Friday, April 22, 2011 – Big Lagoon, Pensacola, FL

Before leaving the dock Wednesday morning, we walked up to the house to say ‘Thank You’ and ‘Goodbye’ to Jack and Candis. They were on their way to South Carolina for a few days to visit family and attend a wedding. We untied the lines from the dock before 8:30 am and were on our way towards Pensacola via the ICW. The day was pleasant with temperatures in the mid-70’s, some clouds and a light southerly breeze.

We had two “low” high-rise bridges to pass under between Destin and Pensacola. The lowest one at Ft Walton Beach had a 49-foot clearance, however, since some work was being done on the bridge and it was covered with tarps, we barely squeaked through. Gale said he actually saw the antenna on the top of the mast catch and bend!! The other bridge at Navarre Beach had a 50-foot clearance so we slipped under with no problem.
 
We arrived at Perdido Key near Pensacola and anchored in Big Lagoon a little after 4 pm. This was one of our favorite anchorages. Perdido Key is part of the National Lakeshore and is undeveloped in this area.   Just a quick walk across Perdido Key provides great Gulf side surf swimming on a pristine, deserted beach.

 On both Thursday and Friday mornings, we were treated to an air show courtesy of the Pensacola Naval Air Station. The Blue Angels are based out of this facility and practice their maneuvers regularly. It was quite a thrill to watch these jets fly over Blue Heron.
 


 
We fished, walked the beach, explored an old fort and relaxed for a few days before making our final push towards Mobile Bay.