The BIG move to Henderson Beach

Friday May 3, 2013
Site 25, Henderson Beach State Park
Destin, Florida

 

 

 

Last night’s rain made packing up a bit more work.

Luckily we are only driving 20 miles from Grayton Beach to Henderson Beach for the last of our 5 Panhandle state park visits.   That means we have plenty of time to wipe everything off and try to leave the water and the sand here.

Check out time at Grayton is 1:00 and we are at the dumpsite by noon.  I love these leisurely pack ups even if this one was more work because of the clean up. 

 

 

After dumping and treating the tanks we go over to the boat dock area parking lot to pick up the dolly. I see this guy is working with a parasail.  I guess he’s practicing or something on land with clothes rather than a bathing suit on.  I’ve always thought parasailing looked like a lot of fun but he’s really putting forth the effort to keep this one in control. I wonder if I would be strong enough to do that.   Of course there is a lot of wind today but I guess parasails take a lot of wind to keep you aloft.   It is definitely cloudy, gray and windy today.

While we are hooking up the dolly he takes the whole thing apart and puts it away.  I was hoping he’d go on out, but no luck.  Has anyone ever been parasailing?

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m anxious to get going so I can get to my first stop.

 

We don’t bother to put Ruby on the dolly for such a short trip since I want to stop by Brusters and get my half gallon of JMC, which I do.
I’m a member of Bruster’s Sweet Rewards club which gives me one free cone for every 9 I buy.  My current card is filled up so my next cone is free.

 

 

But I’m not going to get my free cone today since I’m picking up my half gallon.  I also belong to Sweet rewards Quart Club which means I get a free quart for every 6 I buy.  I do get that card stamped twice today and that fills up my quart card.  Now next time I come to Brusters I can get a free cone or a free quart.  Being a Brusters fan sure pays off.  :-)

My photographer is not with me so this is the best I can do to mark the occasion.  But Destin’s Brusters gets an A+ for service unlike the Panama City Beach location near St. Andrews.

 

 

BIG NEWS – I get my first residency payback.

When we arrive at Henderson and check in the woman at the desk notices I am a Florida resident and refunds the extra money I paid when I made my reservation before becoming a resident.  YES!!

 

We are in site 25.  It’s a nice sized back in with great bushes and trees all around for privacy.  All the sites here are large and some are nearly gigantic.  There are 4 campground loops but all are close enough to Route 98 that there is constant traffic noise if you are outside sitting on your patio or inside with the windows open.  This is a very heavy tourist area with all the trappings you would expect right outside the park entrance which is fight on Route 98 across from a Walmart.

 

Here is a map of the campground loops.  Route 98 is just beyond the campground road.  We are in circled site 25.  There is one boardwalk to the beach for all 4 loops.  It is indicated near the bottom of the map by the dashed lines.

 

After having some lunch, although it still looks  like rain, nothing but a bit of spitting is happening.   So we take a chance and go for our normal ride around the park to see where things are.

 

Notice Miss Carrie that we are wearing our helmets!

Don’t you love the ball cap addition?  :-)  Given the lack of sun I have no idea why we are wearing them, although it is at the same time, blindingly bright outside.  Or at least that’s why my eyes think as they squint away.  Blue eyes in bright light is problematic.

 

 

The park is divided into two sections, the day use area and beach and the campground area and its beach.  Of course they are the same beach, just at two different ends of the park.  We are biking around the campground loops to see if there are any sites from which the road noise cannot be heard.  We find the answer to be NO.  

 

 

 

 

There are some ENORMOUS pull through sites.  I just couldn’t stop laughing when I saw this rig in one of them.   This is a 75 or 80’ site at a minimum.  Obviously no one screens or cares if you need 50 amps or are 42’ long when you book the site.  This little rig is smaller than the kayaks it totes.

 

 

 

 

After cycling around the campground we head over to the boardwalk access from our loop.

 

The boardwalk to the beach is long but wonderful for so many reasons.

The park has one very short 3/4 mile nature trail in the day use area and no bike paths or kayaking within the park.   So not being shoppers, we think the only show in town here for us is the beach.

The walk to the beach goes off from outside the bathroom.   It is a 1/3 mile boardwalk through the gorgeous sand dunes.  This is a lovely walk but a long way to tote beach gear.  Guess the cart will get some duty here when the sun comes out.   

This is a shot about half way along the boardwalk.  The walk curves back and forth through the dune and appears to be very sensitively placed to protect the dune.  Notice how long this boardwalk is.  That’s the end where the red flag is flying.  They have protected a very deep section of dunes.  I love it!!   I am happy to walk longer to have more beautiful dunes.

 

 

And what a walk it is.  I sure hope others aren’t in too much of a hurry to see the beach to miss the beauty here.

 

Gulf coast lupine is in amazing abundance.  Hidden in nooks and crannies.  In multiple bunches right beside the boardwalk.

 

 

 

At one point on the left there is a profusion of Indian Blanket Flower.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We reach the end of the boardwalk.  The red flag is flying. 

The wind is whipping and the air is cool.  I’m feeling cold in my t-shirt and shorts.  Another woman at the end of the boardwalk is in long pants and long sleeves.

 

 

But this family has clearly come here to enjoy the beach regardless of the weather.  Or perhaps they’ve built this really fine pyramid to change the energy.  They are the only ones here in bathing suits on this brisk day.

 

 

As you can see from the first picture of the Indian Blankets above and from these that follow, the park’s beach is hemmed in by the resort city.  High rises on one end.  Huge beach houses on the other.

 

 

I am feeling very thankful to the Henderson Family.

We should all be very thankful to the Henderson Family for donating this one stretch of unaltered beach and pristine sand dunes so that we can know what the natural area looked like before development became the sole deciding factor.   There would be no dunes to enjoy if it were not for them.  I am sad to see that the city of Destin has no laws in place to protect its dunes.

 

Looking east up the beach from the end of the board walk.

 

 

Looking west from the end of the boardwalk. 

 

A road through the dunes is abandoned??  Really??  Wow!

As we turn to leave we see this evidence of the '”original Route 98 which ran along the Gulf coast until 1990 when the two lane highway was closed to through traffic”. A sign on the boardwalk tells us that and further says “ Shorebirds preferred the gravel covered road shoulders as a nesting area.  The birds scratched out a small depression on the ground to lay eggs in “   I am amazed.  Am I to understand that a road got moved  because of nesting birds?   I will definitely clarify this.  I can’t imagine that it was not also due to constantly getting washed out and being unsuitable for continued commercial development.   But for whatever reasons a road is gone and a dune is here.  Sounds like a win/win.  Makes me smile all over.

 

 

Soon the evidence of a road will have completely disappeared.  Amazing how Nature can reclaim areas.

 

 

 

On the way back of course, we see things we didn’t see coming down the boardwalk.  

The bushy evergreen rosemary with its dark green leaves and and greenish yellow fruit is abundant.

 

 

 

This low magnolia has just started blooming but soon will be covered with blossoms judging by the buds.  I sure hope we’ll be here to see some of it and maybe smell it.

 

 

We return to the coach and

 

FINALLY after dinner it’s time for DESSERT! 

 

Bigger is better.  That’s what it says.  That means more is better too – right??

 

 

THE END