beach – Page 8 – Wandering Dawgs

A night on the Mississippi Gulf Coast

March 10, 2015June 21, 2015Posted in Mississippi, Parks, Road Trip, RVing, State ParksTagged beach, Buccaneer State Park, Gulf Coast, Waveland Mississipi9 Comments

Our day began driving south on I-65 to Mobile, Alabama and heading west on I-10 to Mississippi. Our home for the night was Buccaneer State Park in Waveland, Mississippi.

This part of Mississippi suffered major damage in August, 2005 when Hurricane Katrina came ashore with winds of over 160 MPH and a storm surge of 30 feet. Damage from the storm was evident all along the beach. The remains of several docks are still standing as a reminder of the power of the storm.

Blondie always enjoys a walk on a beach

Laughing Gulls

Dock remains in Waveland, Mississippi

Walking along the beach in Waveland, Mississippi

On the beach in Waveland, Mississippi

All of the structures at this popular state park were completely destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Reconstruction of the park was completed in 2013 and the results are amazing. All of the buildings, water park, wave pool, and splash pool have been rebuilt and look brand new. It looks more like a resort than a state park. The large campground has several loops with paved pads and full hookups as well as a primitive camping loop. There are even some beach campsites with views of the Gulf of Mexico.

The hurricane also destroyed much of the vegetation in the park but some old oak trees survived the storm.

Majestic oaks in Buccaneer State Park

New Activities Building and Campstore at Buccaneer State Park

Office and registration building at Buccaneer State Park

Castaway Cove at Buccaneer State Park

As I walked on the beach and around the park I couldn’t help but think about what the area must have looked like before Hurricane Katrina came ashore 10 years ago. I also thought about how much work must have gone into the restoration of the state park and the private homes in the area. Kudos go out to the people of the state of Mississippi for doing such a great job with the rebuilding.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Warmth

December 29, 2014December 4, 2016Posted in PhotographyTagged Atlantic Ocean, beach, Warmth, Weekly Photo Challenge16 Comments

The WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge this week is: Warmth

This year, the temperature was in the 70’s on the Sunday after Christmas. What a great day to take a walk on the beach.

Warm December day at the beach — December 28, 2014 – a warm day at the beach

Wandering in South Carolina

March 23, 2014June 20, 2015Posted in Lighthouse, Road Trip, RVing, South Carolina, State ParksTagged beach, Hunting Island Lighthouse, Hunting Island State Park, Lighthouse, ocean6 Comments

After spending the winter catching up with chores at home and dreaming about wandering, we made our maiden voyage of 2014 just one state over from Georgia to South Carolina.

We started our short trip with 3 nights in Columbia watching our grandson play in a soccer tournament. It was so much fun to watch him play and cheer from the sidelines with his parents and sister.

On our way home we spent a rainy night at Hunting Island State Park. Our first visit there was over 30 years ago in our tent camping days when our kids were little. We have been wanting to return there ever since we got the fifth wheel. Hunting Island is located about 42 miles from I-95 at the end of Hwy 21. The drive takes you through beautiful salt marshes, across rivers and sounds, and through several towns including Beaufort (if you are driving a big rig, take the truck route instead of going through downtown Beaufort).

The campground has about 200 sites, some of them right next to the beach. Our site was located in a loop with the sites surrounded by tall trees and palmettos. A short walk from the RV took us to the dog friendly beach in front of the campground.

The rain let up a little so we drove to the lighthouse to explore. The Hunting Island Lighthouse is the only lighthouse in South Carolina accessible to the public. A short path in front of the lighthouse leads to the beach.