Pass a Grille Beach

 Upon leaving St. Augustine, we drove to Pass a Grille Beach which is a small, quaint, laid-back area that feels like old Florida. We had never been to this area before and the whole week we were there, we kept asking ourselves why it took us so long to discover this area. Truth be told, we had spent so many years going to St. George Island that we didn't branch out to discover other areas. We rented a condo (again through Air BnB, of course) which was right across from the beach. Just up the beach from our condo there was an outside bar and eating area called Paradise Grill, which we discovered had the best peel and eat shrimp. The Brass Monkey a fun sports bar was right next door (even though it was all about Maryland and their teams we still enjoyed going there for beers.) There were other restaurants and bars with walking distance of the condo. The beach was beautiful. We enjoyed one dinner and drinks on the rooftop of a restaurant called Hurricane where we were able to see a gorgeous sunset.

View from our balcony.

 

Our shared balcony overlooking the beach

                       View to our condo

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We spent one day doing a driving tour of a few local spots. We explored Siesta Key which was in the middle of Red Tide so the beach was littered with dead fish and snakes. Ugh! The beach did look beautiful, wide and flat though and I am sure once the Red Tide left, it would be a wonderful area. We also discovered Anna Maria Island on this day trip. We loved this Island and hope to return. It felt very much like St. George to us and everyone knows by now how much we love St. George. We also found a state park, De Soto Park, which is known for sand dollars. We did find a few but they were lined up in a row by the fence, so I didn't really have to hunt for them! The whole area we explored that was beautiful. 

                  Red Tide on the beach                                                                More Red Tide

Pass a Grille was the perfect beach vacation. Plenty of time to just sit our chairs on the beach and watch the waves, great places to eat and drink, and very walkable. For those who aren't able or don't like walking there is a free trolley that will take you wherever you need to go. When we were there in November, it was nearly deserted but I have heard that during peak times it can get a bit busy.  Here are just a few other photos of some of the things we saw on Pass a Grille.

On our way home, we were able to meet up with our Trump friends Jo and Rick. We met them on our sunset bench on St. George Island a few years ago. They live in Minnesota but spend all winter traveling in their RV. We connected and realized we were only hours apart as we headed north, and they headed south. We met them in their place in a Walmart parking lot and had lunch with them. It was so good to connect again. They are some really nice people. We are thankful that God brought us together.

We also spent one night on our beloved St. George Island on our way home. We stayed in the Buc Buccaneer, in the same room again, just by coincidence, we do not request that room. It was chilly (high 40's) so too cold to enjoy the beach and our favorite restaurant, the Blue Parrot was closed for some in between season cleaning. We found another nice restaurant and enjoyed a yummy seafood dinner and drinks. We walked around the interior of our deserted Island, still beautiful. We tried a beach walk the next morning before leaving for home, but it was still too chilly. It seemed this vacation was coming to an end, so we left for the northern winter that was waiting for us in Wisconsin.

We had another great adventure exploring Savannah, St. Augustine, and Port a Grille. We have now caught up on all our travels on this blog, so stay tuned to see where we will end up next.