I’ve feasted on shrimp all around the world, but Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama have, hands down, the most delicious shrimp I’ve ever eaten. I arrived last night and promptly dug into my first helping at the Gulf Island Grill; today I had a shrimp Po’ Boy for lunch at the Beach Club and this evening I had broiled skewered shrimp at Live Bait restaurant in Orange Beach. I’m here as a guest of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism, enjoying four days on this lovely coastal barrier island and checking up on the status of Alabama beaches following the oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig.
Over the next few days I’ll be writing more about what these folks have endured and how they’ve dealt with the crisis, but for now I’ll echo the message being broadcast by tourism professionals: the brilliant white sand beaches and warm Gulf waters are once again clean and sparkling and Gulf Shores and Orange Beach are open for business. And now if you’ll excuse me, there are a few more shrimp with my name on them…
The Gulf tourism folks are doing a great job with their PR – I think the message is out – there’s no oil on these beaches!
Thanks for sharing the pictures…they speak loads!
Looks amazing…and virtually empty – which is a bit sad. Hopefully people will start coming back soon! Keep spreading the word!
Man that’s great..it sounds like good news after long. . .
Is it that the oil hasn’t (and won’t) make it there or is the condition due to the clean up efforts?
Anil: The oil has made it there but they have worked very hard to clean it up. It continues to wash up occasionally, in small pieces called tarballs, but they appear in very limited areas which are cleaned up immediately. Half mile away will be totally clean, which is of course, something that the media has not bothered to explain. Unfortunately, the spill has scared people to the point that the beaches are deserted and the community is really suffering. I have nothing but good things to say about the area, especially after I found out that the Convention and Visitors Bureau made a commitment to tell the truth about the situation, regardless of any negative impact it may have had, and had the full approval of the city fathers to do so. They take photos of the beaches every day and post them on their Facebook page, even if it shows oil contamination. Fortunately, the incidents of contamination are lessening. I did see one instance of small tarballs while I was there but in most cases the beaches were pure white and pristine, and the water was crystal clear. I’ll be writing more about it soon. Thanks for asking.
It’s great to hear that those beautiful beaches are clean and open to business again.
Hope you don’t mind me being terribly blunt, but when I’ve dreamed about travelling the US (and I do – often!)Alabama was not on the list of states I wanted to visit. Mea cupla – I’m afraid I was a victim of the memories of news stories from the 60s. Stupid of me to think things are still the same. Your pictures have put it near the top of my list now! I had no idea that it is so stunning. I can’t wait to read all about it, because, really, all I know comes from recent history.
Bluntness is always appreciated, Linda. I think a lot of people share your misconceptions about Alabama and other parts of the deep south, but it is really beautiful here.
Barbara – It’s so good to see you. The Gulf Coast area has some of the prettiest beaches and it’s close to home for me. Thank you for coming down to see things for yourself.
Shannon: It was so great to see you and I was honored to share your birthday with you. I’ve always wanted to visit Gulf Shores and Orange Beach and this area is even more gorgeous than I imagined it. Thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of this trip.