Who Wants To Try a DIS-Meet At Gulf State Park In May-June 2016?

[garneska]

We are going to head out on Saturday morning, I would expect it to take about 6.5 hours with the rig and normal traffic to get in. How long do you think it will actually take, we are already west of Atlanta? I guess I am more worried about the traffic getting to the park. I think the plan is to leave by 9. We will shoot for 8.

I forgot to add I have done nothing to get ready. Just as long as I don't forget important things, like medication for everyone including dogs, the rest I can buy there.

 

[bama_ed]

We are going to head out on Saturday morning, I would expect it to take about 6.5 hours with the rig and normal traffic to get in. How long do you think it will actually take, we are already west of Atlanta? .

IIRC you are in Douglasville. Google Maps shows going down through Campbellton and picking up I85 for your ride into Alabama, past the Barn, and to Montgomery for the I65 leg down to the coast. Driving an auto, Maps shows 354 miles in about 5.5 hours. Towing or driving an RV is probably 5-10 mph slower (but for some people, maybe not). I know that once I hit Montgomery and the I65/I85 interchange (mm 171) it's a quiet, lonely, rural run down I65 to your exit at mm 37. From Montgomery to Gulf is a little over 3 hours for me normally but who knows with holiday traffic.

Maps takes you down to I10, up on it for a short run east to the Baldwin Beach Express then turning left onto the Foley Beach Express. Follow that route. Pay to go over the toll bridge into Orange Beach. At the Tee with Canal Road (Hwy 180), turn right and follow it. The road takes a hard LEFT turn into Gulf Shores. Follow it about a mile down and where the road takes a hard right, there is a left turn into Gulf State Park. There follow the detour signs to the campground.

Bring the important stuff and WalMart has whatever else you will need.

Relax, Kris, relax...

 

[Teamubr]

Garneska,

Don't forget you get an hour back coming from ATL.

j

 

[bama_ed]

Hey Randy,

I never did get an email about early check-in and paying in advance. Can you PM me the details?

TIA,

ED

 

[tiggerdad]

The road takes a hard right turn into Gulf Shores.

If you are referring to the stop sign at the end of Canal Road in front of Tacky Jack's, I believe it's a hard left. No confusion as going left is your only option. As Ed said, once you make that left you will be looking down a mile long straight away with I believe maybe one or two traffic lights. At the end of that long straight away is a curve to the right and you will see the brown sign with white lettering directing you to make a left hand turn in that curve to enter the park.

Be careful making that left as traffic coming around the curve to the right can be dangerous at times.

I've made an edit to this post as I fear I may have confused you and including the following pictures:

On the picture above, the green circle is the toll bridge Ed referred to on the express. Then you just turn right on Canal as shown by the red arrows above making the hard right at the stop sign at the end of Canal Drive. The blue circle is the curve with the entrance to GSP to the left. I included the below picture showing a close up of the curve.



So you can see the entrance. Then you follow the signs leading you around to the campground. The green circle is the Wal Mart you hear us referring to.

 

[bama_ed]

Garneska,

Don't forget you get an hour back coming from ATL.

j

Jim,

Once you leave Huntsville, the worst hill you will have to tow up is just south of downtown Birmingham in the mile between exit 255 and exit 254. The first is at the bottom of the hill, the second is at the top (Shades Mountain). You're lucky they built the highway through Red Mountain and Oak/Double Oak Mountains but went up and over Shades. I live down to the right just off Shades Mountain.

It's three lanes through there and don't go crazy towing in the left hand lane.

Bama Ed

 

[bama_ed]

If you are referring to the stop sign at the end of Canal Road in front of Tacky Jack's, I believe it's a hard left. No confusion as going left is your only option. As Ed said, once you make that left you will be looking down a mile long straight away with I believe maybe one or two traffic lights. At the end of that long straight away is a curve to the right and you will see the brown sign with white lettering directing you to make a left hand turn in that curve to enter the park.

Be careful making that left as traffic coming around the curve to the right can be dangerous at times.

You are correct, sir, I was anticipating the turn into the state park. It is a hard left there - that's where the original Hwy 59 route came into Gulf Shores before they dug the Intercoastal and built the new bridge further west (the one next to Lulu's).

Bama Ed

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

I've made an edit to this post as I fear I may have confused you and including the following pictures:

I'm confused now....

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

Here is the email Ed, I figured I'd just post it to share with everyone.

Hope this helps,

 

[Teamubr]

Jim,

Once you leave Huntsville, the worst hill you will have to tow up is just south of downtown Birmingham in the mile between exit 255 and exit 254.

I've been down that way many times going to Gulf Shores, Pensacola, Ft Walton Beach, Destin and Panama City Beach. I like the gulf coast.

And those aren't hills. I don't even remember those. Mont Eagle on the other hand? Those are some hills and I get to tow over those on the way to the Fort.

j

 

[bama_ed]

Gulf State Park posted on their website that all 500 campsites are reserved for all weekends in June and the 4th of July and Memorial Day holiday weekends too.

I miss the good old days when you could just drive down and assume there would be a spot available with no advance ressie. Was that way until maybe 3-4 years ago even before the hurricanes. The only times it was full was holiday weekends (Memorial, Labor, 4th).

Bama Ed

PS - probably this weekend too for the Hangout Festival. Music/bands for the 20-somethings to book a condo (or a campsite) and spend money locally. It's been very successful the last few years since it started.

 

[tiggerdad]

Well, Randy and I were talking a bit earlier and will probably spend the Memorial day weekend around the campground or closest beach to avoid crowds. This post by Ed solidifies my decision to spend the weekend relaxing.

I'm bringing some leg quarters for one evening. I bought 80# back in January at $.25 a pound. If I know who is interested in barbeque chicken I'll bring enough.

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

Being booked up shows how much popular camping has become over the past few years or so. We're all trend setters, haha.

We just came from Costco, picked up some drinks and looked at the meats, I'll probably make a trip up there this week once we decide on what all we wanna have. They have whole pork loins for $25 last we have one I think we got a bout 30 pork chops out of it.

 

[tiggerdad]

We'll be setting some time aside for some restaurants as well, including King Neptune's, Gulf Island Grill, maybe Lu Lu's for nostalgia purposes, The Original Oyster House perhaps. We'll be coming back in July so I can finish my restaurant cravings then.

 

[Teamubr]

We'll be setting some time aside for some restaurants as well

We always hit a variety of restaurants when we are on vacation. I have most breakfasts at the camper, but probably 50/50 on lunch and dinner. It really depends on what we are doing around lunch and dinners are where we try the local cuisine.

I'll probably bring down some pork steaks (it's a local thing that people here BBQ all summer.) I'm not crazy about them, but DW loves them. Might bring some toasted ravioli. They were invented in St Louis and every restaurant sells them. You can buy multiple brands at our grocery stores. They are usually deep fried, but I may bring the baked kind.

j

 

[garneska]

Tiggerdad, agree we were planning on hanging out (trying to relax) on the weekend figuring everything will be busy busy busy. I am hoping to get some swimming in, I need the practice. Surprisingly, I will be pretty flexible, we have the concert Tuesday night and Bert really wants to see the blue angles, so won't party too hard at the concert so we can hit Pensacola on Wednesday. Thursday we might go to Mobile. Friday will hang out and pack up. I guess all I want to do is swim and kayak, should be able to manage that on the holiday weekend.

Right now we are still waiting for our replacement skylight so we have a big hole in the roof. It's is all cleaned just need the part to install. I am hoping it comes today then we can install tomorrow but with my luck it will come Monday. That means we have to go over after work. Hoping since the scraping is done the install part won't take too long, but as the saying goes nothing is ever easy.

 

[Flametamr]

I'm in Kill Devil Hills this week for a wedding. Hard to keep up on my phone. We love cooking out and eating anything like that. We plan on swimming and biking around the park most days. The Blues are a definite for us too. But generally we stay around the campground. Randy I too miss the old days. GSP is getting like Ft Wilderness now. I better book my late July trip as soon as I get home Monday. Hope to get another week in before the daughter goes back to school.

 

[Teamubr]

@bama_ed

How is the construction on I-65 around B,ham? Last year when we came back from PCB, it was backed up south of down town. We jumped off an exit and saved 35 minutes, according to Google maps on my phone GPS. The route I took in an SUV wasn't bad. With my trailer, it would suck.

j

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

Well I had planned on cleaning the camper today but my buddy called and said let's go fishing so I didn't get much done other than worked on my tan,

Here's a picture out Ft Morgan,

Making our way over to Dixie Bar across Mobile Bay from Dauphin Island,

Running back across the Bay to Dauphin Island, I hope that the weather is nice as nice next week as it was today, the extended is looking good.

 

[SouthAlabama5er]

Oh BTW, I called GSP today and asked about firepits, and cable tv. Alabama State Parks are in the process of updated the parks by adding stuff like cable TV and refurbishing bathhouse. So the answer to the cable TV is a negative ghost rider. And as for firepits, they are allowed but have to be 6 inches off the ground.