Photo by Mike Odom courtesy of Navarre Press.

Next time you’re driving over the Navarre Beach Bridge, look twice for some of Navarre’s newest residents: black skimmers and least terns. Black skimmers are nesting shore birds and they return to Navarre from the Caribbean to nest from May through August. Their nesting sites are located near the state park and causeway. Least terns, which are small, white-bellied birds with a black patch on top of their heads and yellow bill also nest on Navarre Beach during this time. They protect their nests using dive bomb techniques and can be avoided by staying out of restricted nesting areas.  Black skimmers are considered a species of special concern by the state of Florida and the terns are classified as threatened species. Visitors and those driving over the bridge should use caution around marked nesting sites and watch for baby chicks on the road.

24th Annual Navarre Publix Fun Fest

Come out to Navarre Beach on Saturday, May 17 and Sunday, May 18 for the 24th annual Navarre Beach Fun Fest. This is Navarre Beach’s biggest event of the year and will feature arts and crafts vendors, live entertainment by the Georgia Satellites, children’s area, and plenty of food. Don’t miss the fireworks on Saturday night! The Fun Fest will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday and end at 9 p.m. On Sunday, the festival hours are from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Hurry and make your reservations at one of our Navarre Beach vacation rentals for this weekend and join the fun!

We all have fond memories of the beach and this summer you’re invited to share those memories. The Santa Rosa County Tourism and Development Council is running a summer advertising campaign called “Come Back to the Island.” The council is asking any one who has visited Navarre Beach to share their memories of our beautiful beach at their website which can be found by clicking here. Monthly prizes will be awarded to winners at the end of each month from March - July 2008. Prizes include items such as “Back to the Island” t-shirts, dinner for two, bike rentals, zoo tickets, or canoeing trips. Two grand prizes will be awarded to two random entries at the end of the summer. They include a “Back to the Island” trip with a 3 day/2 night stay at one of our beautiful 2 bedroom Gulf-front condominiums or a weekend canoeing get-a-away to a cabin in the Blackwater River State Forest. We wish all contestants the best of luck and look forward to accomodating you on your next memorable trip to Navarre Beach.

Lately many of our visitors have been asking, “When is the beach road going to be open?” and some of you may be wondering what the beach road is. The beach road is the J. Earle Bowden Way that was the road that used to run much of the length of the Santa Rosa Island from Navarre Beach to the eastern end of Pensacola Beach. The road was a popular scenic drive along the Gulf of Mexico and a favorite spot for cyclists who could bike from Navarre Beach to Pensacola Beach. After a year of repairs, the beach road is starting to come back! This spring visitors will be able to drive from Navarre Beach to Opal Beach on the road. The rest of the road to Pensacola Beach will be worked on this summer. Check out the article below on the beach road progress from the Navarre Press. - Photo by Jim Richardson

Beach Road on Schedule for April Opening
By John Richardson Navarre Press

Cyclists are about the only ones using the beach road these days, and bike riders were out in force Feb. 10. Some may have ridden for the exercise, but there were those who likely wanted to see the progress of the road construction.

Reconstruction of J. Earle Bowden Way, from the eastern end of Pensacola Beach to Navarre Beach, began in October 2007. Panhandle Grading & Paving has been removing sand and asphalt from the roadway. Paving operations began in November.The road construction to Opal Beach is scheduled to be completed this spring, and the road to Pensacola Beach is scheduled to be worked on during the summer.

The parking lot, a little over a mile from the fence, has a paved entrance road that is about half completed.The parking spaces have not been created. The road surface is a mix of old asphalt that existed prior to the hurricane and new asphalt that has been patched into places where the old pavement was washed away. The difference between the two surfaces is about an inch.

“I ride this road almost every day,” said Byrum “Bird Man” Gettings. “They call me ‘Bird Man’ because I used to ride this road when the only other living creatures out here were the nesting birds. Some days the workers chase me out of here and I put my bike in low gear and ride in the sand along the sound.”

Gary Agee rode all the way to Portofino.“The road is cleared out all the way through.The construction crews are making good progress. I have no doubt that the road to Opal Beach will be ready in April,” he said.

For the next two miles to Opal Beach, there are large areas that have been completely re-paved where the road was washed out. The surface is a smooth road and great for riding.

Kerry and Jessica Freeland rode to Opal Beach from Pensacola Beach. “I rode through here last June and there were several places where you could not ride,” said Kerry Freeland. “Now the road looks great.”

There are several large construction vehicles parked along the road at Opal Beach. Stopped along the road in front of some of the machines was George Allen from Saratoga, N.Y.

“I vacation down here every year. It broke my heart when I heard they were not going to open this road up. Now it looks great. I am happy to see they are going to open it up again this spring,” he said. Allen was escorting two friends, Ralph and Shirley Arehart from San Diego, Calif., who were biking along the road for the first time.

According to Kenny Necaise of Pensacola, all that had to be done in some places was remove the sand that covered the road. “Now, you could drive a vehicle from one end to the other. All they need is another layer of asphalt and to paint some lines on it,” he said.

Frank Koskie from Gulf Breeze was really impressed with the progress of the road. “There really is no reason this could not have been done a year ago.Why has it taken so long?” he asked.

“This road is a monstrous quality of life issue,” said Tammy Koski.“For us to be able to come out here and ride on this road makes all the difference in our lives.”

The repairs to Opal Beach have not all been completed. The newly-constructed entrance road is almost complete.There is one large parking area that has been paved but not painted. The large chunks of cement that were piled around the buildings are gone. The facility improvements (restrooms and pavilions) within the Opal Beach area will be handled by the National Park Service under a separate contract once the roads are completed.

“One more layer of asphalt should do it,” said Navarre Beach resident Larry Sims. “It will be great to be able to use the road again.”

-Reprinted with permission from the Navarre Press, www.NavarrePress.com

February 21, 2008 

We here at Navarre Properties are excited to introduce you to our brand new blog! Our blog will be used to let our guests, owners, and other visitors know what is happening in the Navarre area. We will post entries to our blog about area events, new rentals, restaurant reviews, weather, and more. We hope that you will enjoy all the area has to offer and let us know what you like about Navarre Beach. Please check back with us often to see what we’re up to in sunny Navarre Beach, Florida!