DEL.ICIO.USApalachicola draws nature lovers to Forgotten Coast
For The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Apalachicola, Fla. — This isn’t your grandparents’ Florida. Franklin County and the towns of Apalachicola (pop. 2,300) and Carrabelle (800) are part of Florida’s Forgotten Coast, a drowsy, off-the-beaten-path slice of Gulf of Mexico shoreline, a few hours and about a half-century from Destin’s high-rises and Panama City’s amusement parks, and a galaxy away from Miami’s glitzy glam.
With only one stoplight and an environmental protection mandate that encompasses 85 percent of the landscape, the county of 12,000 year-round residents is not “forgotten” by those who find their way here to fish, bird-watch, kayak and canoe, hike, and dine on some of the world’s finest oysters, harvested by the plump, succulent ton from Apalachicola Bay.
Franklin County Tourism Department
Kayaking on a tributary of the Apalachicola River.
William Schemmel
St. George Island is a good spot for kayaking, fishing and dolphin encounters.
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Many Georgians take their outdoor recreation vacations on the Forgotten Coast, 300 miles south of downtown Atlanta. Fishermen give the area a big thumbs up.
“This time of year, fishermen pull in a lot of redfish, whiting, spotted sea trout, flounder and mullet,” said Josh Hodson, assistant manager of the 1,962-acre Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park. “In fall and spring, we get runs of pompano, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and catfish. Every once in a while, somebody will be surprised by a small shark, like a black tip. Most people fish right from the beach, where you can walk right out and cast a line. Our two boat ramps are also popular.”
St. George Island has a “split” personality. Hundreds of beach houses, condos (limited by law to 35-feet above the first inhabitable level), gated luxury subdivisions, convenience stores, restaurants and other visitor amenities line long skeins of glistening white beaches at the western end. But development skids to a halt at the state park’s gates. Opened in 1980, the park is a minimally disturbed haven of white sand beaches, pine forests and live oak hammocks. Six picnic shelters are equipped with grills, tables and restrooms. Campsites are in family, youth group and primitive campgrounds. More than three miles of hiking trails wind through the forests, around ponds and wetlands.
“This is my favorite time of year here,” Hodson said. “We get hundreds of thousands of migrating butterflies, which are attracted to our goldenrods, blazing stars and other wildflowers. We’re on the East Coast Flyway and get a huge bird migration.”
Bald Point State Park, on a gulf peninsula at Franklin County’s eastern end, is another bird-watcher favorite.
“Florida has the third- largest bird population in the U.S. after Alaska and Texas,” said Alan Knothe, an avian specialist with the Apalachicola National Esturarine Research Reserve, on a morning bird watch through Bald Point. “The Panhandle has the largest variety in the state. We’re in a transition area, at the southern end of northern birds’ range and the northern end of southern birds’ range.”
When we sighted a pair of our national symbols, he said: “Florida has the second-largest bald eagle population after Alaska. They come down for the winter and make the largest nests of any birds in the world. The largest nest ever found was in southern Florida, 9 feet across, 21 inches thick, weighing almost 3 tons.”
Apalachicola Bay and the town of Apalachicola are synonymous with oysters. About 90 percent of Florida’s bivalve production, 10 percent of the country’s, is harvested in the bay’s 7,000 acres of oyster bars. They flourish here, marine biologists say, because there’s no heavy industry and unpolluted waters of the Apalachicola River empty into a saltwater bay protected by offshore islands. Oyster lovers say they grow faster and larger than those in cold waters and are creamier and fatter, with just the right tang of saltiness.
In the 1830s, cotton shipped downriver from Georgia and Alabama plantations made “Apalach,” as it’s known locally, the third busiest Gulf Coast port, after New Orleans and Mobile. These days, 19th-century brick warehouses and commercial buildings built for the cotton trade house restaurants and shops that cater to the tourist trade.
As for the nickname “The Forgotten Coast,” it came about several years ago when Apalachicola and other neighboring towns were left off the state tourism map. But one can’t help wonder whether the oversight wasn’t by design.
What better way to keep an off-the-beaten-path gem under wraps?
IF YOU GO
GETTING THERE
Apalachicola is about 300 miles south of Atlanta. The nearest airports are 65 miles west in Panama City and 80 miles north in Tallahassee.
WHERE TO STAY
Gibson Inn. Handsomely restored 1907 downtown historic hotel has 30 guest rooms with cable TV and private baths, restaurant and bar. No elevator to second- and third-floor guest rooms. Rates, $105-$250 year-round. 51 Ave. C, Apalachicola. 850-653-2191, www.gibsoninn.com
Coombs House Inn. Two early 1900s Victorian mansions and adjacent cottages have antique furnishings and decor; some with whirlpool baths and fireplaces; full breakfast. Year-round rates, $79-$229. 80 Sixth St., Apalachicola, 888-244-8320,
Vacation rentals. Sandy Beach Rentals, 850-697-5300,
www.mysandybeach.com; Collins Vacation Rentals, 866-723-9460, www.collinsvacationrentals.
com; and Resort Vacation Properties, 877-272-8206,
www.resortvacation properties.com
WHERE TO EAT
Tamara’s Café Floridita. French and Caribbean-influenced local seafood in a beautiful downtown dining room, with a full bar and wine list. 71 Market St., Apalachicola, 850-653-4111, www.tamarascafe.com
Papa Joe’s Oyster Bar & Grill. Seafood fresh from the boats in an Old Florida seafood shack. Scipio Creek Marina, Apalachicola, 850-653-1189,
Verandas Restaurant & Wine Bar. Seafood, pastas, steaks, with a large wine list. 76 Market St., Apalachicola, 850-653-3210, www.verandas.com
INFORMATION
Franklin County Tourist Development Council. 866- 914-2068,
St. George Island Visitor Center. 2 E. Gulf Beach Drive, St. George Island. 850-927-7744, www.seestgeorgeisland.com
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