St. George Island

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Trip to St. George Island, Florida Aug. 2021 (Rob, Dina and Laurel and Copper!)

Day 1 Aug. 28, 2021 Saturday

We left the house around 7am for the long drive down to Florida. This was our first trip ever with our little terrier mix dog. He was so excited to get to go with us, he ran to the car and wouldn't even go to the bathroom before we left for fear of us leaving him. He is a very good traveler. I'm sure he was confused that the car just kept going and going and never reaching its destination. He had never been on such a long trip.

The drive down was pleasant, with decent weather most of the way and fairly light traffic. Rob and I took turns driving to minimize the fatigue and we made pretty good time, getting to Eastpoint 9.5 hours later with several stops. We went right to the house and checked in. The house is great with a huge private screened pool and great views of the bay.

We hadn't eaten since breakfast so we found a restaurant up the road that had amazing seafood. (Grouper!!!!) Copper stayed at the house, which he did not like at all. He was a little nervous in his new surroundings. After dinner we picked up a few essentials and headed back to the house so he would be comforted. We swam in the pool and then just relaxed in the living room until late in the evening.

We kept seeing flashes of light outside and found that there was a huge storm approaching in the distance from the Gulf. The lightening was all over the sky in a spectacular display. Laurel and I walked across the road to the beach and watched the show for awhile. She stayed even longer than I did, but I came back and watched from the screened in porch.

By 11pm we were all so tired that we decided to hit the sack. The storm we had been watching came ashore just after we laid down. It was wild. Lightening and thunder exploding all around us and the wind whipping. There is a hurricane in the Gulf and I half thought that maybe it changed course toward us. It of course was not a hurricane, but quite a storm. Despite all the energy all around us, we still managed to fall asleep amid the tempest. We were so tired.



Day 2 August 29, 2021 Sunday

All though the torrential rain and lightening are past, the wind was still whipping this morning. There was no real damage to anything though, as I imagine this area has seen its fair share of such storms. I sit here blogging with a beautiful view of the bay just outside our window. Can't wait to start the day.

Today was a day for exploration. It is still too stormy for any real beach time, so we decided to go around Apalachicola Bay area and check out the towns. We started with St. George Island, so we could get our feet/paws in the sand and I could do a little metal detecting. The sky was really dark and threatening and the ocean waves were rough, but there were still a few other people on the beach. Copper didn't seem to mind the sand and waves at all, and was happy to meet some other dogs. There was a family with three dogs chilling on the beach, and they and their dogs were really friendly.

After we left the people, Laurel spotted a good sized ghost crab running along the beach. He had a prize in his claws and was having none of us intimidating him. If any of us got too close, he would run at us. This was incredibly exciting for Copper. He had never seen a crab before and he was almost as excited by it as he would have been a squirrel. It was a beach squirrel. 😊 We finally left the guy alone to eat whatever it was he held in his claw.

I walked around for a bit swinging my detector and found two pennies, one old can and a pull tab. 😊 The dark skies looked like they were going to drop rain, so we headed back to the car and continued our exploration. We went in the big souvenir shop on St. George Island (which is dog friendly) and each of us found something to buy. The entrance we went in took us through a little coffee and ice cream shop. Laurel got some tea, which was really a bit overpriced. We have found that everything around here is a bit overpriced.

After the gift shop, we noticed the lighthouse gift shop was open. I was anxious to see if they had any miniatures of the lighthouse to buy for my collection. Unfortunately, they did not have any. Their supplier had doubled the price and they could no longer afford to carry them. They didn't have much in the tiny gift shop, so we ended up leaving there empty handed. The lighthouse was really cool, though, even if we could only look at it from the outside.

We left there and finished driving around the Island, then decided to get groceries there and head back to the house for lunch. We ate sandwiches and just chilled for a little bit, then went on over to Apalachicola to check out that town. I was pleasantly surprised at the quaint and historic little town. It really had the southern charm, and old world south feel. We found a nice little downtown area that had a bunch of cool looking shops. We decided to save the shop walk for another day since it was Sunday and some of the shops weren't open.

After Apalachicola, we drove over to Carrabelle to see the dog friendly beach there and check out the town. The beach was not big and was covered in sea grass. Being on the bay, the water there is brackish and dark. We decided it didn't look too good, so we just continued on up to Carrabelle. It was small town and there was not much there except a huge marina. It must be the heart of the fishing industry here. We only stayed long enough to stop in and get the rest of what we needed to cook dinner at the house. We were making a mussel pasta that a friend of mine gave me a recipe for.

It was still early when we got back to the house, so we decided to play around in the pool until dinner time. We had a blast, swimming, and just having a good time. Laurel and I cooked dinner. It was not as good as when my friend made it, but was still pretty decent. We just chilled the rest of the evening and went to bed around 10pm. A very nice first full day.

Day 3 August 30, 2021 Monday

This morning is much calmer, although the skies are a little cloudy and somewhat breezy. It might be a good beach day. We are going to assess the situation and make our plans.

We took our time getting around, then headed to the beach just after lunch. The beach had more people on it, but was still not too busy. It was overcast and windy, but it was still good for hanging out on the beach. Copper seemed to like it. He even ran right up to the waves. Of course, as soon as the water touch his feet he wanted no more of it.

Laurel waded into the surf. It was kind of rough and a lot of sea grass had washed up, but the water was warm and inviting. Rob and I took turns running the metal detector and watching the dog. I found a penny and a quarter. It was fun. I let Copper off leash for a bit and he immediately found a little teacup poodle he wanted to play with. He ran full speed down the beach, and danced around the little dog and its owners playfully until Rob caught up with him and got him back on leash. It was so cute.

It was hot and we were getting a bit burned, so we packed up and left the beach. We stopped at the Edy's ice cream shop for a little ice cream to cool off and then headed back to the house. It was close to 3pm when we got back to the house, so we just chilled around there and played a bit of the trivia game that we brought until it was dinner time.

We decided to do dinner at the Red Pirate right here in Eastpoint. It is a dog friendly restaurant with outdoor seating. We took Copper. He enjoyed being able to be with us. We were at a picnic table in the outdoor area, so he got to sit on the bench with us. Fellow patrons were all loving to see our cute little boy. He was so well behaved. There were several cats around the restaurant, too, and he didn't even try to chase them. He was totally focused on the food we had. haha.

Back at the house after dinner, we went right to the pool. Having a big, nice pool right at the house is amazing. Truly my favorite activity here is just to swim in the pool. We swam until we were pruney and then decided to play another game in the screened in porch as we dried off. It was a fun evening.

Day 4 August 31, 2021 Tuesday

It was our plan to do some shopping in Apalachicola today and visit the estuary, but as it is stormy and raining this morning, I am not sure when we will get around to that. For now, we will just slowly get around and enjoy the sound of the rain, and the view of the rocky surf in the bay.

The rain seemed to let up just around noon, so we decided to go ahead with the shopping in Apalachicola and grab something for lunch while we were out. We stopped by the Bayside Coffee shop in Eastpoint first and picked up some drinks. Rob got a iced Mocha Latte, with Sumatran blend that he said was really good. Laurel got a Chai Tea, that I tasted, it was strong, but really good. I tried the "Hank" (named after the owners 2 year old) which was basically just half and half with a shot of chocolate. So creamy and delicious.

We started the shopping at the Oysterbone, a little shop specifically for animals. Copper had fun going in and sniffing around and we picked up some treats for him and a few things for Christian as well. I got Copper the Salmon jerky treats even though he tried and loved the duck hearts too. He also loved the salmon jerky! The next shop we went to was a high end boutique. The prices were crazy, but we ended up staying in the shop for quite awhile because the sky decided to open up again. Wind and rain whipped outside, so we were trapped for a bit. When it finally let up, we went on shopping, though quicker than planned. The rain just didn't look like there was going to be an end in sight. We did manage to visit most of the shops, then we looked for a place to grab a bite to eat.

Although Apalachicola is dog friendly, all the dog friendly restaurants are so because they offer outdoor seating. But outdoor seating is not an option in torrential rain, so there were no places for us to eat where we could have Copper. So it was decided that we would drive back to Poppi D's, where I thought I saw that they had a good covered area outside.

When we got to Poppi D's we found out that they were also the victims of the rain. The area that looked like a big screened in porch was not dog friendly, only they pavilion outside was, and it was closed due to the heavy rain. Instead, we decided to just get an order to go and eat at the house. We ordered, she told us it would be 20 minutes, so Rob took me, Laurel and Copper back to the house. It was casually mentioned that the waitress never took our names. We figured she would remember us anyway, since she was the only one taking orders. So Rob left us at the house and went back for the food.

He arrived back not too long later with our food. Laurel started laughing because written on the side of her pizza box under customer name was the word "dog". So we were defined by Copper. So of course we had to share with him, since it was clearly his food anyway. haha. The food was really good. One of the best burgers I have ever had.

We were watching a ghost hunters show, and suddenly heard a loud noise. Rob sat up and said, "what is that?" I had heard the noise earlier in the week and had figured it must be a frog. It was so loud, I figured it had to be a big frog. Laurel went out to look for it (she loves frogs). Turns out it was just this tiny little guy about the size of a thumbnail. Laurel eventually caught it and took some pictures of it. I will have to look it up later to see what kind of frog he was. He sure had a big voice for such a little guy.

We needed a few more groceries for the house, so Rob and I went to the IGA in Carrabelle. While there, the sky opened up again. Luckily, by the time we got out the rain had let up. It was then it was decided that the day was just going to be a wash out. We decided to just hang out at the house and enjoy the pretty views and each others company. We played a fun round of conspiracy theory, right up until dinner time. Laurel won both games.

I didn't feel like eating out, so Rob and Laurel went out and picked up Mexican while I found stuff in the house to eat. They brought the food back, and Laurel swam for a bit while I watched TV. Rob went back and forth between us. Later, Laurel insisted we come out and look at the stars. It was so pretty. We could actually see the Milky Way. I brought out my star map app so we would know what we were looking at. The predominant stars were actually Saturn and the Sagittarius constellation. Pretty cool.

It was a nice, relaxing day over all.

Day 5 September 1, 2021 Wednesday.

We woke up to sunshine over us and blue skies. Unfortunately, out so sea, the skies are still pretty dark. Right now, there is little wind and the bay is calm. We are going to try to get to the Estuary today, if we can.

Once everyone got up and around we did indeed go to the Estuary. It was a pretty cool set up, with a nature walk, an overlook of the bay, and a museum including fish tanks of local sea life. We did not take Copper this time, because although dogs were allowed on the nature walks, they were not allowed in the museum. It was a good thing we didn't take him because the nature walks were along a raised boardwalk whose slats were just far enough apart to be a problem for a little dog.

We came back to the house afterward to have lunch. We decided to wait until later in the day to go to the beach and then have dinner at the Blue Parrot, so we just stayed around the house, swam and relaxed.

We went to the beach around 4pm. The weather was great. It was cloudy and breezy, but cooler and less humid than it had been, perfect for the beach. Laurel got right in and swam in the ocean. I waded a little, but spent most of my time swinging my metal detector. I found some coins and stuff. It was fun. Rob and Copper just walked around the beach for a bit, then the three of us just sat on our mat and watched Laurel get soaking wet in the waves. The ocean looked lovely and it was so nice to just sit and watch the waves.

We had clothes to put on for dinner, so we threw those on and drove the half of a block to The Blue Parrot. They are dog friendly, so we were seated in their covered porch area. It was open air and right on the beach. We had a nice view of the waves and were cooled by the breezes and a big fan overhead. The food was great, too. We ate until we were stuffed, then we each got t-shirts at the little gift shop and then headed home.

We had such a nice day. This was the kind of day I had been hoping for. 😊

Day 6 Sept. 2, 2021 Thursday

We woke up to blue skies and perfect weather. No sign of storms this morning, and the air is a whole lot less humid. Now we have to decide what we are going to do with the amazing day. I'm sure at least some of it will be on the beach!

It was such a nice morning, that Rob and I decided to fly the drone over the Hell's Tate forest just behind the house. Once we remembered what to do to get it started, we had the drone in the air. It was so cool flying over the forest and swamp. I totally expected to see some alligators swimming below, or a bear trudging through the thick woods. We didn't see anything like that, but the view was incredible. Love that little drone.

The weather held all day. Absolutely beautiful. We got around slowly, and went over to the Island around noon, just in time to have lunch. We ate at the Pit BBQ place. I had chicken fingers that were delicious. We ate outside in their covered seating area so that we could bring Copper. Very good.

We wanted to explore the Island a little more before heading to the beach. It was our plan to spend the rest of the day until sunset on the Island. We went all the way to the West side of the island first. It was mostly just houses, but there was a scattering of public beaches as well. There is so much beach on the Island that it would be easy to find a section of beach to yourself.

We then went to the State Park on the East side of the Island. We had to pay to get in, but it was worth it to see all the pristine beaches. The virtually untouched State Park looked really inviting, but they were not dog friendly, and we had Copper. Also, we didn't have a shelter with us, so we decided to go back to the public beach where they had umbrella rentals and allowed dogs on the beach.

It was only 45 dollars for two umbrella and 3 chairs, and they offered just the right amount of protection from the sun. Laurel and I wasted no time getting into the water. It was much calmer than it had been all week and was finally taking on the pretty green color that the Gulf is famous for. The water was the perfect temperature for swimming and the swells made it fun to just bob in the water. Rob stayed with Copper for a little while then traded out with Laurel. We decided it would be cool to get a shot of the lighthouse from the water, since it was right there. Laurel brought me the GoPro so I could take some pics from the ocean.

I finally went back in after almost an hour in the water. I ran into a man doing metal detecting on the beach. He had a really fancy set up, a 1200 dollar underwater detector. He was detecting in the swim zone and had already found 3 rings, two bracelets and a bunch of coins. He was really nice and gave me some pointers on beach hunting and told me about his friend, Buddy who sold him the metal detector he had in hand.

While I was talking to him, Laurel came up and told me that she saw a dolphin! I was hoping it would surface again, but I never got to see it. What I did see was a bunch of pelicans diving for fish just off shore. It was cool in itself.

I did a little metal detecting of my own, but I didn't find a single thing. But I didn't care, it was so beautiful just being there. Copper was totally enjoying himself, just checking out the other dogs and all the people. There was so much to look at for him. I let him off leash for just a bit and he went and played with another dog for a bit, then ran full speed down the beach. He was so excited and just adorable. He doesn't seem to bother at all by the waves. The perfect beach dog. We finally had to run him down and get him back on leash.

After some more swimming, we finally decided to call an end to our beach day. We were there from 2pm until 5:30pm. Just the right amount of time to get light sunburns but not too red. The public beach had outdoor showers and change areas as well, which was nice because we wanted to stay on the Island for dinner.

After getting cleaned up a bit, Rob and Laurel got some ice cream at a little shop down the road and I shopped a little at the beach wear shop. I got a bag for metal detecting finds, a box to keep my finds in, and a cool mug for mom. I also got some aloe for our burns.

We ate at Mango Mike's on the Island. The food was great, but they gave us way too much food. There is no way one person could eat it all. I got chicken fajita nachos, Laurel got a burger and Rob got shrimp tacos. Again, it was dog friendly with open air seating. It had a very Caribbean feel, built under a large thatched roof and the sounds of Caribbean music to eat by. I really liked it.

It had been our plan to watch the sunset on the Island, but it was quickly becoming clear that the sun was going to set over the land and not over the water. It wasn't worth it to stay on the Island another hour for that, so we headed back to the house. I was still ocean sticky, despite the outdoor shower, so I wanted to swim a little to get the salt and sand off. Everyone else wanted to do the same.

Still wanting to "see" the sunset, Rob and I took the drone up again so I could fly it above the tree line and see the setting sun over the swamp. It was so gorgeous. I flew around a bit in the golden hour light and also flew a bit over the bay. It was so low tide that the water was way away from shore. It looked so cool from the air. I can't wait to see the footage on a bigger screen.

After the sun was down, we all went to the pool to swim. It was my first time swimming out there after dark. It was really cool. Actually, it was also just downright cold. haha. Despite that, we still swam until we were pruney. I spotted a huge owl flying into a nearby tree. It stirred up some bats that did not seem to like his presence. It's so rare to see an owl, so it was quite a treat.

It was quite dark when we got out and we were greeted with clear skies full of stars. It is so pretty here. I decided I like it better than Destin. The beaches are less crowded, there is no hustle and bustle, and so little light pollution that you can see all the stars in the sky. Truly amazing.

Day 7, Sept. 3, 2021 Friday

It's our last full day here, and what a start to the day. It is beautiful again, with blue skies and calm water. I went out this morning and saw the sun just after it rose and was still red over the water. The air was cool this morning and there is just a light breeze. I took the dog out to go to the bathroom and watched the humming birds buzzing about a bush they seem to really like. There are three of them, and there might even be a nest in there. They were chattering at each other and buzzing about the bush. I love it. Another thing we have seen a lot of here are frogs. Lots of little adorable frogs with really big voices. There are also a ton of dragon flies everywhere, like hundreds of them. I love it.

I started laundry since this place has a nice washer and dryer, and then we headed back to the Island for lunch. We decided that we really liked the view at the Blue Parrot best, so we went back there to eat. We sat in the lower deck area under an umbrella, with spectacular view of the water. It was totally clear and sunny, as well as a lot hotter today than it had been. Thankfully there was still a nice breeze. Lunch was great, Rob and I opted to have grouper one last time and Laurel went for the crab legs again. Copper just ate what we gave him, a little of everything. The nice waitress brought him a bowl of ice water to cool off, and he drank a good amount before getting tangled in his leash and spilling it. 😊

We were so warm after lunch we decided to skip the beach and just head back to the cool comfort of our house on the bay. We didn't leave, however, until we stopped at the snow cone place and Laurel and I got some delicious snow cones. Perfect, just hit the spot and cooled us off.

Right now, I am listening to the sound of the dryer and the ceiling fan above me as I sit in the dining room looking out to the waters of the bay. There is hardly a cloud in the sky and the water is finally blue instead of red like it was earlier in the week. There are only a couple of small palm trees to obstruct the view, but to me they just add to it. Copper is lying in a sunny patch by the door to the screened in porch. I guess he can never be too warm. Laurel is in her room watching TV and Rob has gone to take a nap. The beach is awesome, but sometimes just a little bit of relaxing is just what the soul needs.

By 4 or so we decided to go swimming. The sun was lower in the sky, so we were less likely to get burned (that is if you can get burned through a screen?). We enjoyed a few hours of the cool water and then got dried off to head to dinner.

We left for the brewery around 6pm. When we got there we found that it was VERY dog friendly and there were a lot of dogs with their people there. The nice family we met the first day on the beach was there and they recognized us through Copper. The dogs greeted each other again and then I walked around with Copper so he could sniff and greet. We decided the hour long wait for pizza was a little too much, so Rob just had a beer and then we left. We picked up some snacks for the ride home tomorrow and got gas, then picked up a pizza for Laurel at Poppi Di's. Rob and I ate stuff in the house.

We ate our food, watched a little TV, did some packing and just relaxed a bit for our last night here. Rob and Laurel took a dip in the pool while I vegged out in the house. It was altogether an awesome vacation. Good family time, beach time and pool time. To be honest, I am a little sorry that it is coming to an end.

Day 8, Sept. 4, 2021 Saturday

We made one more stop at the Coffee shop before we headed out. The drive up was long and uneventful.

Impressions of the Apalachicola Bay

1. It truly is dog friendly. Every place we went, they fawned over Copper. The wait staff at most of the restaurants would bring out water bowls for the dog. There were a lot of other dogs around. Very much a dog lover's paradise.

2. The people were friendly. Every one was really nice, helpful and spoke with a much deeper Southern accent than I expected.

3. It is old school, in a good way. There was not a single fast food restaurant in the whole area. However, the food offered was all very good. Some of the best food I have ever had.

4. It's very laid back. There is no hustle and bustle like you see in many Florida beach areas. The beach was never too packed.

5. There were a lot of pretty beaches. There was so much coastline on St. George Island that it would be easy to find a place to yourself in the white sand. Even at the main public beach, it was never too crowded.

6. It was expensive. Everything was expensive.

7. There were a lot of dragon flies, and little frogs with big voices.

8. There is little light pollution, so star gazing was very nice.

9. The well water in Eastpoint smelled like Sulphur.

10. I would definitely return here, even over Destin. However, I would probably stay on the Island instead.

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