Dauphin do-over

The day after our visit to Dauphin Island, we drove back to Alabama so I could ride a horse.

We didn't have a solid plan for the rest of the day, so after the ride, we sat in the car and weighed our options. 

Try as we might, we just couldn't come up with anything more appealing than the previous day's itinerary. A quick online inquiry indicated the ferry was up and running, so we pointed the car towards Gulf Shores.

We arrived near our destination, parked the car and made the last little bit of the trek on foot.

Behold, the Pink Pony Pub.

It was everything we thought it would be.

We split a Pony Burger...

and sipped mixed drinks on the deck. Very satisfying.

I insisted on another short beach walk,

complete with more bird pictures.

Then we got back in the car and drove to  Mobile Point, where we were delighted to learn the ferry really was up and running.

We paid our fare, parked the car and waited for the ferry to come.

Since we had a little time to kill, I went for a walk.

I stuck close to the shoreline and was treated with a perfect view of our ship making its way across the bay.

I watched it dock, then hustled back to the car. We climbed inside and drove onto the ship.

It was smaller than we'd imagined.

After we were all parked, everyone got out of their cars for the ride across the water.

It was chill and festive all at the same time.

We saw several Dauphins  dolphins, but I completely failed at capturing any of them with my camera. 

Fortunately, I did manage to get a few (!) bird pictures.

According to the website, the ferry takes about forty five minutes to cross the Bay, but it felt much shorter.

I was definitely not ready for it to be over when we docked on Dauphin Island!

For the first fifty plus years of my life, Alabama was nothing more than a drive-through state. Now it's a place where I walked on a beach, rode a horse, ate pony burgers and crossed Mobile Bay in a ferry. Thanks, Carol, for taking me to Alabama.