Gulf State Park

Here we are at Gulf State Park, ready to enjoy the warm breezes and bright sunshine of an Alabama spring.

And we did have some lovely spring-like days. We also had a good number of stormy, chilly ones. The red “beach closed” flag was flying more than not.

Still, we had plenty to enjoy during our month on the Alabama coast. Gulf State Park has 28 miles of trails that can be walked or biked, and we covered almost all of them at least once, and many quite a few times. The trails wind through the swampy areas that surround the campground. Many sections are elevated to keep travelers clear of the wet ground below. The wildlife is abundant throughout the area. During our walks on these trails we met …

Painted turtles …

Sometimes sunning on logs and stream banks …

And sometimes just wishing to be left alone!

They’re was a family of alligators living under one of the bridges. Here is mama:

and a few of her babies …

and a distant cousin from across the way …

There were also a lot of lizards zipping around, looking for sunbathing opportunities.

One of our favorite walks took us to the park’s dog park. In Gracie’s opinion, this was the best dog park she has ever visited! She could have spent all day, every day there. You see, dogs are not allowed on the Gulf beaches in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach, the two towns that bracket Gulf State Park. But this dog park features a perfect beach just for dogs, and Gracie adored playing in the water there.

She even made a friend on her first visit! Those of you who know Gracie, know that making friends is not her strong suit. But she did on this day and they had a delightful time together! Alas, this friend was not there on subsequent visits, but it was a nice moment for her anyway!

As the weather warmed up we were able to get to the beach too. The white sugar sand and warm water brought out a good-sized crowd for some sunbathing and swimming.

A fisherman was trying his luck nearby, supervised by a great blue heron waiting for his share.

Out and about the area

Our home base in the park kept us busy most days, but we did get out to explore the area too. The shore towns are home to many great restaurants offering seafood, Cajun, southern, bbq, and other delights. A favorite was the Coastal Beach Bar, which we didn’t discover until late in our stay unfortunately (or fortunately, seen another way!). The marina in Orange Beach housed many beautiful boats that were fun to admire, and an outdoor shopping mall with lots of intriguing places to check out.

Later in March, we celebrated a milestone birthday.

And on April 1, an anniversary.

And, it being March and all, we were fully immersed in March Madness too! Very happy for the UConn men’s second tournament win in a row, and the UConn women’s excellent run to the Final Four despite an injury-plagued season! And enjoyed South Carolina’s win as well.

Fort Morgan

Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, and Gulf State Park share a barrier island called Grass Island that extends into Mobile Bay from its eastern shore, forming a partial barrier to the bay’s entrance. At the western tip of this island stands Fort Morgan, a military installation that played a role in the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and World Wars I and II. The original structure was replaced between 1819 and 1833 to protect Mobile Bay using a labor force leased from plantation slave-owners in the region. The complex now belongs to the State of Alabama and is a museum and historical site.

Before we visited the fort itself, we explored the marina and beach that are just east of the fort’s entrance. The marina includes a boat launch and large fishing pier. The beach is the only dog-friendly beach on Grass Island now.

After enjoying the beach and views of the bay, we drove on to the Fort Morgan site. We joined a number of other visitors strolling through the grounds and investigating the structures.

Time to move on

Snowbirding at an RV park offers some unique social opportunities. Many of our neighbors were also “long-termers”, who were there for at least a month’s stay, and some for several months. Some had been coming to the park for several years. The park is large, with almost 500 campsites, and it’s organized into little neighborhoods. We became familiar with the people and pets in our neighborhood before too long. Gracie wasted no time in making a friend who must have reminded her of her buddy Charger back home.

And then there were the “short-termers” who were there for just a few days. At the beginning of our stay, the long-termers far outnumbered the others. But as March wore on and the weather improved, the park began to fill up, especially on weekends. The typical snowbird population was gradually overtaken by families and a younger crowd in general. We started to see swimsuits replacing the baggy jeans and sneakers on the bodies walking up and down the roads. By the end of our stay, the snowbirds had mostly flown, some to another destination on the road and others to their “permanent” homes in cooler climates. As we prepared to leave the park for our next destination, our previously lively neighborhood was quite deserted!

So on April 3 we packed up our rig and headed out to continue our adventures on the road!