Florida Trip #2 - St. Andrews State Park & PCB Area

June 25th - June 29th, 2019

Back in Florida, now with a boat.

Less than two weeks after we left St. George Island, we were craving the beach life again. Some close friends of ours also wanted to go camping and said they could bring their boat down. Our camper could sleep all of us comfortably, so we planned a trip together!

I was excited to show them St. George Island State Park, but it was full. We did a little bit of research and found another State Park not too far away - St. Andrews State Park!

It's an outdoor sanctuary with soft, sugary white sand on over 1.5 miles of natural beach. There are nature trails through pines, dunes, and other coastal plants. There is a campground in the park, and they even have seasonal boat tours to the nearby Shell Island.

The park is located in the PCB area, so there is a lot to do around there too. They were also pretty busy and again, we would have to switch spots during our stay. It was frustrating, but I was happy to get a spot there either way.

We hit the road and the trip started with a big bang, not in the way we wanted it to. Half an hour into the drive, one of our trailer tires popped! We heard the "poof" and sure enough, saw that we had a flat. We quickly pulled over and assessed the situation. Luckily, there was no damage other than the tire. We got it swapped out and got back on the road within the hour which was a big relief!

The rest of the drive thankfully went well. We did arrive after dark which was a little stressful, but it only took a few minutes to park and get the camper set up. Before long, we were heating up dinner and settling in for the night. The next morning we were ready to get out on the water! The boys walked down to the beach area with Kyle while we got the camper closed up. They found a really cool sea urchin during their walk.

We got the boat ready and headed down to the dock. We found more hermit crabs and saw little fish swimming in the shallow water. Just after we left the dock, a pod of dolphins was swimming near us and we got to see one jumping out of the water!

We followed the other boats out to a sand bar near Shell Island. After anchoring the boat, we all jumped in! The weather was perfect. The water was clear and felt amazing. There were other boats all around us - mostly rented pontoons with slides or charter boats carrying people back & forth to the beach. That was my first time being on a boat near the ocean which was really cool. We stayed on the bay side, so the waves weren't too bad.

It was time to swap campsites, so we reluctantly headed back in, and pulled the boat right up on the beach in the camping area. Kyle and I jumped off and went to move the camper. Our new spot was even better - right on the water! It was so neat to look out of our kitchen window and see the boats driving by.

Once the camper was moved, we jumped back on the boat for more exploring. We parked the boat behind a jetty near a Shell Island beach to avoid bigger waves and traffic. We relaxed, soaked in the saltwater, and did a little fishing. We brought a few cheap pairs of goggles and peeked underwater - there were schools of fish swimming around our feet! You couldn't see them from above the water, but they were everywhere.

It did start to sprinkle which turned into a short downpour but we were already wet and it was warm so it didn't dampen our mood. When it started to get dark, we headed back in and were able to park the boat right on the beach in front of the camper.

The next morning, we were preparing to move the camper again, but due to an issue with booking, our next site was no longer available. We called a few other places and ended up choosing a campsite on the nearby Navy Base. The actual campground was very plain, really just a gravel lot with a bathhouse, but the showers were nice and we had the same spot for two days in a row!

Once we settled into the new spot, we visited the local Walmart to grab some snorkels. We really wanted to see what was around the jetty and to be able to get a better look at the underwater environment without coming up for breath so often.

The snorkels showed us a whole new world! There were all kinds of fish - tiny bright blue tropical fish, small schools of fast shiny fish that nipped your legs, to even bigger schools of mullet. I saw a few ancient-looking fish with spikes on their backs, and some goby-type fish clinging to the rocks. We also found tons of sand dollars, and saw a stingray swimming near us! It was really cool to take a peek into the underwater world that we easily overlook when just driving by on a boat.

We took the boat toward town, along the shore to see if we found a restaurant that would allow us to dock and eat there. There were a few options, but of course, parking was a little complicated.
We slid into an empty spot and started parking when another boat pulled up and told us to move. We decided to split up, and one group went to go find a restaurant while the others figured out parking. Eventually, they were able to park and we were finally seated at The Grand Marlin.

It was PHENOMENAL. The food was pricey but they had fresh seafood with bright flavors and a cozy but classy atmosphere. We sat on the top deck which had a great view of the bay and chill live music. I was impressed by their Ginger Soy Yellowfin Tuna (with wasabi whipped potatoes) and Kyle was really happy with his Grouper. Our friends ordered Oysters and loved them.

PCB isn't the first place I'd think of when I want to go camping. I enjoy finding peace out in nature and away from the busy city life. St. Andrews was beautifully natural and felt completely secluded from the noise going on nearby, yet still conveniently located to some great restaurants and tons of fun family activities.

We drove home the next day, tired but happy. We were cleaning sand out of the camper for weeks, but we had a wonderful time on our second trip to the Florida panhandle. I thought we'd be done with the beach for a while, but I can already hear the ocean calling us back.


Where will we go next?