Fort Walton Beach and New Orleans

---

Fort Walton Beach and New Orleans



January was a lazy month. We stayed at the Marina Bay Resort in Fort Walton Beach, read books, watched TV, went to the movies, made some new friends in the couple in the unit next door and enjoyed dinners , bbq’s and a trip to Funiac Springs with them. We rode around the immediate area and did one long ride- the Timpoochee trail to Panama City Beach- beautiful – long low dunes, with lagoons just behind the dunes. Combine this with Florida weather and you can understand the rows of condominiums that line the trail.



The cycle track was great, but judging by the number of bikes to rent, would be impossible crowded in summer- there are advantages to being here in winter. All the resorts offer “snow bird” specials- we gather snow birds are the equivalent of Grey Nomads in Oz. There is a neat little Gulfarium within walking distance. We enjoyed the feeding and training of the Canadian Otters, seals and got soaked after a particularly spectacular jump during the dolphin show.



North America had freakishly cold weather in January and twice this extended as far as the Florida panhandle where we were staying. The first time, the arctic vortex moved south and we had temperatures of -8C for 48 hours, the waterfall froze and we stayed inside. The second time an ice storm resulted in ice on the roads, roads and bridges closed and cars coated in ice so you couldn’t open the doors. (we stayed indoors again). One advantage to staying in one place for a month was making friends and we had a many enjoyable days with Ken and Shirley from Iowa going to Furniac Springs, restaurants etc.



Leaving Fort Walton Beach by Greyhound bus, bound for New Orleans with a change of bus in Mobile was an interesting trip. Fridays bus was the first to travel since Tuesday, the ice storm having halted services on Wednesday and Thursday. The bus was packed (one German backpacker landed up sitting on the floor of the bus) and the generator of the bus packed up but the bus driver elected to push on, knowing he was going to run out of power, but thinking he would just make Mobile. He turned off all non-essentials (air con, speakers, power outlets) and drove conservatively. We would have made it except that about a mile from the Mobile terminal a semitrailer pulled into our lane, slowed and turned and our bus had to brake hard. There was no power left to accelerate, so we crawled another km before the bus coasted to a stop. We could see the terminal!



Another bus was dispatched to pick us and our baggage up – some passengers electing to walk it was so close. Only slightly delayed, passengers changed to their new buses and we set off. Five minutes later, on the freeway out of Mobile, our bus abruptly stopped. After a few minutes it restarted, went 200 metres and died again. A comedy of errors followed with the driver being put on hold and then disconnected several times as he tried to speak to someone back at the terminal we had just left. Eventually he contacted someone who arranged another bus and driver (from a rival company) to pick us up and we made it to New Orleans only 3 hours late. Two breakdowns in less than 10 km must be a record.



New Orleans was great, explored the French quarter, went to the wwII museum and watched the marathon. Peter caught the virus that had kept me in bed in Fort Walton for a few days and it was his turn to try and get some sleep while I did shopping and packed for the trip to Mexico. Both of us feel fine now and are having fun in Mexico.

---

Photos

Lakes and dunes
Typical sight on the Timpoochee cycle trail- a lagoon formed by the sand dune , either island or peninsula, with the gulf on the other side.

Ice on the picnic area, Fort Walton Beach
Wednesday morning after the ice storm on Tuesday night, the ice stayed around Thursday midday.

first bus breakdown, Mobile
At least with this breakdown we were allowed off the bus. The second time, on the freeway, we had to stay seated until our rescue bus arrived. Luckily the passengers all dealt with it with a fair amount of humour.

Gulf Intra coastal waterway
This was basically the view from our bedroom and living room/ balcony windows. I liked lying in bed at night looking at the lights on the water. Sunrise was also spectacular.

Chester checking out the Music box
The museum at Funiac Springs had about 96 'records' for the music box as well as a collection of old fire arms and swords that my brother Arthur would envy.

Bike rental Timpochee Trail
There must be hundreds of bikes parked in this square alone, and this was not the only place renting bikes. We loved the colour co ordination of the racks, bet it doesn't look like this in summer!

Bottle tree
Saw this on our ride on the trail, not quite the same as the North Qld bottle tree, but very easy to recognise.

Seagrove Beach
When we saw this, Peter and I simultaneously exclaimed " I didn't know Skase had been here" the rows of palm trees so reminiscent of Port Douglas.

Panama City Beach
View from our hotel room. We had raced a rain front which we knew was moving east and made it by 20 minutes! The next day was sunshine all the way back.

Canadian otter
First time we had seen these cute little fellows, their lunch looked good- prawns and clams by the looks of it.

Cheaster and the otter
Chester, our trusty Tiger travelling companion making friends with an otter.

Lion Fish- Gulfarium
The lion fish are not native to the gulf, but are thriving here. Probably introduced by hobby aquarists dumping fish into the ocean when they move.

Lily the Dolphin
We were both soaked when one of the other dolphins did a huge leap and landed only metres from us!

Cycad filled with ice crystals
Cycads being tropical, this was the first time I had seen one filled with ice crystals.

Dragon Master showcase
Street performers in the French quarter, these rap dancers/ acrobats had a great line in running gags, including passers by in the show. Very good.

Bourbon street, French Quarter
Reasonably quiet early on the Saturday morning, Bourbon street is packed by early evening. Likely to be insane by the time Mardi Gras gets around- we will see when we get back from Mexico.

Comments

[Roley]

enjoying your blog - thank you
I just wanted to acknowledge that your blog is received and appreciated. It sounds, viruses aside, you are both continuing to enjoy your tripping about. I was a little disappointed NOLA didn't get a bigger mention! ??? I thought New Orleans would be a highlight given the different culture, architecture and history. Perhaps it might get more exposure in your next blog ??? I hope you have left the viruses behind you. I see Chester didn't catch it. best to you both

[Tony Carter]

Hello
Looks like a fascinating part of the world - we are sweltering here in Brisbane. As usual February the worst month of the year. Well written and so interesting to see what one part of the USA is really like. All the best for your continuing holiday/ Today week for my op!!!!!