Let’s close this out………………….
West coast destination was Anna Maria Island. It had been hard hit in 2024 with Hurricanes Milton and Helene. Even though Helene made landfall elsewhere, A.M.I. faced strong winds and storm surges. Many homes experienced 3-4 feet of water and extensive damage to roads and infrastructure occurred. Good news – none of that was evident! Oh yes, some homes hadn’t been rebuilt but many more repairs were complete. Let’s get on with this.
Silver Surf Gulf Beach Resort was the locale of choice. Loved it!
With three separate buildings, we had easy access to parking and would definitely stay here again. Walking in, very nice set up.
One interesting aspect………………a murphy bed. The above photo shows the couch where the murphy bed ultimately lands. After watching a short video, Eric got it ready.
A small kitchenette was part of the set up.
This spot was not directly on the beach but had their own private access to the beach.
While different than the east coast, still pretty. Man – I’m hoping the clouds go away before sundown, otherwise, the sunset is going to be a bust. This was taken around 2pm.
We had some time to kill before sunset so we drove to the end of the island checking out what shops and restaurants still existed. About 20 minutes before sunset, we headed back to our ‘private’ beach. Yep, it is a bit windy.
Here we are patiently (somewhat) waiting to see if this was going to be a bust. The temps were getting a bit cooler.
I was able to catch this boat zipping across the coastline. It was not looking good for seeing the sun.
And then the sun started to peek through along the horizon.
And………………we’re done.
One more thing on tonight’s agenda – dinner at The Sandbar.
Since our last visit, damage from hurricanes changed (destroyed) their building. Seating outside was nice.
Dinner was a variety of items, sharing dip as a starter.
While Adrienne went running the next morning, I got a West coast sunrise.
As we headed home, one last stop was lunch at Tide Tables (same place as the prior day). Loved the fact we could eat outside in the Florida sunshine.
Smoked fish dish and assorted meals was the order for the day. I got the fish tacos – Loved them! Definitely had enough for lunch the next day. 🙂
Thanks to Eric’s planning, one more thing scratched off of my bucket list.
Ginny
Darden Travels 