Ask anyone who’s spent October on the Florida Panhandle, and they’ll tell you it’s their favorite month.
As the crowds thin, the southerly migrating monarch butterflies arrive by the thousands. The weather moderates, but the gulf is still warm enough for a dip. Lodging rates take a tumble from summer highs. Purple lupine blooms in waves along the roadside. Redfish are running. Bald eagles return to their nests in trees along the Choctawhatchee River and its estuaries.
Another sure sign: They’re talking football at the Red Bar in Grayton Beach and hooting and hollering for their favorite college team Saturday afternoons at the Beach Grille at WaterColor Inn.
This is, in many ways, the best time of year to pay a visit to the 14 communities of Beaches of South Walton–which stretch east from Seascape to Inlet along 26 miles of Florida Gulf Coast edged by protected dunes covered in sea oats and scrub.
To celebrate the season, there’s even an event called Autumn Tides, a series of festivals, concerts and cultural events that runs from September through December.
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Even though fall has a dark side–hurricane season–the Gulf Coast has been spared so far this year. The silky white sand beaches and undulating dunes of Scenic Highway 30-A have been restored to their pre-Hurricane Ivan beauty two years after the storm eroded the coast. Dune walkovers have been rebuilt.
For the sixth year, the communities and state parks of the Beaches of South Walton were awarded the Blue Wave Certification by the Clean Beaches Council. “Beachologist” Stephen Leatherman ranked Grayton Beach tops among America’s Best Beaches in 1994, excluding it from subsequent surveys.
For more information
– Rentals of condos and beach houses can be found at beachesofsouthwalton.com.
– If you like bed-and-breakfast spots, consider Sugar Beach Inn near Seaside (850-231-1577, sugarbeachinn.com), Hibicus Coffee & Guesthouse in Grayton Beach (850-231-2733, hibiscusflorida.com), Josephine’s in Seaside (850-231-1940, josephinesfl.com) and the Pensione at Rosemary Beach (850-231-1790, thepensione.com).
– Beaches of South Walton Tourism Development Council, 800-822-6877 or beachesofsouthwalton.com.
– SoWol is an online guide to the beaches along Scenic 30-A and the Emerald Coast; sowal.com.