Today's journey took us back to the mainland and into the Naval Air Station to take a look at the Pensacola Lighthouse on The Blue Angels Parkway. From there, we took 292A southwest with the intention of going to Perdido Key State Park. We didn't see the park entrance, so we kept driving and ended up in Orange Beach, AL! After a quick stop at the Gulf Park there, we headed back. It turns out the park at Perdido consists of two parking areas with picnic pavilions. The park itself is the beach preserve which extends 11 miles. Since dogs are not allowed on the beach or in any structure, we weren't able to stop there. It didn't matter to us since it was overcast and only 59 degrees. We went down another road where there were sand dunes on either side for 4 miles with the bay on the east side and the Gulf on the west. On the way back to camp, we went back to the Ft Pickens area. We had noticed on the map that the lighthouse is right across the bay from the fort...a distance of maybe 2 miles across the bay, but about 40 via land. We also stopped at a historical marker where there were gravestones from the Chasefield Plantation Cemetery. In 1957, the graves were relocated from the plantation land that became the Pensacola Naval Air Station. The Chasefield Plantation was the home of Major William H Chase who supervised the construction of Ft Pickens. The stones are over 150 years old now, and the inscriptions are badly weathered. A website from the historical society showed that of the 11 graves, the youngest there was 1 year and 5 days and the oldest 85. Instead of wife or widow, some were described as "consort" or "relict".
 |
| A view of the lighthouse from Ft Pickens |
 |
| The Chasefield Plantation Cemetery |
No comments:
Post a Comment