On March 4, 2026 we stopped at Camping on the Gulf. I would describe it less as a campground and more as a full-fledged RV resort. The place has just about every amenity imaginable—ball courts, swimming pools, hot tubs, laundry facilities, a dog wash station, a fishing pond, a general store, propane service, and a dump station. I am honestly surprised they don’t sell diesel and gasoline. If you get tired of walking around the property you can rent a golf cart, and judging from the traffic on the resort roads that is exactly what many people do. Everywhere you look people are cruising around in golf carts.
When we arrived, we were assigned to site 16. It was a back-in site set at about a 45-degree angle to the road. The space itself was plenty wide and under normal circumstances it would have been a very easy backing job for Linda. Unfortunately, our neighbor to the right and the neighbor directly across the road were both parked in very large bus-style motorhomes that didn’t quite fit into their sites. Their rigs stuck out into the roadway just enough to make maneuvering tricky.
Linda had very little room to swing the truck and line up the trailer, but she handled it perfectly and backed the trailer in anyway. Later one of the neighbors came over and complimented her on the impressive parking job. I’m beginning to think she might be some sort of superhero. At the very least she deserves a cape.
That first night we headed out for dinner at Zen Japanese Grill & Sushi and the food was terrific. The sushi and hibachi dishes were excellent and it was a nice change from campground cooking. It does make me wonder, though, why our RV resort doesn’t have a Michelin-starred restaurant on site. After dinner we stopped to do a bit of grocery shopping, which is not exactly my favorite activity, although I still prefer it to going to the dentist.
The next morning, March 5, we loaded the bikes onto the truck and drove to the Topsail Hill Preserve State Park. This state park has a camping area, but it is far enough from the beach that they provide a shuttle bus to take people to it. We rode our bikes through the camping area and it didn’t seem very beachy to me. However, our real reason for coming here was to ride the Timpoochee Trail. This paved trail runs for about nineteen miles along Scenic Highway 30A, connecting several beach communities and state parks along the Gulf Coast. We love riding together.
We began riding east toward the underpass near Inlet Beach. At the underpass we stopped briefly to admire the colorful artwork painted along the tunnel walls before turning around and heading back west toward the park.
Along the route we passed beach towns, dune lakes, art, and long stretches of coastal forest. The trail itself was smooth and well maintained. There were quite a few other cyclists and a steady stream of pedestrians, but not so many that the ride felt crowded. Still, I can easily imagine that during spring break or the peak of summer the trail might become nearly impassable.
Partway through the ride we stopped at a small cluster of polished Airstream trailers that had been converted into food trucks and grabbed some lunch. On the return leg we made another stop at Blue Mountain Beach Creamery for some excellent ice cream cones. By the time we returned to the truck we had logged about forty-two miles on paved paths.
Back at the RV resort we gathered our laundry and headed to the laundry room to celebrate the day’s ride the way seasoned travelers often do—with washing machines and dryers. While the clothes were tumbling we took advantage of the resort amenities and soaked in the pool and hot tub. Once the wash moved to the dryers we ran back to the trailer, showered, changed clothes, and then returned to collect the clean laundry.
On March 6 we spent the morning doing a few small chores around the trailer and enjoying a relaxed start to the day. Later in the afternoon we walked down to the beach along the Gulf of Mexico, I mean Gulf of America :). We set up our chairs—actually kayak seats we had brought along—leaned back, and settled in for what we expected would be a sunny and relaxing afternoon.
Instead we had front row seats to watch a thick fog slowly roll in from the water. Within a short time the bright beach afternoon had turned into a gray coastal mist. So much for sunshine. Even so, the experience was memorable and gave us a good laugh as we sat there watching the weather transform around us.
That evening we packed a few things and prepared for our departure the next morning. When morning came we hooked up the trailer, pulled out of the resort, and continued west along the Gulf Coast toward Alabama.
| Nights | Total Nights | Miles | Total Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 369 | 309 | 32249 |