Wednesday, January 23, 2013

A few more from Apalach...


We really had a nice time in Apalachicola, Florida.  It’s not the Florida most of us are familiar with.  There are no Disney characters, no high rises blocking the view of the water, no chain restaurants (except for a Burger King on the way out of town to the west).  It’s charming.

Here’s the house we stayed in.  We chose this particular house because we could take the dog with us and we loved that wrap-around porch.  Well, we were very pleased with everything about it.  It’s a beautiful place built with a liberal use of “Pecky Cypress” -- boards that are pocked with holes caused by an underwater worm.  It makes for an interesting and unusual interior.  Here’s the link if you would like to see more pics of the place:  http://www.vrbo.com/443440


Apalach supplies 90% of the oysters in Florida.  I am not an oyster fan, but I do like honey.  While we were there we learned that the only places in the world to find Tupelo Honey are in Apalachicola and along the Nile River.  We stopped at the Piggly Wiggly and picked up a couple containers as souvenirs.


It’s a good place to hang if you like birds.  We saw untold numbers of pelicans and cormorants along with others we weren’t able to identify.  One day while we were driving along I spotted a Bald Eagle flying overhead.  That was cool!

This isn't a Bald Eagle...it's a Cormorant.
One nice thing for us being in the Florida Panhandle is that my nephew Neil and his wife Winona live near Destin, Florida, which is about two hours west of where we were staying.  Sounds like a long way, but it’s a way longer way from Massachusetts, so we took the time to go to Shorty’s Surfside in Grayton Beach to see Winona and to hear Neil play with his current band, Franko & Fiends.  Great fun! 



If you want to go to an actual beach when you are in Apalach, you need to drive about ten minutes to St. George Island.  We know that the beach is Olive’s Favorite Thing, so we took her over so she could frolic in the waves for a little while.  She’s actually on lead in this photo, but I cloned out the leash.  She wanted to feel free for a change. 



11 comments:

Pamela Gordon said...

Great pics Barbara. Sometimes it's just nice to get away from the 'maddening crowd' when on vacation isn't it. I like the house you stayed in and will now go have a look at the link you shared. I hope you're keeping warm in this cold spell.

Elizabeth Edwards said...

looks like Olive is flying ... so cute.

love Neil's hair ... ( :

TexWisGirl said...

olive's adorable! your nephew is really cute, too, as is his sweet wife. :)

i think i'd like that area of florida. :)

Nicki said...

The realty company with the house should consider using your picture (very beautifully done) - looks like a wonderful location and I can totally relate to enjoying family while in Florida, even with them being 1-2 hours away. (loads closer than traveling north). Olive looks like she is having a magnificent time and you captured a great shot of your nephew doing what he is clearly passionate about.

RobertN said...

Good time & beautiful photos:)
Greetings from Brasov!

Brian King said...

I like that house and the wrap around porch! Nice digs! The black and white of the eag....er, I mean, cormorant is fantastic!

MEcoy said...

thats a very lovely house,
and olive gone swimming huh how cute

Unknown said...

Yeah, that's actually the Florida I am used to...living in Ocala for 6 years or so.

Love the pug...you go Miss Olive!

Great pics Barb

Nancy said...

What a great place to hang out -- love the cabin. Your nephew and his wife are too cute! As is Olive. :)

Rose said...

I love that house...love the wrap around porch. And your shot of the cormorant is fantastic.

Stratoz said...

A grand adventure indeed and to end with a leaping pug... splendid