It Seems Florida Doesn’t Like Dogs

When we go to Florida we want to see and experience the many beautiful beaches of the state, and we want to take our dog along as we neither can nor will leave our dog alone in the trailer. When we researched the various beaches in this area, we learned that dogs are not allowed anywhere. In fact one website told us that there is only 2 places in Florida, St.George Island in Franklin County and Gulf County where dogs are not only allowed but welcome. However, Florida State Parks, located in both counties do NOT allow dogs on the beach. Very sad, indeed. We found out that St. George Island was about 2 1/2hrs away from us. So we decided to check it out. We followed Hwy 20 east to Freeport from where we went onto Hwy 331, which intersects with Hwy 98. Hwy98 runs along the outer barrier islands. We crossed several long bridges and causeways before we actually arrived on St. George Island. It’s a beautiful laid-back kind of place, not too fancy but nice enough to enjoy.  What we did notice out there was that people looked at our van as if it was the most natural thing in the world to see ISLAND TOURS written along the side. Even our lighthouse logo was a nice fit for this trip. As we parked near the beach we saw several couples leading their dogs to and fro the beach. A friendly sign reminded dog owners to keep pets on the leash and pick up after their dogs. Franklin County must have some smart councilors. As dogs were prohibited on beaches in all other counties, they calculated quite rightly that they could attract visitors to their own community by profiling themselves as dog friendly. That this thought has shown to have merit there is not doubt about. And boy did we meet friendly and happy dog people along the beach. Even folks without dogs stopped and talked to us. This turned out to be one of the most fun beach walks I’ve ever had. And I will make sure to write a letter to the Franklin Co. Council to let them know.         It is just a pity that we are camped so far from Franklin County. After all, this is the way we have imagined Florida to be. The beach along St. George Island is just gorgeous and we were sure blessed with beautiful warm weather, something that a lot of other folks also had found out. Here was a father busy building a sand castle for his son, and right farther down another one played with a kite. Happy people on a great beach!      Thanks for visiting again!