It took us three days to drive the 100 miles between Pascagoula and Pensacola. We took our time inching eastward along the coast and making frequent stops.  The weather is warmer although a bit dreary and grey.  We are a bit pissed since it looks like one of our lithium batteries died.

Bummer.

Despite efforts to make an appointment with Sunshine State RVs in Gainesville, FL, they were not able to accommodate us within the next foreseeable future.  No choice but to continue with one battery and not worry about this for now.

We also forgot to pull down the fan in the bathroom and the gasket came off flapping.  Tony was able to put it back on, but it may not hold.  Never a dull moment!

Still, it is 17 celsius outside so we are happy and quite content with our short  excursions — some  more exciting than others — nonetheless, we were able to learn, experience, or see something new every time.

Pascagoula

Shepard’s State Park was our base camp for a couple of days and we ventured out to for some more bird sightings and short hikes along the Pascagoula Point Park

Pascagoula River walk,

and Pascagoula City River Park.

and Scranton Museum

which was closed, but we crept around anyway.

The birds along the shore were the usual collection, but we still find them fascinating.

We stopped to smell some flowers and appreciated the fact that they are not covered under 2 feet of snow.

The juxtaposition of nature and industry is ever present,

and distant oil rigs often frame the bird colonies along the shore.

The warm, dry weather allowed for a perfect dinner outside; cooked and eaten by the fire.

Dauphin Island

Moving east, we detoured south a for a short visit to Dauphin Island, Alabama.  This is the first land mass migrating bird encounter on their migration north and the island has several bird sanctuaries.

In 1699, a pile of human skeletons were discovered on the Island and inspired the explorers to name it Massacre Island.  The skeletones were not likely evidence of any ancient massacre, but more likely a Mississippian burial site damaged by a hurricane.  Still, the name stuck. Later on, the name was changed to the less ominous Dauphin Island.

A visit to Fort Gaines

There is a lot to see in the fort that was pivotal during the battle of Mobile Bay until its surrender on August 8, 1864.

Apparently, the latreens method of cleaning was very sustainable…

where high tide would enter the latreens through openings in the walls and take the contents back to sea with it upon retreat.  Ingenious.

Can we utilize something similar in the campervan?

Shell Mounds

Despite the dark history there were no skeletons to be seen but we did find an indigenous shell mound.

There were a couple of info boards on site with a bit of information, but no direct location information.

The evidence of shell mounds and crescents is everywhere and we think that we found some of the mounds.

There is more information here and those interested in the subject, here is a link to an indigenous mound  trail in Alabama and their Facebook page.

Florida

Despite the welcoming sign to the Sunshine State, the weather remained a sickly grey.

We left the island and drove around the bay to Big Lagoon State Park just outside of Pensacola.  Over the next few days we’ll spend some time in Pensacola, Big Lagoon State Park and Falling Water State park, so stay tuned for our next post.

In the meantime, we’ll leave you with a Big Lagoon sunset.

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