Things To Do In Baldwin County, Alabama

Besides the obvious; Gulf Coast, fresh seafood, sun, sand, golf courses, intracostal canal; there are other places of interest that can go unnoticed in the mad rush to the beach. Fot that reason you will NOT find pictures of the waves and porpoises, there are other sites full to overflowing with those. The items I want to write about are the Alabama Gulf State Park, the Intracoastal Waterway, Weeks Bay, Blakeley State Park and the Fairhope Pier.

For those of us who are directionally impaired and who STILL do not own a TOMTOM here's a nice website on how to find Baldwin County:

http://www.convertunits.com/distance/county/Baldwin+County,+AL

The great thing about this site is it gives the actual latitude!

30.592781
30° 35' 34" N
30 degrees, 35 minutes, 34 seconds North

and the actual longitude!

-87.74826
87° 44' 53" W
87 degrees, 44 minutes, 53 seconds West

Now, is that cool or what? OK OK peanut gallery...HEY! That was a real egg!! Stop that!!

If you are coming South on I 65, get off on Exit 34, Gulf Shores Parkway, and turn left at the stop sign at top of the exit ramp. This is now Co Rd 59. If you are coming either east or west on I 10, get off on the Loxley I 10 exit, this is again, Co Rd 59. It will take you straight to Gulf Shores without stopping. It will also try to trick you just past Summerdale and want you to go down the Toll Bridge Road. This will take you to the beaches but not to Gulf Shores. Also it will cost you three bucks to cross the intracoastal canal, hence the name Toll Bridge Road.

Still, if going over the canal and past the restaurant owned by the sister of the guy that wrote and sang Margaritaville gives you a really big thrill, I say "Go for it!"

Otherwise, if it's sun, fun and Gulf Shores you are headed for, stay straight on 59. From 65, Gulf Shores is an hour, maybe forty-five minutes if the traffic isn't too bad, and from the Loxley it just another half an hour or so. I cannot help but add that, to me, it just isn't Gulf Shores anymore. It is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but since I was born more that a couple of decades ago I remember standing on the beach next to the pier, looking up and down the beach in both directions and seeing at the most, half a dozen other families. More often than not, we were alone.

It isn't the Hurricanes, it isn't the toll road, it isn't even the bursting at the seams population. All of that would be forgiven if they (the big "THEY") would have just followed one axiom: "Never build your house on a foundation of sand"

Alas, the beaches are gone, the sand dollars all broken, the sand no longer as white, the dunes still dwindling. But it is a special place, everyone who visits loves it. Loves it for a myriad of reasons, not just the water and the sandy beaches. Unlike the desert, where you either love it or you hate it? The Gulf of Mexico is my beloved Gulf and it is still magical.

Before visiting and getting into trouble, such as fishing without a license, check out the Outdoor Alabama website:

http://www.outdooralabama.com/about/07-08_Annual_Report.pdf

Interesting, though a bit dry, it does give info needed on licenses before you get near the water!

At least the infamous "They" did one thing right, they gave us The Alabama State Park and thank goodness for them! The park is on both sides of the beach highway that parrallels the coast. You can stay the day, weekend or the week. YOu can use a tent, rent a cabin or eventually, a motel room. The motel is still in the building stages after Katrina. Here is that website:

http://www.alapark.com/gulfstate/

and their contact information:

Contact Info... 20115 State Hwy. 135
Gulf Shores, AL 36542
251-948-7275
251-948-7726 (fax)

But Gulf Shores is well known and has been written about multiple times by others more verbose than myself.

My personal favorite place to stop and watch the water is the intracoastal canal. Co Rd 180 follows the canal road eastward to Orange Beach. Prior to the addition of the Toll Road in 2004 (actually it is the Foley Beach Expressway) going down 59 and turning left after crossing the viaduct into Gulf Shores was the only way to get to Orange Beach and Perdido Beach.

But anywhere along HWY 180 on the canal side there are places you can stop your vehicle, get out and sit and watch, listen, smell. Be aware though! There are also snakes along the sides and lovely rocks that just beg to be played on by young-uns. DO NOT LET THEM!!! Get in the shade, pull out your folding chairs and watch and take pictures. People with big boats, locals with rowboats and f course ferries with tug bats travel up ad down the canal all day long. Some of my best pictures were taken from the edge of the canal. You'll love it!!

Here is a nice websitenot only for the Intracoastal waterway but for anyone boating the canal itself:

http://www.outdooralabama.com/boating/buoys.cfm

A bit north of the Gulf Shores area is a wonderful reserve on HWY 98. This is Weeks Bay. It used to be the original site of the original restaurant owned and operated by the sister of the guy that wrote and sang margaritaville :)

On theWeeks Bay, an area of water so lare it seems to be part of the Gulf itself, the reserve is situated on both sides of HWY 98. The following website is very informative and colorful:

http://www.outdooralabama.com/public-lands/stateLands/WeeksBay/

The area on the north side of HWY 98 at Weeks Bay Reserve is the Pitcher Plant Bog. There is an above ground walkway that meanders through the bog so you can look over and down into the swampy ground that supports all this amazing life just a few hundred feet off the highway!

On up HWY 98 and staying straight will take you into scenic 98, take the curve to the right and slow down, this drive is worth the 35 mile and hour speed limit! For the most part it is the same highway my parents drove every summer on the way to the beach. To date myself, before I 10 and the Bayway came along, the only way to get to Gulf Shores was to take HWY 31 or 59 from Birmingham, both ways took you to Mobile then you had to take a hard left onto HWY 31 across the Mobile Bay. It sits about two, OK, maybe two and a half inches above sea water and from there you get onto 98 and down you go, past Fairhope, past Bon Secour, (man I miss Mimi's, and on to the beach. However, as I said, this is NOT about the beach!

OK the Fairhope Pier. It is still one of the best places to go regardless of whether you are a local or a tourist. Families and kids from all over the county will spend quality together time on and around the pier. There is also a day park, clean, neat, small entrance fee, where you can camp, picnc, swim, rde and walk up and down the coast of Mobile Bay. A perfect place for daydreaming!

Coming on up HWY 98, cross over I 10, turn right onto Hwy 31 the take a left onto Co Rd 225. This will take you to Blakeley State Park. Mary Grice, a long time resident of Baldwin County, was instrumental in making sure this park exists and will continue to provide enjoyment and pleasure for many years to come.

The park sits on the east side, on a small mountain overlooking the Mobile Bay. The following web site will lead to many other items of interest but the best part about this park are the Bay Tours, done monthly, on a pontoon boat and it will carry you up the bay, with an informative guide. Bring your camera! In the warmer months it is not uncommon to see mannatee along with other and much more dangerous fauna!

This is just a little taste of things to see and enjoy in and around Baldwin County, Al. Come and visit for yourself! You will not be sad you did!