Adventure

Grayton Beach State Park has showcased the best natural environment South Walton has to offer for nearly 50 years. 

The park encompasses 2,200 acres of pristine rolling dunes along the Gulf and Western Lake, and a magnificent coastal forest habitat with unusual scrub oaks and magnolias twisted by winds and time. Western Lake is the centerpiece of the park, one of our rare, freshwater coastal dune lakes.

About 50 people attended the opening of Pilcher Park on Friday, April 7th. The crowd was was wowed by the gem of a park underneath the 331 bridge on the south shore of the Choctawhatchee Bay.

Walton County Commissioners joined the celebration along with representatives of the Florida Department of Transportation to dedicate the new Thomas Pilcher Park and the second span of the Clyde B. Wells Bridge.

Walton County began the process of developing a paddle trail initiative on the Choctawhatchee River beginning in 2011. Former Walton County Board Member Scott Brannon led the movement towards the application for grant funds to develop the Blueway Paddle Trail. Unfortunately, Walton County was not awarded funding at that time.

South Walton is beautiful in ways that challenge the imagination. Word has gotten out about our sleepy collection of sophisticated-yet-casual communities whose prominent allure is the pristine white-sand beach and its complement – the glistening emerald-hued Gulf. While the shore whets travelers’ appetites, it’s what’s off the beach that may be most deserving of our attention.
 
 

In our area, we are fortunate to have two premier beach destinations that merge almost seamlessly together. While they are neighbors, each offers a unique experience. The remarkable communities of which we speak are, of course, South Walton and Destin. 
 
South Walton is comprised of a varied collection of “towns” that nestle predominantly along Scenic Highway 30A. Each offers their own interpretation of a life well lived by the beach. 

The Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance (CBA) of Northwest Florida State College announces the fall session of its award winning eco-tourism initiative, Discover Roads Less Traveled: Eco-Adventures of Walton County.

“CBA’s eco-tours are intended to bring participants to local, off the beaten path environmental wonders,” states CBA’s eco-tour coordinator, Brandy Foley. “We hope that these tours will entice individuals to experience our local environment from a different perspective.”