Two Lane Adventure to Gulf Shores - Day Four

Traveling today we moved along a couple of the the same roads we came over to Alabama on but it was a sunny day, so everything looked more spectacular! Along the coast on AL 182, FL 292 and US 98. Did you know that Navarre, is also known as Florida's Best Kept Secret for its untarnished natural beauty and the picturesque emerald colored waters. In Fort Walton Beach we discovered the Indian Temple Mound which is an archaeological site. The large platform mound was built around 850 CE and is designated a National Historic Landmark. The mound has been reduced over time, but is till 12 ft high x 223 ft wide.The mound served combined ceremonial, political and religious purposes. At the center of the village the mound served as the platform for the temple and residence of the chief. Successive leaders were buried in the mound and additional layers were added over time. Destin, also titles itself "The World's Luckiest Fishing Village", and claims to have the largest fishing vessel fleet in the state of Florida. With as many boats as we saw today, I do believe that to be true! We moved north on 331 and west again on FL 20. Along the side of the road were magnificent blue wild indigo flowers. Between Freeport and Bruce on SR 20 we saw a sign with a bear, and immediately thought of you Karen Sprague. It was a sign for Nokuse Wildlife Plantation. Which is a 51,000 acre private conservation. Nokuse is the Creek Indian word for black bear and symbolizes the goal of providing suitable habitat for large ranging animals through ecosystem restoration. In Blountstown we saw the Panhandle Pioneer Settlements, a living-history museum to replicate a farm community. It is a collection of historical buildings, dating from 1820 to the 1940s. We cut through the Apalachicola National Forest on CR 267. The Apalachicola is Florida's largest National Forest, spanning over 570,000 acres. On the west side of National forest we traveled through the town of Wakulla and the Wakulla Springs SP. We traveled over the Spring Cave, 125 ft below the surface and the Wakulla Spring Cave 300 ft below the road. We finished our travels today on the Big Bend Scenic Parkway also known as US 98, ending our day at the KOA in Perry FL.