This state park is located south of Pensacola, close to Perdido Key. The weather was looking stormy, so we decided to hunker down for a few days. Bob hoped to watch both the Steelers final regular season game and the Rose Bowl. Unfortunately, the Steelers game was regional, so we were reduced to watching the Patriots play the Dolphins.
We were surprised by a tornado warning and a torrential downpour. We spent an hour in the campground bathroom with the birds, during which 2 1/2 inches of rain fell. The birds were not amused. We learned that bird screeching echoes beautifully in a tiled room!
National Naval Aviation Museum
The museum has an amazing collection: over 150 restored aircraft. The strangest looking are the flying boats.
The Curtis NC-4 was the first plane to cross the Atlantic Ocean including stops in the Canadian Maritime provinces and the Azores.
Tours are given by volunteers who served in navy aviation. Our tour guide told some great stories. He pointed out a small cloth and wood aircraft that saw service in WW1. Before the US entered the war, there was a rumor that a German boat was in Mexico assisting the local military. A plane of this model was sent to fly over the area and look for the Germans. The Mexicans on the ground shot at the plane, so when the pilots made a second trip they were out for revenge. They decided to throw things at the Mexicans, and what they had on hand were 1 pound bars of soap. They loaded up, made their flight, and when the shooting began they tossed the soap at folks on the ground. Our guide considered this to be the first bombing run in aviation history.
We also saw a beautifully restored wood and cloth aircraft with an interesting story. When it was no longer useful to the Navy, it wound up being given to a local high school. The kids climbed all over it, put their feet through the wings, wrecked the engine, etc. The principal got sick of having it around, so he had it buried in back of the school. Later a tennis court was installed over the burial site. Many years later, the plane was discovered during removal of the tennis court. The museum got it and spent 5 years on the restoration.
And of course there are multiple Blue Angels exhibits, since this is their home base.
Deb played copilot on a strange aircraft made of corrugated aluminum.
And there were a few non-flying exhibits. The squadron car was used to transport crew to and from the airfield; this one was highly modified including a (non-functional) refueling port.
Built by Edwin Link, a former organ and nickelodeon builder in Binghamton, NY, the Link Trainer was an inexpensive flight simulator, thus very useful for training lots of pilots. One trainee found himself in trouble coming in for a landing. Following regulations, he bailed out — and wound up with a broken ankle when he hit the floor!
