the ride is super smooth.  You glide over what looks like plants growing in the ground but they're actually all growing on water.  The birds were abundant as we rode through the huge bayou. This guy was the largest of the 5 we saw, at about 10 feet long. This guy was ferocious looking, but fake...