Living Our Dream

Seems All We Do Is Eat!

Summerdale, AL - Events of Friday, April 24 to Sunday, April 26, 2015

After we ran some errands on Friday morning, we headed to Aquila Seafood in nearby Bon Secour to pick up some fresh shrimp. There are several fish packing houses in Bon Secour, two of which (Billy's Seafood and Aquila Seafood) sell to the public.

Aquila Seafood

We bought enough shrimp for an upcoming dinner and enough to freeze for a future dinner.

Picking out shrimp

After returning to the rig and cleaning the shrimp, we headed out again later in the afternoon for lupper at Big Daddy's Grill located only a few minutes from Rainbow Plantation.

Big Daddy's Grill

Big Daddy's has a whole range of sandwiches, burgers and seafood. We always make a point of getting to Big Daddy's before 4:00 to take advantage of their lunch specials. The specials include a beverage cost about $2 to $3 less than after 4:00. The specials are supposedly slightly smaller portions, but we always get plenty to eat.

Big Daddy's is located on the Fish River, and we usually like to eat out on the deck if it's not too cool or too windy. This time, it was cloudy, but it was nice and warm.

View of the Fish River from Big Daddy's deck

We both had Philly cheese steak sandwiches ($9.75 for lunch). Margery had onion rings for her side, and Paul had sweet potato fries. Everything was yummy!

Paul with his Philly cheese steak and sweet potato fries

With our bellies full, we headed back to the rig to relax for the evening.

On Saturday, we did our weekly cleaning chores in the morning, then ran some errands in the afternoon. We had planned to have some of the shrimp we got at Aquila Seafood on Friday for dinner on Saturday; but we liked the barbecue we had at LA BBQ when we first arrived in Alabama so much, we decided to have it one more time before we left the area. We both had pulled pork dinner plates with potato salad and cole slaw.

Pulled pork dinner plate

It has been threatening rain the whole time we have been in Lower Alabama, and we have had a few brief showers. The rain hit in earnest shortly after we got back from LA BBQ. Although our weather radio sounded alarms for a severe thunder storm warning and a tornado watch, we didn't think the storm looked all that bad on weather radar. Boy, were we wrong! It was the worst storm we have ever had to ride out in an RV. In spite of having 6 stabilizer jacks, our 5th wheel was rockin' an' rollin'. It was no wonder, because when we checked our weather station later, it had recorded a maximum wind gust of 64mph! Fortunately, we escaped with no damage. Unfortunately, some in the campground didn't fare as well. We know of at least one awning that was torn off and another motor home near us looked like it had roof damage because they had a tarp over part of the roof the next day.

During the storm, the power went out and stayed off for about 6 hours. Since there was no TV to watch, we went for a walk around Rainbow Plantation to check things out once the rain stopped and some of the puddles drained away. There was minor damage with twigs, leaves and small branches littered everywhere, but there was serious storm damage in the RV storage area at the western end of the campground. Several big pine trees had been snapped off like twigs, and a couple of RVs and cars being stored there for the summer were damaged.

Cars and RVs damaged by downed trees at Rainbow Plantation

We went to church on Sunday morning and did some of our pre-departure chores in the afternoon. For dinner, we had the shrimp we bought at Aquila Seafood sauteed in a little butter, white wine and Old Bay seasoning. We like to eat the shrimp dipped in melted butter. Yum!

On Monday morning, we headed out to our next destination. We'll tell you where that was in our next post.

More Good Eats in Lower Alabama

Summerdale, AL - Events of Wednesday, April 22 to Thursday, April 23, 2015

In our last post, we told you about driving to Pensacola on Wednesday to watch the Blue Angels practice session to celebrate Margery's birthday. After the practice, we headed back toward Alabama by the southern route, which conveniently goes through Orange Beach, AL, right past The Gulf restaurant. The Gulf is located on the western side of Perdido Pass, which is the water passage that connects Perdido Bay with the Gulf of Mexico. We stopped for a late lunch to continue Margery's birthday celebration.

The Gulf doesn't have a website, but they have a Facebook page. The Gulf is a unique restaurant that is made up of several stacked shipping containers. The Gulf also has all outdoor seating.

The Gulf restaurant

When we were at The Gulf last spring, they were in the process of installing new canopies over their tables. The canopies provide better shade than the patio umbrellas they previously had, and they also provide protection from light rain. However, since all the seating at The Gulf is outdoors, they may not be open if it is storming.

Outdoor seating with new canopies

Additional seating on the beach

The Gulf has a limited menu. Grilled Angus burgers ($7.75), fried grouper sandwiches ($12.50), hand-cut fries ($4.00) and a few additional items are always on the menu. There are also several other selections that vary day to day. Prices of the other items range from $4 for a mixed green salad to around $17 for a dinner entree like grilled swordfish. The prices are a bit high; but the food is good, and the ambiance is outstanding. Dining at the Gulf is like a mini vacation on a tropical island.

We both had burgers, and we shared an order of fries. Margery had blue cheese on her burger, and Paul had American ($1.50 extra for cheese).

Margery with her blue cheese burger

The food was delish! After we ate, we got our soft drinks refilled (free) and strolled around the beach area. We noticed there was construction going on next door. The Gulf owns the large chunk of property adjacent to the restaurant, and it looks like they are expanding. They seem to be duplicating the existing restaurant with more shipping containers. They have added palm trees on the beach, and there are more picnic tables and beach furniture stacked up waiting to be arranged. We can't wait to come back in the fall and see what it looks like.

After our stroll, we hung out on one of the lounge chairs for a while and watched boats go in and out of Perdido Pass, enjoyed the Gulf breezes and soaked in the tropical atmosphere.

Margery enjoying the tropical atmosphere

We eventually headed back to Rainbow Plantation where we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon and evening.

Thursday morning was beautiful. Even though it was the day after, we capped off Margery's birthday celebration by heading to Panini Pete's in the morning for beignets. We could have stuck some birthday candles into the beignets and called them a birthday cake, but we decided not to because blowing out the candles would have covered Paul in powdered sugar.

Margery with our beignets

Panini Pete's beignets are a bit more airy than those served by Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans. Panini Pete's also serves their beignets with lemon, which when squeezed over the beignets combines with the powdered sugar to create a delicious lemonade flavor. Yum!

We were down to our last couple of days in Lower Alabama, but we still had more good food to look forward to. We'll tell you about it in our next post.

Blue Angels

Summerdale, AL - Events of Wednesday, April 22, 2015

We said we were planning to do little, if any, sightseeing while in Lower Alabama because we were only going to be here for a relatively short time. However, last Wednesday was Margery's birthday, so we decided to do something special after all. We drove to Pensacola to watch the Blue Angels practice session.

As most of you probably know, the Blue Angels are the Navy's precision flight demonstration squadron. They are based at Naval Air Station Pensacola. The purpose of the Blue Angels is to enhance the recruiting of the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps and to serve as ambassadors of good will across the United States and in foreign countries.

Practice sessions for the "Blues" are open to the public and are free. The viewing area is adjacent to the Naval Aviation Museum. Incidentally, if you have never been to the museum, it is well worth your time. It is also free. Click here to read about our 2011 visit to the Naval Aviation Museum.

We attended a practice session of the Blue Angels in 2011. Back then, practice was at 8:30 a.m.; but it is now at 11:30. The later practice time means the pilots don't have to fly into the low, morning sun. It also means we didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to make the one-hour drive from Summerdale to Pensacola. The downside to the later practice is the sun can be very hot, and there is no shelter at the viewing area. Take sunscreen and water.

It was a beautiful day so there was a large turnout. We suspect the later practice time also makes for bigger crowds. We arrived about 45 minutes early, parked and walked to the viewing area.

Crowds heading to the viewing area

To get to the viewing area, visitors have to cross an outside area of the museum that contains unrestored planes. We paused for a photo by a PBY Catalina, which is a WWII-era flying boat. Paul remembers building a model of a PBY when he was a kid.

Paul in front of a PBY Catalina flying boat

The Blue Angels fly F/A-18A-D Hornets. Although the Hornets have been modified somewhat (including the replacement of the nose cannon by a tank containing the paraffin-based oil used to create the smoke trails), they could be repainted and made combat ready within 72 hours.

Six Blue Angels usually take part in the flight demonstrations. Blue Angels 1 though 4 fly mostly in a diamond formation...

Blue Angels 1, 2, 3 and 4

...sometimes in tight formation less than two feet apart.

Blue Angels in tight formation

Blue Angels 5 and 6 are known as the solos. They usually fly at higher speed than the Blues in the diamond, and they do a number of high-speed passes like the one shown in the video below that make it look like they are about to collide.

 

Blue Angels 5 and 6 also do a low speed maneuver called "high section alpha" where they slow their speed to about 120mph, pitch the noses of the aircraft up to almost 45º and plow through the air belly first.

Blues 5 and 6 performing a maneuver called "high section alpha"

Later in the show, Blue Angels 5 and 6 join with Blue Angels 1, 2, 3 and 4. The photo below shows all 6 Blues in a delta pattern.

All 6 Blue Angels in a delta pattern

Groups of 5 or 6 Blues perform numerous crowd-pleasing maneuvers like loops...

Loop maneuver

... and an impressive star-burst.

Star-burst maneuver

The practice lasts about 45 to 50 minutes, which was just about long enough for us given the hot sun. We made our way back to the truck and headed west toward Rainbow Plantation. However, as you might guess, we stopped to eat on the way back. We'll tell you all about it in our next post.

Good Eats in Lower Alabama

Summerdale, AL - Events of Saturday, April 18 to Monday, April 20, 2015

As we said, we have a lot of favorite places in Lower Alabama where we want to eat. We headed to LA BBQ on Saturday afternoon.

LA BBQ

LA BBQ is a family-run barbecue joint located only about 10 minutes from where we were staying at Rainbow Plantation. They have pulled pork, barbecued chicken, brisket and ribs. We always get pulled pork dinner plates with two sides ($9.99). Margery had potato salad and slaw for her sides, and Paul had potato salad and green bean casserole. Everything was yummy!

Margery and Paul at LA BBQ

After church on Sunday, we relaxed for the rest of the day. On Monday, we ran some errands and then headed for Panini Pete's in nearby Fairhope for a late lunch. Panini Pete's is located behind a row of stores in downtown Fairhope next to a small courtyard called the French Quarter. There is a pleasant walkway back to the courtyard, and the resident cat we first saw about a year ago was still there.

The resident cat sitting on the walkway to Panini Pete's

We like to go on a nice day so we can eat outside in the courtyard.

Outdoor seating at Panini Pete's

Panini Pete's has several types of paninis that range in price from $7.75 to $10.50. They also serve several types of burgers ($7.50 to $8.75) and dogs ($4.75 to $5.50). All sandwiches include your choice of shoestring fries, house-made potato chips of the side of the day - usually a pasta salad.

We had our favorite - house-roasted turkey paninis with baby greens, roasted peppers, Dijon, garlic aioli, balsamic vinaigrette and fresh mozzarella. Panini Pete's was on the Food Network TV show, "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" a few years ago, and they featured the turkey paninis. We both had shoestring fries for our side.

Paul with his turkey panini

Fairhope is a quaint, artsy little town. The streets are lined with expensive-looking boutiques, sidewalk cafes and bistros, book stores and art galleries. We decided to stroll around the block after lunch and enjoy the picturesque surroundings. The streets are decorated with attractive flowers. This year's color scheme is pink and white.

Flowers on the streets of downtown Fairhope

Many of the shops plant their own flowers adding to the ambiance.

Attractive container plants adjacent to one of the shops

Entrance to another shop surrounded by fragrant jasmine

After our stroll, we headed back to Rainbow Plantation where we relaxed for the rest of the day.

Alabama Bound

Summerdale, AL - Events of Thursday, April 16 to Friday, April 17, 2015

On Thursday, we said good-bye to Blueberry Hill, hitched up the 5th wheel and headed out toward Lower Alabama. Although it still takes us quite a bit longer for us to pack the 5th wheel to get it ready for travel, this time we were much better at getting lined up and actually doing the hitching. We expect packing up the 5th wheel will get faster in time, too. After all, we had 10 years of practice getting the motor home ready to travel and this is only our third time for the 5th wheel.

Since it took us longer to pack up, we got a little later start than we had planned. After a drive of a little over 4 hours plus an additional 15 or 20 minutes to fuel up, we pulled into our overnight stop at Coe Landing Campground around 2:30. Coe Landing is a Leon County park located on the shores of Lake Talquin just west of Tallahassee.

The campground has 15 or 20 campsites with water and 30-amp electric. The sites at Coe Landing have gravel pads and patios. The campground is fairly heavily wooded, especially along the lake, so only some of the sites have grass. A few of the sites are a little close together, but it wasn't crowded at all when we were there on a Thursday so being close wasn't a problem.

There was no traffic noise, and there were no trains so the campground was nice and quiet when we were there. However, we suspect the place can get a little zooy on weekends since it's so close to Tallahassee and since it's on a lake that is popular for boating. The camping fee at Coe Landing was $27, which seemed a little high for only two-point hookups and the rustic nature of the campground. There was a pretty good Verizon 4G signal.

There are only a couple of long pull-through sites, and the one they originally assigned us didn't look like it had good satellite reception at all. Not only that, but the site was curved, and the front sloped fairly steeply. Therefore, we switched to a back-in site that was more open and level. We really didn't want to fuss setting up a satellite dish on a tripod for a one-night stop, and we also wanted a site that was relatively level so could still leave the 5th wheel attached to the truck and just extend the jacks to stabilize the rig.

The roads at Coe Landing aren't very wide, and with trees and shrubs everywhere, maneuvering is tight in a lot of places - especially at the entrance to our site. We had travel trailers years ago, and Paul had gotten pretty good at backing into tight spots; but after 10 years of motor home ownership, he is a little rusty at backing a trailer. The tight quarters were a challenge, but we eventually got situated.

Our site at Coe Landing

There are several lake view sites, but they are best suited to smaller RVs.

Lakeside site

View of the lake from one of the sites

Since we didn't have to hitch up in the morning and since we didn't do much unpacking for a one-night stop, we were able to get a relatively early start. With a drive of a little over 4 hours and with gaining an hour going from Eastern to Central Time, we arrived at the Escapees' Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale, AL shortly after noon.

Rainbow Plantation has around 100 full-hookup sites. About half the sites have 30-amp electric and the other half have 30/50-amp electric. The cost for escapees members is $18 a night ($1 additional for 50 amps).

The widely-spaced sites are on grass and sandy soil. There are medium-sized live oak trees between many of the sites. Satellite reception is generally good, but you do need to be careful which site you pick because of the trees. There is a relatively good Verizon 4G signal, but our internet connection did bog down from time to time. Wi-Fi is available for a fee.

Our site at Rainbow Plantation

There were a surprising number of people still at Rainbow Plantation. The weather here in lower Alabama is still in the upper 70s and lower 80s as opposed to being in the 80s and 90s in Florida and only in the 40s and 50s in some places in the north, so we're guessing that's the reason there are so many still here.

Still a good many RVs at Rainbow Plantation

As we have mentioned before, Summerdale is one of our favorite areas. It is close to Mobile, AL, and not too far from Pensacola, FL, both of which have lots of sightseeing possibilities. However, since we'll only be here for a short time for this stop, we won't be doing much, if any, sightseeing, but then you never can tell what we might find. Nevertheless, we do have lots of favorite restaurants in the area so we'll be eating out a lot. Stay tuned.