We just got back from spending a week at a marvelous beach house on St George Island.
It was everything I’d expected a week at the beach would be. But it was more than that.
We’d never heard of St George Island when some dear friends invited us to spend some time with them at a beach house they’d rented there for the month of December. They claim, even after spending 30 years in the Air Force and traveling all over the world, it’s one of their favorite places ever. I was surprised, as we biked around the island, at how many vacation homes they pointed out they’d rented over the years.
St George Island is about 4 miles offshore in the Gulf of Mexico near Apalachicola, Florida. It’s 65 miles east of Panama City, where the “Emerald Coast” designation ends. Unlike the Emerald Coast, the mainland area in that part of Florida is not touristy and not affluent. In fact, it’s called the Forgotten Coast.
We’ve been to the Emerald Coast several times for beach vacations. I love the sugar white sand and the shallow blue, relatively calm and warm Gulf of Mexico water. To me, it’s the perfect beach location. Unfortunately, to hundreds of thousands of others, it’s also the perfect beach location. The Emerald Coast is crowded with people and high-rise condominiums. There are endless opportunities to shop for anything and everything under the sun. There’s plenty to see and do on the Emerald Coast but driving anywhere takes a lot of time and energy (a waning commodity, along with patience, as we age).
What a difference 65 miles makes.
St George Island has the same sugar white sand beaches, the same calm, blue, warm water of the Gulf of Mexico. But it’s a world away in terms of having been discovered by the masses of beach vacation lovers. There are no condos, no chain retail or restaurant locations, no traffic signals, and well, when we were there, virtually no people.
Granted, mid-December is not the ideal time for a beach vacation in Florida’s Panhandle. But it is ideal for us. First, it’s our wedding anniversary week…47 years this year. And any time we can escape the crazy hustle bustle of the world we live in and just “be,” while close to God’s amazing creation is a good time for us. The beach is a decompression place for me—mentally and spiritually.
We stayed in a gated community called Plantation with nature and bike trails, lots of gorgeous, quiet beaches, a private airstrip, two community pools, a fitness center and other high-end amenities. One of its main features, though, is privacy. It’s rumored Jimmy Buffet, Angelina Jolie, Kid Rock, and Hank Williams Jr. frequent there. The internet confirms that Jason Aldean owned (and sold) a house here a few years back. We didn’t see any of those people. In fact, we hardly saw anyone except the gate guard.
Most of the beachfront homes there are pretty spectacular. You marvel, as you walk the deserted beach, at where people get the money to own and maintain property like this, especially in the beautiful, but harsh, environment of the Gulf Coast. We stayed in what I thought was a big house, with 4 bedrooms, including an impressive master suite, taking up the entire top floor of the house. But it was small compared to the homes on either side of it.
Most of the homes on the island are vacation rentals with clever names like A Latitude Adjustment and A Wave From It All. Not many people are around in December. The seasonal supply and demand dropped prices to a level where, said our hosts Keith and Carla, we were able to live like millionaires for a week for a reasonable amount of money.
In addition to the beautiful accommodations, Keith and Carla immersed us in the Christmas spirit. They’d decorated the home with things they brought along, played Christmas music, watched Christmas movies, made Christmas candy, and fully embraced the season. We walked the beach, read, put puzzles together, rode our bikes all over the island, ate a lot, and enjoyed the Down Time (the name of the vacation rental we were in) afforded by this precious week at the beach.
The weather the first few days wasn’t ideal. In fact, one of the first nights featured tornado warnings close enough to make my stomach very nervous. But the last four days, sunny and in the low 60s, were perfect for December.
We returned home feeling as rich as we always feel whenever we’re able to do what we want, when we want, where we want, how we want, as long as we want. What a blessing this time in our life is.
It’s good to understand that living rich is not about money.
P.S. I’m going to immerse myself in the Christmas spirit the rest of the week. As soon as I’m done with the laundry. Because non-monied rich people have to do their own laundry.
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