207. Gulf Islands National Seashore (3)

March 3-12, 2026

I ended up here at five weeks combining Gulf Islands National Seashore and Big Lagoon State Park. It was fantastic. I love rising early to walk to the beach and experience the sunrise. Amazingly, it is generally a very private affair with few to sometimes no other people on the beach. I don't understand why but that's okay.

There were a total of ninety different bird species identified by Merlin, the Cornell bird app. It is such a fun thing to do, walking around and listening. It's a very relaxing activity. I can identify some on my own, but certainly not the majority, though it is interesting because when I hear something totally unfamiliar I seem to know it is something new, and I look to see Merlin showing a "new" addition to the list.

Next year, I might stay longer. I don't know my plans, but one can stay up to forty-two nights in a calendar year. You can stay two weeks, then you have to go out of the park for two nights, come back two weeks, leave two nights, than come back again for two weeks. That's almost seven weeks altogether, a great area for January and February.

Fun and games ...

Last note, I rode 865 miles on my bike while here over the thirty-five days. That was fun, too ...