Destin, along with neighboring Fort Walton Beach and Okaloosa Island,
makes up the Emerald Coast. The area's 24-mile-long ribbon of sparkling,
snow-white beaches; sea oats; and buffer dunes remind me of a lifetime
of summer vacations. And I simply can't think of anywhere I'd rather be.
Our family stayed on Miramar Beach at a little condominium complex
called Huntington by the Sea ([850] 650-6978 or 1-866-573-7678). It was
small, but it was ours.
We played Hearts when we had baked in the sun too much and chased sand
crabs when evening fell. These days, I catch grouper, snapper, and
amberjack on lucky excursions with my uncle, whose boat, Blue Water,
docks alongside the charter guides in Destin Harbor. This coastal town
is known as the "World's Luckiest Fishing Village," and the best catches
end up on plates at such area mainstay restaurants as The Back Porch and
Beach Walk Crystal Beach.
For weddings, reunions, holidays—pretty much any occasion—we pack our
bags to smell the salt and hear the laughing gulls. Such a special strip
of land, from the East Pass to Topsail Hill Preserve, warrants regular
visits. I feel alive there—like I did as a kid—rolling down the car's
windows on the Destin Bridge to let the air pour in. It's a rite of
passage. Going from mainland to that wonderful coast, it's my land of
summers, no matter what the time of year.
--Taylor Bruce
