Venues vary from intimate settings to open air amphitheaters and include 30A hot spots such as: Gulf Place Amphitheatre, Naked Grape, First Note Music Hall in Blue Mountain Beach, and Bud & Alley’s in Seaside. Performances by The Bangles, Rodney Crowell, Shawn Mullins, Matthew Sweet, Indigo Girls, Joan Osborne, and so many more. Truly a world class event of amazing performances at one of the most beautiful spots in the Country!

For a full list of artists and venues or ticket information visit www.30asongwritersfestival.com. Need accommodations, call Garrett Realty Services @ 1-800-537-5387

By WENDY VICTORA                             

Northwest Florida Daily News

April 10, 2011

The wide, paved path stretches over 19 miles, through coastal communities, across bridges, past flowering bushes, wetland plants, colorful shops and state parks.

The Timpoochee Trail, as it is formally named, runs along Walton County’s Scenic Highway 30A from beginning to end.

It’s considered a multi-use path, but about 75 percent of its traffic consists of visitors riding beach cruisers or comfort bikes.

“They park their cars and unless they have to go to the grocery store, they ride their bikes,” said Michele Foreman, who owns 30A Bike Rentals, one of a dozen rental businesses along that stretch.

The bikes, which can be rented for anywhere from a few hours to a week, have one speed and one way to brake, by pedaling backward.

Cyclists sit upright on padded seats, unlike road bikes used by more serious cyclists.

Also popular on paths like Timpoochee Trail are “comfort bikes,” which are similarly styled in that you sit upright, but are equipped with gears and hand brakes.

The bikes are used for recreation, to carry folks along scenic stretches of the partially shaded path. They are also transportation for vacationers who travel back and forth between coastal communities.

“We usually stay in the Seagrove area,” says Jim Rice, an Ohio man who vacations regularly in the area. “So that means we can ride our bikes for breakfast in the morning and Rosemary Beach for lunch.

“We love touring through the little neighborhoods,” he adds. “That’s part of the attraction here — not just the beaches, but the bike path.”

Rental agencies deliver the bikes to visitors and pick them up, which makes it easy for folks just coming into town. They provide combination locks, baskets and helmets. Prices start at $10 for a half-day rental and range from $45 to $75 for a full week.

When the path is crowded, riders have to weave and brake frequently, as well as watch for cars turning in and pulling out of driveways and side streets. That makes it less desirable for serious cyclists.

“It would be better if it were a little safer,” said Bruce Braseth, who owns Dragon Sports in Fort Walton Beach. “But cyclists are just happy to have a bike trail anywhere.”

The trail crosses over or near water a dozen times in the 19-mile stretch. In the open spaces between communities, the path is so quiet you can hear birds singing and the wind rustling through the foliage.

“From spring to summer, it’s always full,” said Jeremy Keeney, who owns Bob’s Bicycles in Mary Esther, adding that he wishes the area had more options for cyclists.

“I think more people would be inclined to get on a bicycle and ride if there were more areas like that.”

An Eco Tour in Walton County Is a Natural

You’ve heard the expression, “When in Rome.” Well, when in Walton County, you cannot overlook the opportunity to get up close and personal with the stunning nature around you. With state parks, preserves and wetlands making up 40 percent of the area, “green with envy” takes on a whole new meaning. Walco Eco Tours provides hands-on eco-tours guided by owner Murray Balkcom. An avid outdoorsman, Balkcom has been paddling on the coastal dune lakes of South Walton and the Gulf of Mexico since 2002, and has been leading guided nature walks and guided kayak tours in Walton County since 2006.

Balkcom describes the coastal dune lakes as  rare national treasures that are unknown even to longtime locals. He explains that this particular type of lake is found only in New Zealand, Australia and Walton County, where there are 15. “Our tours are a great way to reconnect with the outdoors, and provide a great alternative to a day at the beach,” he says.

Walco Eco Tours offers two wonderful ways to explore Walton County’s Western Lake and the surrounding animals and plant life that call it home. Opt for an excursion that combines kayaking and walking/hiking or try the new offering — a YOLO Yak. YOLO, an acronym for You Only Live Once, is a brand of stand up paddleboard birthed in Santa Rosa Beach. The YOLO Yak is a hybrid board designed with elements of a paddleboard and a kayak to facilitate better stability while paddling. This tour combines a YOLO Yak ride and walking/hiking. Both experiences are two hours long and are customized to the level and interest of the group. Tours launch from the boathouse at WaterColor, located on Scenic Highway 30A.

The kayak tour requires two people and maxes out at eight. It is open to kids ages 5 and up. Adults are $60; kids under 10 are $30. The YOLO Yak tour is $60 per person and open to kids ages 12 and up.

When you go, wear waterproof shoes, sunscreen and a hat (as long as it is secured). And don’t forget to drink plenty of water before you venture into the sun on the tour. For more information, visit WalcoEcoTours.com.

Forest trail a leisurely, picturesque hike

Located within the Point Washington State Forest and part of its Eastern Lake Trail System, Cassine Gardens trail offers a pleasant, easy hike showcasing the diversity of Northwest Florida’s ecosystems.

Continue Reading…

Vision Airlines, a company that started by giving tours of the Grand Canyon, will begin offering commercial flights to 20 U.S. cities on Tuesday, promising to save vacationers time and money on getaways to Florida.

Vision says fares, some initially as low as $49 one way, will go on sale Tuesday for trips between the beach communities of northwest Florida and such cities as Baton Rouge, Knoxville, Tenn., and Little Rock starting March 25.

Flights aimed at business travelers shuttling between Louisville and Atlanta began Dec. 13, while service between northwest Florida and Miami and Niagara Falls, N.Y., launched Dec. 17.

The carrier, based in Suwanee, Ga., is taking a page from the playbook of Allegiant, one of the most profitable airlines in the country, by flying non-stop from smaller cities to tourist spots and offering vacationers one-stop shopping by selling packages that include everything from the hotel room to the rental car.

“If Allegiant Airlines is Coke, then there’s always got to be a Pepsi,” says David Meers, Vision’s COO. “Our goal is not to take over the aviation industry. It’s not to go out and try to poke the large carriers in the eye. We believe there’s a niche available in the marketplace to provide … packages to consumers at discounted prices.”

Low fares, non-stop service and large jets — perks more often enjoyed by fliers through major hubs — will be key, Meers says.

“We’ll be flying from cities that have been neglected by large carriers with large aircraft for a number of years,” Meers says, adding that many visitors to the tourist hubs of Destin and Fort Walton Beach in northwest Florida often drive to avoid connecting flights and high fares.

“It opens up the ability for people from all these communities to not only go as they normally would (but) to go more frequently,” he says.

Vision’s entry into commercial passenger service comes as the airline industry is starting to climb back to profitability after skyrocketing fuel prices and the economic downturn that caused leisure and business travelers to cut back on flying.

Still, airline analyst Mike Boyd says that Vision is carving out good turf. “They’re not going into business to meet pent-up demand, they’re going into places to provide a product that wasn’t there before,” Boyd says. “It’s an entirely different business than an airline, but I think it’s going to be a very successful one, as Allegiant has been. They’re creating their own business, a low-cost, high-value vacation to the Florida Gulf Coast.”

Vision started in 1994, operating tours of the Grand Canyon with small planes, and grew into a charter service for celebrities and others.

But it’s long been a goal to become a full-service travel company that offers commercial flights and other packaged travel services, Meers says.

Vacation packages should be available on Vision’s website in the next 60 days, he says. And in the next three years, “It’s realistic to expect we’d add cities out West … and we’ll look at the Caribbean and Mexico.”

Some smaller airports are welcoming the new service, seeing it as a way to boost Gulf Coast tourism, which dipped after the BP oil spill last year, and to get travelers who would usually drive to take to the air instead.

Vision’s non-stop service could even help Florida residents traveling within the state, such as those who now take a connecting flight or drive seven hours from the Destin area to get to Tampa, says Greg Donovan, director for the Northwest Florida Regional Airport in Fort Walton Beach.

“The communities that they’re going to be flying to are difficult to get to via hub connections,” says Donovan, who adds that fares on larger carriers such as Delta and US Airways are often more than vacationers want to pay. “I think it’s going to bring back many people we’ve lost to driving,” Donovan says.

Some airports are waiving fees for Vision and helping to promote its new service.

Northwest Florida Regional will waive Vision’s landing fees and terminal rent for two years, as well as spend tens of thousands of dollars on marketing efforts in targeted communities.

Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, which will see non-stop service to and from Orlando Sanford International, as well as Northwest Florida Regional, which serves the Fort Walton Beach-Destin area, is also waiving some fees and tapping funds for new air service.

“We all try to secure low-cost carriers for our community,” Anthony Marino, Baton Rouge’s airport director, says of small and midsize airports. “The competition it creates in the market helps us when we’re dealing with (legacy) carriers like American and Continental and US Airways.”

Vision will continue to separately offer tours and chartered flights. That diversification, along with the vacation packages it sells, should create a healthy revenue stream, Meers says.
Source: USA Today

                         “What do you call a lawyer who hangs out in restaurants?

                                                       An ambiance chaser”    ; }

   Which nicely seques into our comments on one of our favorite local restaurants:

                                Garrett Realty Services Invites You to Experience:

                         Good Friends Good Food and Good Times at The Red Bar

 My BFF since I was twelve years old is visiting from Germany and wanted authentic local atmosphere not to mention, food.  I immediately thought of The Red Bar.

The first impression one has is that the vine covered restaurant has been there for a long time and deeply ensconced in the historical little town of Grayton Beach.   The Red Bar’s eclectic Bohemian decor is artsy and creative and BOY are they ready for the Holidays.  There is something interesting to look at in every square inch down to the international posters on the ceiling which patrons have contributed.

Needless to say, we LOVED the food.  There were five of us so we ordered several different dishes for sampling.  The Red Bar is famous for their Chicken Panne and Gulf-fresh seafood (especially the crab cakes).  There is quite a selection of side orders:  ranging from sweet potatoes, delightfully varied salads and freshly battered onion rings… YUM.  The specials change daily and are quaintly hand-written on a large chalk board presented by the waitress. 

My friends, Laura and and hubby Jerry, said their Shrimp PoBoywas the best they have had (and they are seasoned travelers).  Laura also added that the bread was as good as she gets in Europe.  That is quite the compliment. 

The two important things Laura and I have in common are our tastes in food and laughing (We haggled over a few beaus but that is fodder for another blog!).

We had so much fun (of course we always do… that is why we are still friends after —?! zillion years) reminiscing about slumber parties and debating the best techniques for tormenting our little brothers.  Some stories never get old…

A little Red Bar History 101: 

The Red Bar is venerable.  Belgian brothers, Olly and Phillipe Petit, have built The Red Bar from a former Grayton Grocery into one of the area’s most famous eateries.  The restaurant is actually called Picolo’s, but the whole place is best known by the bar’s name, The Red Bar.

The Red Bar Jazz Band plays almost nightly and is the best in NW Florida featuring the great Jabbo Starke, formerly James Brown’s drummer who played in Sex Machine and Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag.  When Starke is not at The Red Bar, he still performs all over the world.

The Red Bar has always been known for featuring the best in South Walton County music, first and foremost with the Great Red Bar Jazz Band but also with regular appearances from area favorites like Dread Clampitt, The Waco Ramblers and Hubba Hubba.

Don’t be surprised to spot celebrities here late at night.  “…But please, everybody just wants to chill at The Red Bar.”

Located in the old part of Downtown Grayton Beach, Florida on Scenic 30-A, (Just down the road and west of Garrett Realty Services) The Red Bar is also a short drive from Destin & Panama City Beach. 

Phone:  850-231-1008

Check out their website: http://www.theredbar.com/ for more information.

Kayaking in South Walton

Although vacations are meant to be relaxing, no one said it has to be inactive.  Some of the most relaxing activities on the coast including family oriented recreational sports that are different from the day to day workouts at the gym.  The Beaches of South Walton have a plethora of outdoor activities, but there are a few sports that have really grown in popularity over the last year or two including Kayaking and YOLO boarding.

Kayaks come in several different models including sit in and sit atop.  We highly recommend that ameteurs start out utilizing sit atop kayaks.  These kayaks require very little instruction and are simple to manuever.  Single and Double kayaks are available throughout 30A and South Walton.  Most rental agencies will also require that you wear a helmet and personal flotation device for precautionary measures.  Kayaking in the Gulf is possible on very calm days, but otherwise kayaking can be very serene in any of the area lakes or the bay.

YOLO boarding, is also known as paddle boarding, but the enthusiasts would only refer to it as a YOLO board since it is an acronym for You Only Live Once.  A hybrid sport that resembles both surfing and rafting – YOLO boarding requires the participant to balance standing straight up and then control the direction and speed with a paddle, much like rafting.  This sport takes more balance and skill than Kayaking, but can be absolutely exhilarating when conquered!  Click to check out  more on local YOLO.

Other area family activities include bike rentals, sail boat rentals, waverunner rentals parasailing and go kart rentals.  There are several agencies to contact in the area, but Garrett Realty services highly recommends Big Daddys in Blue Mountain Beach, centrally located to all of the prestigious Beaches of South Walton communities.