03/19: Spent a most pleasant night in the lovely Bayou that Bonnie described above and then enjoyed very laid back AM before departing for our final anchorage before arriving at the NAS Pensacola Marina. Had a leisurely cruise thru 15 miles of the GICW, passing numerous luxurious homes, huge Marinas and lots of BIG boats. Actual traffic however was light. We arrived at Ft. McRee anchorage at 1400, had lunch & then dinghied ashore to explore. The original Fort was built in the early 1800’s to protect the entrance to Pensacola Bay. Over the years it was damaged during civil war and battered into rubble by decades of storms/hurricanes. In 1943 Army Engineers built casemates & revetments for a Battery of US Army Coastal Artillery, again to protect entrance to Bay. Construction was completed but war ended before the guns themselves were installed. It now resembles the many Coast Artillery sites at Forts Baker, Barry & Cronkite on north end of Golden Gate entrance to San Francisco Bay that I used to visit for training when I was stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco. In any event, we landed in a superb anchorage, a cove between two islands, white sand beaches, good protection from wind, wave & current, and spectacular view of the Pensacola area. I was delighted to locate this cove on the charts. In 1992 we had sailed this area on a charter with Melissa, Donna Day and Sarah and Erin, 2 friends of Melissa’s. We anchored in an OK spot near the Pensacola Beach Bridge—not very exciting. McRee Cove is just as Bill described. The old battery was interesting to explore with beautiful vistas into the Gulf. The other island (with its own colony of pelicans) was OK for Dogs so later took them ashore to super white beaches—looks like snow in the photos! This was a wonderful spot, the kind if one has no plans invites a several day stay over. Several locals, on big and small vessels spent just the day here. Dinner: Grilled pesto marinated chicken breasts, with Mediterranean couscous sautee with vegetables, accompanied with a glass of Pinot Grigio.
Morning Grooming
This Pelican is no statue!
Sunset over Orange Beach
Can't get much better than this!
Elissa II enjoying her Anchorage
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