Destin, Florida – Out and About

While staying at Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park we ventured out to Destin and Ft Walton and the surrounding area. Our first stop was Henderson Beach State Park. We departed Rocky Bayou State Park and headed south over the Mid Bay Bridge using our SunPass toll transponder. All worked well and the usual $4 cost for a car was reduced to $3 due to the SunPass. We like that.

Henderson Beach State Park

This state park sits on the Gulf Coast with white, white, white sand and glittering emerald warm water of the Gulf of Mexico. It is beautiful state park situated right next to Destin with easy access. There are a few large parking lots and boardwalks to the beach.

There is a 60-site campground there which is beautiful and offers water and electric sites with close proximity to the beach yet well protected. If we had been aware of it we would have booked a week here instead of Rocky Bayou. Maybe next time.

Destin HarborWalk Village

We also spent some time touring around the Destin HarborWalk Village which is the hub of Destin with restaurants, fishing charter boats, activities, live music, etc. It was off season so it was not very lively while we were visiting but we could see how it could be a very busy place when it gets warm.

Okaloosa Island

Okaloosa Island is the beach front area for Fort Walton Beach. It is a barrier island and part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore with a fishing pier and lots of white sandy beaches. We noticed some Hurricane Ida (Aug 2021) repair going on while we were there.

The Destin area is a beautiful area with lots of pristine white sandy beaches and lots of activities!