Apalachicola

Apalachicola

Oyster Flats

 

Our focus today was a day trip to Apalachicola, Florida….about two hours east of PCB.  We took the scenic route and enjoyed view after view of the Gulf shores.  Lots of large herons, pastel houses and palm trees all along the way.

The town of Apalachicola sits on the shore of the Apalachicola Bay.  This is where 90% of Florida’s oysters come from.  This bay has ideal conditions for oyster growth, brackish water, shelter from barrier islands and incoming winds that help “salt up” the oysters. Here, the oysters are still harvested the same way they’ve been harvesting them since 1800, by tonging them off of oyster bars in the bay.

Oyster Shells

It’s easy to see that oysters are the primary business here.  There are oyster boats everywhere and oyster processing plants all along the bay. Each plant has a huge pile of oyster shells beside it…waiting to be returned to the bay to help provide anchoring for new oysters.

Oyster Boat Coming In

We stopped at the Up the Creek Oyster Bar where they proudly serve local oysters and lots of alligator dishes.  Between the four of us we tried about 1/3 of the menu including alligator chili, conch cakes and sweet potato donut holes.  Wonderful food with a great view of the oyster boats coming in with their catches. Without a doubt, this is one of our favorite places to eat in this area…along with Hunt’s and Dusty’s.

Apalachicola Old Cemetery

After lunch we went by some of the historical homes in the city.  The population of Apalachicola is about 2400, yet there are over 900 homes in the National Historic Register!  We finished up our visit with a stop to geocache at the old cemetery.  Graves there date back to the early 1800s and include the graves of 7 Confederate Civil War Veterans.  And yes, they are accorded the term “veterans” and their graves are marked with a bronze plaque as are Union vets.

We all love saying “Apalachicola”….it’s just a fun word to say.  Try it!  We’ve probably said it 50 or 60 times today.  I think I’ll say it few more times just for fun!  Apalachicola!  Apalachicola! Apalachicola!

 
 

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