A Beach of a Day

We spent most of Saturday in Gulf Shores which lies directly on the Gulf of Mexico.  The day was picture perfect--highs in the 60s, light breeze and a cloudless sky.  What a fine day for a walk on the "sugar white" sand beach.

We parked at a public beach entrance downtown Gulf Shores and walked east towards Orange Beach.  It is a very wide beach lined mostly with condos.  Here is my better half trying to keep her feet dry from the charging surf.  Gulf Shores lies in the background.

The sun was so bright off the white sands that sun glasses were a necessity.  Initially, very few people were on the beach.  Eventually a few families showed up and some sun bathers.  Beach strolling became more common as the morning grew late.  Several fishermen had their poles dug into to shoreline awaiting the big one.

We walked on toward the pier at Gulf State Park which lies between Orange Beach and Gulf Shores.  The pier can be seen jutting out into the gulf  in the distance.

The pier opened in 2009 and juts out 1540 feet into the gulf--the longest pier on the gulf.  The roof covers a Park Office/Fee Station, souvenir/tackle shop, rest rooms, an outdoor picnic area and a small refreshment stand.  The original pier was destroyed in 2004 by Hurricane Ivan.

Once at the pier we enjoyed an iced tea and relaxed.  As an Alabama State Park, there was a charge to use the pier.  Annual passes and day passes were available.  A one time walk on the pier costs $2.00 per person.  We elected to spend the money on the iced tea and come back again to walk the rest of the shoreline to Orange Beach.

Here is an odd looking fella we found hanging out under the pier:

He charged only $1.25 or a tall glass of iced tea to have his photo snapped.  He got the tea.  A bargain?

We walked the shoreline back the 1.5 miles to Gulf Shores.  Hungry and armed with a buy one/get one free coupon, we headed north a couple blocks to the Original Oyster House Restaurant for a mid-afternoon lunch.

The Original Oyster House was a frequent recommendation for good seafood.  We had a great meal which included grilled sutchi, broiled sutchi with crab stuffing and assorted sides and salad bar.  Sutchi is a type of catfish-- a white fish with a mild flavor similar to tilapia.  The food was excellent, and for a total cost of $20 for the two of us, it  was a price that would be hard to beat.

Of course, as a tourist attraction, the Oyster House had a gift shop.  On display was a T-shirt printed with "Give Beach a Chance."

It was one beach of a day.