Gulf Coast Trip Jan 25- Feb 8 2017 - on to Grayton Beach State Park

Grayton Beach State Park – January 25 – January 28

Wednesday we left about 10:30 to head down to Grayton Beach. The drive was easy – it was pretty much a straight shot down highway 98 and then on to highway 30A. It took about 45 minutes to get there as this is a busy highway with stop lights. We did notice that there has been a lot of growth at Panama City/Panama City Beach toward Rosemary beach since we were last here about 16 years ago. There is much more in the way of housing and businesses.  When we got to Grayton Beach State Park we were able to check in right away. We are really pleased with our campsite. We got set up and took a bike ride down to the beach and then strolled on the beach. It was another really warm day-highs in the 70s.

 

Thursday was pretty much a “chore” day. The bathhouse is nearby and they have a very nice mini-laundromat so we caught up on laundry.  Down the road near Seaside there is a Publix so we also stocked up on groceries. By the way, Publix seem to be everywhere down here and really dominate the grocery business. We have seen a few Winn-Dixies here and there as well. We love Publix-they have an excellent deli-bakery which is convenient for camping. We also walked the campground. There is a small loop for the full hookup section which is where we are. It’s so nice to have full hookups! And then there is a bigger loop for the electric/water only section, which is also about $8 a day cheaper. All the sites are big. The electric/water only section is more wooded and several sites are closer to the lake. The campground is laid out very well and each site is very spacious and really lovely.

Friday we decided to drive into Destin. We were actually at this campground about five summers ago now and stayed in a cabin for the week with Ben’s family and also granddaughter Haley. One day we drove into Destin to take a dolphin cruise and the traffic was horrific! So we thought we would see what it is like in January. MUCH better! It was actually pretty much normal city traffic and flowed well. We could actually do some sightseeing. We drove across the bridge toward Fort Walton Beach but didn’t go too far down that way. We didn’t bother doing any mall shopping because we don’t really need anything, but we did go Harbor Walk Village, which is where we went last time we were here for our dolphin cruise. But Friday the weather was high 50s and it wasn’t boat cruising weather. The place was practically deserted. We didn’t stay very long. We did cruise the beach road and found that The Crab Trap was a good place to stop for lunch. They had reasonable lunch specials that were really good. The view was fantastic.

Harbor Walk Village

View of bridge from Harbor Walk

Crab Trap restaurant - view from our table

 

Saturday the weather was still pretty cool – highs at almost 60 and lows in the 40s. So we stayed off the beach and wandered into Seaside... There were quite a few people here for this time of year. They had a farmer’s market set up and we strolled through it. We got some delicious rosemary-garlic bread. We strolled through some of the shops. I had to go to Sundog Books – love this place and always find something for the smaller grandchildren. We checked out some of the homes. I looked online and home here start at $900K. Most are over $1 million. Yikes (!). We had lunch at the Pizza Bar- pizza and draft beer – yum! Then back to the camper for reading and relaxing.

Fun facts - Seaside is one of the first master planned new urbanism communities. The movie "The Truman Show" was filmed here.