February 26, 2014

Wedding

After picking up Melissa from the airport on Tuesday, we headed across the state line to Gulf Shores Alabama where we stayed at the beautiful Martinique on the Gulf. Our first day together was devoted to throwing Meris a bachelorette party. The day dawned cold and rainy so we focused instead on indoor activities (eating, shopping and watching movies). Our one outdoor activity consisted of driving into Fort Morgan where we were promptly accosted by the staff for not paying museum admission even though we had only stopped to take a picture of a cool tunnel. Melissa also did cajole us into a carousel ride which was really fun. We ended the day at Gelato Joe's, singing karoke in a bar where one of the barstools was occupied by a cat and another by a dog. We doubled the population of the bar when the three of us walked in but it was such a warm and welcoming environment that we ended up staying til closing time (9pm :) and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
Carousel
Bar cat
Karaoke
The next day was rehearsal day which we began with some relaxing manicures and pedicures. Jess arrived in time to join us for the rehearsal and for the first time in 8 years the ranch girls were all reunited! We have all scattered across the country since then and lost touch every now and again but us four girls who met at a dude ranch for a summer job have formed an unbreakable bond of friendship that I am so grateful for. Everyone marveled at how amazing we looked but I guess anything is an improvement over jeans, boots and flannels!
Ranch girls reunited
The wedding day was filled with bright sun but the temperature only hit a high of 60 degrees. When the photgrapher arrived, he took Meris outside for some shots and when she came back, her lace train had caught all the pine needles so Jess and I had to do some cleanup!
Pine needle cleanup
With the photographer spending time with the groom's family, we also did some candid shots of our own just for fun.
The bride and her partner in crime
We mean business
Everyone was ready on time and Meris decided that the golf cart was the perfect chariot to carry her off to her wedding!
Riding in style
Despite the cold temperatures, the beach side ceremony (performed by Melissa) was filled with love and smiles. After all the pictures, we adjourned inside to warm up and have some cake. It was also Seth's birthday so it was a combination wedding and birthday cake. We ended the evening enjoying a delicious meal at Jessie's.
Saturday afternoon, Melissa and I took a late afternoon stroll on the Jeff Friend trail in the Bon Secour refuge and it was so absolutely quiet and still that it was the perfect relaxing end to a crazy week.
Bon Secour
Bon Secour
I am so thankful that I could celebrate with Meris and Seth and also reunite with Melissa and Jess. We were also surrounded by both Meris and Seth's family who are some of the sweetest, most loving people I have ever met and they welcomed us all with open arms.

February 21, 2014

National Naval Aviation Museum


I had taken a few sunny pictures when I was on the base the day before.
Tuesday was a rainy day so I headed over to the National Naval Aviation Museum and it is one of the best museums I’ve been to.  The amazing part is that it is completely free! You can honestly spend days in there and not take in everything but I did my best.
Silly looking plane
My first activity was jumping on a trolley for a 20 minute tour of the approximately 50 aircraft displayed on the flight line behind the restoration hangar. Tour tickets are free and can be picked up at the Information Desk but they go quickly. I thought it was a nice behind the scenes look at some planes that are not in their finest condition. Perhaps one day I’ll go back and see them on full display inside! 
I spent the rest of the morning wandering around inside and learning all about naval aviation. More than 150 aircraft and spacecraft are on display, including four former Blue Angel A-4 Skyhawks, the Curtiss NC-4 (the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic), U. S. Coast Guard helicopters, biplanes, an aircraft that President George H. W. Bush trained in, and the S-3 Viking used to transport President George W. Bush to the USS Abraham Lincoln in 2003. My favorite exhibits were the portrayals of life in the service and you can tell they had a sense of humor.
"If your parachute fails to open, return same and we will give you a new one"
"If all else fails, look out the window"
You can also sit in the cockpits of some different airplanes as well as partake in a variety of flight simulators. A major focal point of the museum is the Blue Angels because this is where they are based. Later in the spring you can come out and view their practices for free but I was too early in the year to see that.


At 1pm I jumped on a free tour of the place. They basically walk you around to different aircraft and give you a bit more background than is on the display placards. It was way too long though. I was still on the tour at 2:15 and I had to go to the airport to pick up Melissa so I headed out.

Exploring Pensacola



The next day found me taking in more parks in the Pensacola area. I started at the Tarkiln Bayou which is home to four species of endangered pitcher plants. I did the 1.5 mile round trip trail out to the bayou and didn’t see any pitcher plants but the bayou was pretty. It had such calm, glassy water that was only interrupted by a couple pelicans.

My next stop was Fort Barrancas which is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore but it located on the Naval Base. Turns out it is only open on Saturdays though and you really can’t even see the fort from the visitor center.
View from Ft. Pickens
There is a .5 mile nature trail that you can walk but it skirts the main road through the naval base so its not exactly tranquil. Down from the fort is the Advanced Redoubt which you can walk around but not go inside. It was built between 1845 and 1870 as part of a defensive network for the Pensacola Navy Yard. The Redoubt is unique among the early American forts at Pensacola in being designed solely for resisting a land-based assault.
Also on the ground of the Naval Base is the Pensacola Lighthouse that you can walk up but it requires a fee and I was I no condition to walk up a lighthouse. It was more interesting to see the variety of planes constantly flying overhead from the Naval Base.
The Base is home to the Naval Aviation Museum but I wanted to save that for a rainy day so I headed over to Rosamond Johnson beach, another part of the National Seashore. I learned that this was among the few beaches open to African-Americans during segregation and it is named for Private Rosamond Johnson, Jr. who was killed on July 26, 1950 during the Korean Conflict. Having carried two wounded men to safety under enemy fire, he was killed going back for a third. There’s a half mile long trail through dunes, pine trees, and salt marsh outlooks. After walking that I settled in on the beach to relax for a bit. 
My last stop of the day was at Big Lagoon State Park. It was so relaxing, I think I only saw 3 other people the whole time I was there. Big Lagoon State Park separates the mainland from Perdido Key and the Gulf of Mexico. Natural communities, ranging from saltwater marshes to pine flatwoods, attract a wide variety of birds, so I tried to pay attention to what was flying around. 
 
There are several different trails that I checked out but I spend a good chunk of time relaxing on a bench overlooking Long Pond. 

I was pretty exhausted after my day outdoors so I headed back to the hotel to partake in the hot tub before nightfall.

Gulf Islands National Seashore


This past Valentine’s Day my friend Meris was married in Gulf Shores, Alabama and I had the privilege of serving as maid of honor. I had been eagerly anticipating the trip for months, obviously to celebrate such a joyous occasion, but also because it gave me the chance to visit a new state. I blocked off my entire week and had planned to drive up to Montgomery and check out some national park sites around there. Well my best laid plans were dashed when I came down with a 102 degree fever two days before departure. I was initially diagnosed with the flu but my test came back negative so it was just a shitty cold. I ended up canceling all my Montgomery plans and hanging out in Pensacola for a few days instead. Not to worry though, I was still able to cross a national park site off my list!
When I had gotten some rest, fluids and medication I decided to venture out to see what Pensacola had to offer. My first stop was at the Naval Live Oaks section of Gulf Islands National Seashore. It was on Santa Rosa Sound and I just did a leisurely .8 mile nature trail to acclimate myself. 
My next stop was all the way out at Fort Pickens. I was just expecting just a fort but as you drive into the national park area, there are several batteries along the way that you can check out. These concrete gun batteries were built from the 1890s through the 1940s, each a response to a particular threat. By the end of World War II, the Army abandoned the forts when atomic bombs, guided missiles, and long-range bombers made such forts obsolete. They offered nice vantage points of the surrounding area.

 Finally I arrived at Fort Pickens. It is the largest of four forts built to defend Pensacola Bay, Florida, and its navy yard. The fort was begun in 1829 and completed in 1834. It was one of only four forts in the South that was never occupied by Confederate forces during the Civil War. There is a self guided tour to follow along on and I really enjoyed it. This fort had lots more nooks and crannies to explore than other forts I had been to and I found myself looking around like “should I really be entering this 4 foot high tunnel?” 
Which way to go?
Tiny tunnels
Beautiful arches
I really enjoyed this fort because you could see how it had been modernized over the years to adapt to changing threats. There’s also a newly renovated museum on the grounds that has displays on the history and ecology of the area.
The day was getting long when I decided to head back and take in the sunset on Pensacola Pier. At 1,471 feet the Pensacola Beach Gulf Fishing Pier is the longest on the Gulf of Mexico. You have to pay $1 to walk out on it but it was well worth it for the view. The sunset was absolutely gorgeous and it was a nice relaxing way to end the day.