Fort Pickens

Fort Pickens, Florida & Orange Beach, Alabama: Camping on Santa Rosa Island, Civil War Brickwork & Gulf State Park

January 4, 2022 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: August 1, 2026

Fort Pickens sits at the western tip of Santa Rosa Island inside the Gulf Islands National Seashore of Florida. Sandy and I have camped here before, and we keep coming back for the same reason: miles of white sand without the beach crowds or the wall of high-rise condos that swallow so much of the Florida coastline. This was our favorite kind of travel day — about an hour and a half of sunny, scenic coastal driving from Santa Rosa Beach and Topsail Hill Preserve to the Fort Pickens Campground, with our brand-new 27-foot Airstream behind the truck and Jake stretched out in the back seat.

Large coastal defense cannon aimed toward the Gulf of Mexico from the ramparts of Fort Pickens, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Pensacola Beach, Florida, photographed by travel blogger Michael Huntley

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Pensacola Beach & Destin, Florida

March 22, 2020 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: July 6, 2026

Pensacola Beach sits on Santa Rosa Island, a long barrier island that forms part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore — one of the most striking stretches of protected coastline on the Gulf of Mexico. The sand here is composed of sparkling white quartz, ground fine by millennia of wave action, and it looks almost like snow from a distance. We had camped at the National Park campground at Gulf Islands a few years earlier and loved the quiet, unspoiled character of the area. This return visit was a chance to explore further — Fort Pickens, the local restaurants, and the very different atmosphere of Destin just down the coast. A note on timing: our posts tend to run about a month behind due to editing, travel, and spotty internet. When we were here, the coronavirus pandemic had not yet begun affecting daily life.

The long fishing pier stretching into the Gulf of Mexico under dramatic dark skies at Pensacola Beach, Florida

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Gulf Islands National Seashore, Florida: Fort Pickens, Geronimo’s Captivity & Sunsets Lit by Controlled Burns

February 21, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: February 21, 2017

Gulf Islands National Seashore stretches from the Florida Panhandle to Mississippi, protecting the natural and historic resources of a chain of Gulf Coast barrier islands that have seen an extraordinary amount of American history. The protected area spans mainland sections and parts of seven islands — and the ground here has been fought over, abandoned, reclaimed, and fought over again for more than 500 years.