Dennis - should I cancel trip on 7/16?

[Paula]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

Thanks much, PhdPhay, I may email you on Tuesday. I read on another thread that all the beach access from Rosemary Beach to Cottages at Camp Creek are gone and that the beaches are quite a mess. I'm assuming this will be the case for most/all of 30A. We still plan on coming down in a week as long as the pool is up and running -- and there's no reason to think it won't be.

I'll be bringing some spackle to patch up the holes from the plywood, but won't paint until November. And I'm sure there'll be some cleaning up to do as well.

And, Land Lord, I definitely feel the cup is half full (or more) for those of us whose property didn't get damaged (I'm assuming mine didn't get damaged, but I don't know for sure yet). I'll certainly be disappointed if we can't get to the beach easily since we have a nice quiet beach (we'll find an access somewhere on 30A I'm sure -- there were ways to get to the beach after Ivan, though it sounds like we have to be even more careful at the beach this time). I hope the shelling is good if we can get to the beach. It was indeed awesome after Ivan. Hope the shells are still there in a week.

Looking forward to seeing some photos of the area.

 

[phdphay]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

Thanks much, PhdPhay, I may email you on Tuesday. I read on another thread that all the beach access from Rosemary Beach to Cottages at Camp Creek are gone and that the beaches are quite a mess. I'm assuming this will be the case for most/all of 30A. We still plan on coming down in a week as long as the pool is up and running -- and there's no reason to think it won't be.

I'll be bringing some spackle to patch up the holes from the plywood, but won't paint until November. And I'm sure there'll be some cleaning up to do as well.

Ditto. We're not gonna repaint from the boarding up until after hurricane season is over.

 

[Paula]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

It will be interesting to see if we can get to the beach and how. Fortunately there's a lot going on on 30A anyway (outdoor concerts, outdoor movies, and other activities) so we'll be busy. But would love to get to the beach especially if the storm blew in some shells. Sounds like the dunes are very unstable in several areas, and people would be well advised to not use them for safety reasons as well as for protection of the dunes.

 

[phdphay]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

I don't have any confidence that people will stay off the dunes. They will want to get down to the beach if they paid to be there. Our last renters stole one of the "Stay off the dunes" signs, but forgot to take it with them when they checked out (along with a pack of cigarettes - our house is supposed to be a no-smoking rental). I guess when you break one rule, you don't mind breaking others.

 

[Travel2Much]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

I don't have any confidence that people will stay off the dunes. They will want to get down to the beach if they paid to be there. Our last renters stole one of the "Stay off the dunes" signs, but forgot to take it with them when they checked out (along with a pack of cigarettes - our house is supposed to be a no-smoking rental). I guess when you break one rule, you don't mind breaking others.

I was on a walkover during Arlene, watching the beach, the dune repair, and the walkover wash away. This was in the Seacrest-Camp Creek area where the damage was horrific (preparing me for this week, I guess). Next day or so, some Mom was letting her boy rampage up and down what any moron could see was a critically eroded dune on a devastated beach, barely holding onto the last crumbs of sand left from the scraping project. I nearly cried. But I was polite about it when conveying my request.

Not a chance they'll stay off. Never have understood it.

 

[dusty]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

Walton County should give the landlords some stock literature to give renters about how to treat the dunes and the importance of staying off them. The average person may not understand how precious they are.

 

[AnteAmy]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

I hope the shelling is good if we can get to the beach. It was indeed awesome after Ivan. Hope the shells are still there in a week.

To the glass half full lady, Paula - hope you find lots of nice shells and LOTS of washed up sharks...
If everyone (including us dreadful rentors and tourists) will take an extra large bag for debris in addition to a shelling bag - the beach will soon be safe and sparkling again. I was in Grayton State Park a month after Ivan.... (Ivan completely demolished and scattered my uncle's lifelong Gulf Shores home and all his belongings across the Panhandle ---sounds like they got hit again) ...There was still plenty of opportunity for eveyone to do their part cleaning up. My friends thought I was an enviro-nut ,
but before the end of the trip, everyone pitched in. When you love a place like we all love the Grayton area, its the least we could do. I just wish we could keep hurricanes (and the uneducated) off the dunes. ...But that's the ever-changing nature and force of the ocean.

 

[Paula]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

To the glass half full lady, Paula - hope you find lots of nice shells and LOTS of washed up sharks...
If everyone (including us dreadful rentors and tourists) will take an extra large bag for debris in addition to a shelling bag - the beach will soon be safe and sparkling again. I was in Grayton State Park a month after Ivan.... (Ivan completely demolished and scattered my uncle's lifelong Gulf Shores home and all his belongings across the Panhandle ---sounds like they got hit again) ...There was still plenty of opportunity for eveyone to do their part cleaning up. My friends thought I was an enviro-nut ,
but before the end of the trip, everyone pitched in. When you love a place like we all love the Grayton area, its the least we could do. I just wish we could keep hurricanes (and the uneducated) off the dunes. ...But that's the ever-changing nature and force of the ocean.

Great idea about bringing a shell bag AND a trash bag. Will do. So will the kids. Be careful of the trash, though, because some may have nails or other dangerous things in it. I'd like some locals to give opinions on clean-up and safety during clean up.

 

[Carillon Family]

Re: should I cancel trip on 7/16?

Carillon Beach.........but can someone please tell me if we should cancel our plans for coming down on 7/16?...........8 hour drive

or do you think its ok execpt for some beach debris......

THANK YOU SO MUCH IN ADVANCE.

Hello! I just posted elsewhere.. but I heard Carillon overall is in good shape.. some minor flooding on a couple of streets (Sandyshore and Seahill).. not sure if any houses were damaged. The beach walk overs were damaged and the beach suffered. But overall, the power was back on and the houses, etc looked to be in good shape.
Even if you can't enjoy the beach, it has three great pools (one overlooking the beach) so you should still be able to enjoy your trip. Keep in mind, this is second hand knowledge, I haven't seen anything myself. You may want to call Carillon Rentals for more information on Tuesday. Also, several units in Pinnacle Port (condo next door) were destroyed.. but it's located much closer to and lower on the shore.

Hope this helps!