With its huge brick battlements jutting up from white sand dunes and its labyrinth of arched tunnels, Pickens is a favorite spot within the Seashore for photographers and history buffs alike. The largest of four historic forts in the Pensacola Bay Area, Pickens is managed by the National Park Service and surrounded by acres of undeveloped, wild beach. Strategically-positioned at the very tip of Santa Rosa Island, guarding the bay entrance into Pensacola, the fort provides a unique look into American history and the military significance of Pensacola dating back to the American Revolution.
The star attraction of the Gulf Islands National Seashore on Pensacola Beach is Fort Pickens. And every winter, look for hundreds of species of migratory birds as they make a pit stop along Pensacola Beach on their way to South America for the season. The preserved and protected Seashore provides ample nesting and hatching ground for sea turtles and shorebirds, like the loggerhead and rare Kemp’s Ridleys turtles, or the beautiful black skimmers and tiny least terns shorebirds. Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, loggerhead sea turtles and cow-nose rays are commonly spotted swimming along the sandbar in the crystal-clear waters. Osprey, falcons, bald eagles and great blue herons are often nearby or overhead, their nests visible in the treetops. Wildlife encompasses the beach everywhere you look. That reflective, bright-white sand that we cherish is what also creates our dazzling, emerald-colored water.īut humans aren’t the only ones that treasure our Seashore’s natural gifts. Well, to start, our sugar-white sands are made of naturally-milled quartz brought over millennia to the Gulf Coast from the Appalachian Mountains by rivers and streams. Pensacola Beach is bookended by the Seashore on both sides, with Opal Beach to the east and Fort Pickens to the west. In 2018, Gulf Islands National Seashore on Pensacola Beach was once again named Best Florida Attraction in the 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, chosen by the readers of USA Todayand 10Best.
In fact, your reflection in the water may be the only person you see while there, particularly during the shoulder season. Gulf Islands National Seashore provides just that. Known for its dazzling green-blue waters and powdery white sands, you’d be hard pressed to find many beaches left in the world where you can walk in unpeopled solace for miles and miles with unobstructed views, just the way nature created it. He and his wife of 23 years, Nancy, have a daughter studying biology at the University of North Georgia and a son entering Georgia’s Kennesaw State University as an engineering major.Ĭolin Warren-Hicks can be reached at or 85.Yes, there’s a reason why Pensacola Beach’s Gulf Islands National Seashore has long been treasured as an acclaimed national park and awarded as one of the most beautiful beaches in the country. Virgin Islands.Ī native of Sinton, Texas, Echols has a bachelor's degree in marine biology from Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi. In that role, he and his team provided scientific expertise, technical assistance and policy guidance to 74 parks in nine states, as well as in Puerto Rico and the U.S. He has served since 2014 as regional chief of science and natural resources management for the South-Atlantic Gulf region. In 2008, he became deputy superintendent of the Outer Banks Group in North Carolina, which includes Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Wright Brothers National Memorial and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site. Holley By the Sea backyard chicken owners fear HOA may ban their feathery friends Escambia toddler who was focus of Amber Alert found safely, alleged kidnapper arrested Is the quality of life in Escambia getting better or worse? See what citizens say Myra Van Hoose looks to upset Robert Bender in Escambia County Commission District 4 race
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