National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida

A heavy rainstorm with lightning and thunder started a few minutes after I got out of church this morning, so there was no use trying to do anything outside today.  The lady at the Pensacola Visitor Information Center suggested I go to the National Naval Aviation Museum. It is open every day until 4:00 pm and is located on the Naval Air Station military base. The basic admission is free to the public, but there are add-on activities such as movies and simulator rides that you can add, if desired.

The main building is packed full of military planes from World War I to the present, arranged chronologically. It has n ot only airplanes, but airplane engines, support equipment, cabins from airships (zeppelins and blimps), and even space exploration items such as an Apollo lunar module. In addition, there are scale models of airplanes and aircraft carriers, giant screens showing videos taken from flight decks, and a Hall of Honor for notable heroes of aviation. 

An airship cabin from a blimp or zeppelin...

Scale models of  airplanes and aircraft carriers...

A Sopwith Camel airplane, like Snoopy pretends to have in the Peanuts comic strip, is one of the many historical airplanes on display. Its twin forward-firing machine guns are mounted behind the propeller and the firing is automatically synchronized so bullets won't hit the propeller blade.  "Camel" became part of its name because the machine gun mounts bulge over the top of the engine like camel humps.

An airplane of the same model Amelia Airhart was flying when she went missing...

The Naval Air Station here is home to the Blue Angels flying team, and legacy models of  Blue Angels planes are  mounted overhead in part of the museum. You can even sit in a legacy Blue Angels cockpit.

The Hall of Honor included plaques for Neil Armstrong, George H.W. Bush, and many others.

There are more planes outside, and a separate airplane hangar, but I didn't venture over there in the rain. The rain stopped sometime before I left the museum. 

The museum truly is a military or aviation buff's dream!

The airbase is also the site of the first lighthouse on the Gulf Coast. The first lighthouse was built in 1824 and no longer exists. The current lighthouse, which replaced the original, was first lit in 1859 and is still in use.

I got the okay for overnight parking at Sam's Club, so that's where I'll be staying tonight. There is a slight breeze and I'm tired, so it should be a good night.

UPDATE: I was talking with a couple of men the day after I went to the Naval Aviation Museum and they told me there are a lot of planes in the other 2 buildings, as well. Among other things, one building ofthe buildings has a military drone. Soundd like the museum is even bigger than I thought!

Alligator Alley, swimming at Gulf Shores, and a great meal

I skipped my usual breakfast options and tried something Southern. The Piggly Wiggly supermarket was next to the Planet Fitness, so I bought a fresh sausage biscuit, The biscuit was flaky like it should be. Not something I'd have everyday, but no regrets.

After breakfast, I headed downtown to the visitor information center. It's located next to a museum and across the street from Mardi Gras square. Two friendly, energetic lady volunteers were full of suggestions. Among other bits of history, they told me that Mobile held the first Mardi Gras celebration in America, not New Orleans.

I told them my niece and brother had mentioned Allegator Alley. They told me a man had bought some swampland zoned for agriculture and wondered what he could do with it. He came up with the idea of putting alligators on it and charging people to both see and feed them. It has worked out well for him, and the city visitors center volunteers told me it was worth visiting.

I also told them I wanted to go to the beach, and they said Alligator Alley is on the way. They gave me some restaurant suggestions, and both agreed Wintzell's Oyster House was their choice for good seafood, and it is reasonably priced. That pretty much mapped out my day: Alligator Alley, the beach, and Wintzell's.

Alligator Alley looked close on the map -- only 35 miles away -- but traffic was heavy and it took around an hour. Alligator Alley has 3 feeding times and I got there just before one of them. The alligators are separated from the visitors by a chain link fence. There is also a fenced boardwalk area over a swamp where you can look down on the alligators. You can also feed them if you buy an overpriced cup or bucket of food chunks.

Before feeding time, the alligators just hang out in the water. They didn't bother the Blue Heron.

At feeding time, the alligators come up on the bank and a worker puts on a show of throwing pork chops and other cuts of meat into their waiting mouths. Many of the alligators were "nuisance alligators" that got relocated to here from elsewhere because they were too close to a school or other public place, or were causing a disturbance in the community.

After the show, you can line up for the opportunity to quickly snap have a picture snapped of you holding a baby Alligator before they hand it off to the next person. No time to dawdle or relish in the moment.

Then I was on to the boardwalk. I was content to watch others throw the food pellets to the alligators. It really wasn't that exciting --- except the first time or two for little kids.

The eyes are usually a giveaway for spotting an Alligator, and the pattern on their back. Some are easier to see than others. An alligator's life looks pretty boring.

Sometimes they are harder to spot. See if you see the Alligator near the center of this photo. I included a telephoto shot of the Alligator below the main photo.

The cypress trees in the swamp have snobby knees, and there were also some spiders around the chain link fences.

In addition to alligators, they have some snakes behind glass or in cages, and an area where you can see a few turtles and tortoises.

Although the beach was close, today was a nice day and traffic was backed up, so it took another 45 minutes to get there.

I expected to be able to just park and walk to the beach, but it wasn't that easy. Hotels and gated condominiums lined the road, and I wondered how people not directly staying there could go to the beach! Eventually I saw a few signs advertising paid parking for beach access and I parked in one at Gulf Shores.

I had a good time at the beach, and spent a few hours in the water... mostly hanging out and trying to catch good waves for bodysurfing. The water was slightly warmer than I would have preferred, but it was still refreshing, and I could have comfortably stayed in the water all day! I'm not a sunbather, but I enjoy the water, and there was a mild breeze when walking on the beach.

I debated whether it would worth the hour drive back into town to eat at Wintzells, but the volunteer ladies recommended it so highly that I took the drive.

The food was REALLY GOOD!! They don't take reservations and there was no wait. I got the Broiled J.O. Platter with fish, oysters, shrimp and scallops. (The J and O are J.O. Wintzell's initials.) My only complaint about my order is that there was enough food for two, and I was only one person, and I didn’t have a refrigerator for leftovers. So I made a pig of myself and finished everything except the baked potato. I would highly recommend this restaurant. The ladies at the visitors center even gave me a 10% off coupon, but I forgot to use it.

I noticed there are 3 tall buildings in downtown Mobile. It surprised me, since Mobile gets hurricanes. I guess they weather the storms okay. After all, South Florida beaches also have lots of high rises. 

I heard that Pensacola, Florida, has a nice welcome center on I-10 with a huge parking lot and security guards, so that's where I'm staying tonight. I hope the inside of the car doesn't get too hot. The air conditioning in the building feels great, and it has a cold drinking fountain.

I thought all of Florida was in the Eastern time zone, but most of the Florida panhandle is Central time. So future visitors, be forewarned. Florida is like Tennessee and has two time zones.

Admiring Danielle's talents, and then back on the road again!

I didn't mention it yesterday, but Danielle made and decorated a unicorn cake for a girl she has never met who wanted a unicorn cake for her birthday.

In addition to being a fantastic mother, Danielle is a talented cake decorator and donates her skills to bake cakes for less fortunate children's birthdays and other special occasions. I admire her for this.

She volunteered with "Cake 4 Kids" when she lived in Arizona, but when she moved to Alabama she found they didn't have an organization here. She convinced them to open one, and now instead of just baking and decorating, she is also responsible for recruiting and coordinating with children's agencies, and finding and training more volunteers. I'm proud of Danielle!

I was originally planning on driving South to Birmingham and Montgomery today, but found a nature preserve in northeastern Alabama with a waterfall I wanted to check out first. I wasn't sure how much else there would be to do there, but I was willing to take the risk.

The visitor center had a nice video that gave an overview of the Little River Canyon National Preserve. There was a scenic drive with some canyon overlooks, and a couple of short trails, but the waterfall was definitely the biggest attraction. They sometimes have workshops but nothing was going on today.

The canyon and falls were pretty, but not really worth the multiple-hour detour. Oh well, those are the risks and it was a pretty drive.

Some of the trees struggled to get a foothold in the stony ground.

I had bought a salad at Walmart. A lady had just finished eating some fried chicken at a picnic table at one of the overlooks. She lives in the area, said she probably shouldn't have ordered so much, and offered me some chicken. That was kind of her, and I took a drumstick.

Even though I was disappointed there wasn't more to see, her generosity reminded me of how many nice people I have met on this trip. I thought of the people I had just seen in the Walmart in Fort Payne when I was buying my salad. And my mind went back to a young couple I met on a trail near the buffalo river in Arkansas, who were so kind to each other; and the man we met in the parking lot who shared the smoked turkey and smoked cheddar he was so excited to have with the 3 of us; and the politeness of a teen in Sedona who thought he needed to apologize but really didn’t; and of Zach, who shared his breakfast with me in Little Rock. If nothing else, this side trip serves as a reminder that I need to be more kind and generous towards others.

Here are a few canyon overlook photos, and one of a cool looking train that I saw when I got back to Fort Payne.

After spending so much time up north, both at the preserve and driving, things were closed in Birmingham and Montgomery by the time I got there. I probably would have looked at Civil Rights related places there, but between Little Rock and Memphis, I've already spent a lot of time on that topic, so it's probably just as well that I skipped Birmingham and Montgomery.

I drove through a few bursts rain on my trip today, so I was reluctant to find a campground and set up my tent tonight -- not wanting to deal with potentially having to dry the tent and groundcover before putting them away.

So I'm sleeping in my car at a rest area on I-65 tonight, about 100 miles north of Mobile, Alabama. I'll head to Mobile tomorrow morning.