Sixty seven days, December 29 2023 to March 5, 2024. An unusually long time for us to stay in one place. Typically we spend a few days here, a week there and maybe 10 days somewhere else, perhaps up to a month with the exception being our summer stay in RI. Guess with all the hecticness of our summer with the purchase of a new boat, the sale of our existing boat, my medical procedures and saying goodbye to Rob’s Dad and our beloved kitty, Sparky, some well deserved long term, down time had to be included in our agenda this winter.

With its beautiful beaches, the numerous restaurants ranging from fast food to fine dining establishments, easy access to a myriad of retail areas, a mix of historic, natural and entertainment attractions and normally great weather, this area has always been one of our favorite spots to visit to escape the winter blahs of the Northeast.

Normally great weather? Ha! That sure didn’t happen this winter! Of the sixty seven days, it rained on thirty three days! And it was cold! But it wasn’t limited to just Alabama, Mother Nature seemed to be wreaking havoc from coast to coast – fires, floods, mud slides and tornados! Rain and cold – not a big deal compared to everywhere else!

For our sixty seven day stay, after much research of other available resorts, we returned to Bella Terra RV Resort in Foley, AL, a resort we have stayed at several times in the past. Our last visit here was in March of 2022.

Unfortunately, one site wasn’t available for our entire stay so we had to move three times. Always somewhat of a pain, especially if it is just for a few days but for a long term stay, it was just a minor inconvenience.

Premium site #537 was our home from December 29th to January 28th. With a covered outdoor patio which included a large kitchen with a natural gas grill, griddle and cooktop, a warming drawer, a sink, mini-fridge, and a dual pull-out trash receptacle, a sitting area with a natural gas fireplace and a beautiful view of the cascading water fountain, it sure looked awesome in the photos on their website.

However, it did have one drawback. Due to the wide overhang of the roof extending beyond the patio area, the coach had to be parked very close to the driver’s side edge of the site pad bordered by a row of bushes forcing Rob to walk in the mulch when accessing the driver’s side basement to empty the tanks. And forget any thoughts of washing the coach, there just wasn’t enough room. We definitely would not rent this site again.

Another annoyance with this site is that a new large wooden structure was being built on a site not to far from us. Nothing like listening to the sounds of construction with sawing and hammering constantly, even on Saturdays and Sundays! Grrr!

In good weather having the patio with all the amenities would have been awesome, however, between the rain and the chilly temps, it was way too cold to sit outside! Maybe with the construction noise that was a good thing! You’d think the outdoor fireplace would help but because there was no protection from the winds, it couldn’t offset the cold temps and provide any warmth.

And, as if all that weren’t enough, on January 9th, a severe storm was in the forecast. On no! A tornado warning for Foley! How I hate that “t” word! Being cautious when the “watch” turned into a “warning”, around 4:00 a.m., we drove to the clubhouse, where we spent several hours waiting for the threat to pass. Although 15 tornadoes were reported along the Gulf Coast, sadly resulting in the loss of several lives, none touched down near us. Thank goodness we dodged that bullet! On January 29th, we moved to our second premium site #765. No huge outdoor kitchen on this site but it did have a large covered patio with an Adirondack table and seating for four, a large umbrella and two gliding Adirondack chairs and side table overlooking the water with distant views of the fountain. We really liked this site, so much quieter. No sounds of hammering here, thankfully because we did have a few days where the temps were comfortable enough to allow us to sit outside for an hour or two.

Our original plan was to leave Foley on February 27th but in the hopes that the weather would improve, we decided to stay for another week which required us to cancel two existing reservations at other resorts.

Bella Terra allows visitors to wash their coaches and cars for a $10 fee so once we moved to this more spacious site and we had a decent day, Rob was able to give the coach a bath!

Another major accomplishment was the installation of the new mudflap to replace the damaged one which he had ordered from Entegra. Read about how the mudflap was damaged in this post.

Premium site #821 would be our home for our final week. This site had a kitchen galley with a natural gas grill, two burner stove top, green egg, a sink, a granite bar and stools, a natural gas firepit and two glide chairs with a view of the fountain. Despite those amenities, it seemed it was a little run down, perhaps that was because it was on the market!

Having an opportunity to get together with friends and family when travelling is always a special treat. Sometimes when we meet new people during our travels, a quick friendship develops. Saying goodbye is always hard because with this lifestyle, we never know when (or even if) we will see each other again. Fortunately we were able to reconnect with two couples we had met in previous years during our stay.

Back in 2021 while staying at the OK RV Resort in Holbrook, AZ, we met another Entegra Aspire owner, Jim. Due to a few personal things happening in their lives at the time, we never had a chance to meet his wife, Julie.  Since then, Jim and Rob had stayed in touch. What an awesome surprise to learn that Jim and Julie would be staying at another RV resort in the area for an extended period of time, giving us an opportunity to get together several times at our coaches and for lunch. Such a fun couple!

Then a few years ago while we were staying at another resort, Pandion Ridge (now Sun Outdoors Resort) in the nearby Orange Beach area, we met Stu and Cindy, also Entegra Anthem owners. Rob and Stu had stayed in touch sharing not only their Entegra expertise and experiences but also their love of bourbon! Stu and Cindy arrived at Bella Terra in February. We shared many laughs with them during an evening visit at their coach and while having lunch together at a local restaurant one afternoon.

Staying here for an extended period of time also gave us the opportunity to have lunch with Rob’s aunt and uncle, Linda and Herb, who were staying nearby in Robertsdale, AL. When they return to RI, they will be selling their coach and moving into an apartment. Although we will still see them, we’ll miss sharing our mutual “on the road” adventures! Good luck to them in the next chapter of their lives!

Speaking of friends, even though we had seen our friends, Betsy and Nancy at Topsail, in December, they wanted to drive from Santa Rosa Beach to Pensacola to meet us for lunch at Peg Leg Pete’s Restaurant, a restaurant known for their oysters. During lunch we related our last, somewhat humorous experience, at this restaurant. Craving oysters in 2014 while staying at the historic Fort Pickens Campground, we went there for lunch. But alas, they were out of oysters – they had sold out of them during Mardi Gras! Fried grouper sandwiches didn’t relieve our craving but it tasted good anyway! Fortunately better luck this time but more about that in our next post!

In between our getting together with friends and family, when we did see the sun, we enjoyed long walks along the Gulf Shores Public Beach. Nice that there was free parking until March 1st! On one of our walks, we discovered the existence of Sandcastle University. Who knew there was such a thing? We sure didn’t, at least until we stopped to watch a woman sculpting what we initially thought was an alligator or a crocodile. But in looking at the gallery on their website, it looks like it would eventually be some type of sea turtle. Pretty cool! Sign me up!

Off in a distance was what looked to be some very heavy equipment a few hundred feet from the shore. Apparently, in 2023, Hurricane Sally collapsed a 200-foot section near the octagonal fishing area at the south end of the 1540 foot Gulf Shores State Park Pier. Guess repairs were well under way as it is expected to be completed in summer of 2024.

Another walk we enjoyed was on the trails at the 600 acre Graham Creek Nature Preserve, a new walking locale for us. In all the years we have been visiting here, we had never heard of this park’s existence! Thanks to Jim and Julie for recommending it.

A drive to the charming town of Fairhope with it’s municipal pier, beautiful parks and a bustling flower filled downtown shopping district with art galleries, restaurants and over 80 unique shops is always at the top of our list of things to do when visiting the area!  When we were here in 2021 and in 2022, we had seen the remains of the havoc Hurricane Sally had wreaked on the docks at the Municipal pier. We were anxious to see what improvements, if any, had been made since our last visit.

Good news! Construction was in the works at both the marina and at what was once the Pier restaurant. A sign announced that a new restaurant, The Blind Tiger, would be opening later in the year. Progress was finally being made! Speaking of restaurants, it was time for lunch so we headed downtown. Looking for something different than our usual lunch at Panini Pete’s, we discovered a great restaurant – we’ll tell you more about that in our next post.

Anyone visiting the area, yearning for a bit of history needs to visit Fort Morgan, a military site and National Historic Landmark located 22 miles west of Gulf Shores.  Since we had toured the Fort and had taken a ferry to Dauphin Island in 2012, we had no desire to tour it again.

And a visit to the Gulf Shores area is never complete without a visit (or two) to Bon Secour where our favorite seafood market, Billy’s Seafood Market is located. Can’t leave the area without purchasing a few pounds of Royal Red shrimp. Yum!

Being the foodies that we are, during the sixty seven days, we had plenty of opportunities to check out many of the restaurants in the area, discovering a few new ones that immediately earned top spots in our favorite eating destinations. More about that in our next post.

Additional photos of our visit can be found here.