Art and Wine Top the List

     There are so many wonderful things to talk about when it comes to Mexico Beach and October.  Many people claim October as their favorite month down here.  Why is that?

   Okay, first the weather is superb.  Actually, it is perfect.  Sunny, cool days are only surpassed by the cool nights.  You don’t need the air conditioner, and you don’t need the heater.  Sitting outside or on the beach is a pleasure.  Daytime temperatures run in the 70’s, and at night it dips down into the 60’s.   It is also a dry month so the skies are sunny and perfect for beachside pleasure.  The water even sparkles like little diamonds on a sunny day.  The views are truly amazing!

     Secondly, fishing is great.   This is the best month for redfish which are grouped up and hundreds are running together.   Down at Crooked Isle is a great place to go along with the end of Cape San Blas.  Gold spoons are a good choice of bait.  The bigger king mackerel are also coming back on their trip south for the winter.   Twenty and thirty pound kings are common on the buoy line, at the Car Body permit area, and around the artificial reefs.  Flat line a cigar minnow with light tackle and hold on.  It is not unusual to catch and release 20 king mackerel  on a good day in October.  And,  you want a secret way to catch the really big ones-use a cast net and catch live mullet.  Take them out to the MBARA reefs and flat line a live mullet on a 30 inch wire leader.  Hold on.   The bigger king mackerel will attack these mullet.

     The keynote event of the month is the Art and Wine Festival held each year at the Driftwood Inn in Mexico Beach.  This event features about 20 to 30 artists who display their works along with a fine wine sale by the glass.    There is live music, great food, dancing on the beach,  and an auction of some very fine art.   The 13^th annual show is on October l5 and begins at 2:00 pm with a small charge of $5.00 for entry into the event.   You may purchase art if you desire to do so.

     October is also crab month.   The locals love to catch blue crab in crab traps set out all over the canal and out in the water off of the beach.  Large numbers are caught this time of year.  Sometimes you can just walk on the beach and scoop them up with a net in the surf.   Large numbers of crab will come up on the beach in October.

     And last but not least,  you can take a chair out on the beach and sit pretty much by yourself.   Take a book, take a chair, and sit for an hour or two by yourself and enjoy the beauty of the sand, the dunes, and the water.  Uncrowded beaches are the true pleasure of the month.  You can sit by yourself alone for two or three hours at a time.   

     One of the most treasured places in October is the vast undeveloped land west of Mexico Beach.  Go to the end of the canal in Mexico Beach,  turn right and go west.   This walk will put you on 5 miles of beach that is pristine and untouched.  It is a walk back in time that will let you see Florida as it was a hundred years ago.   You can walk five miles and never see a house, a store, a condo, or even a person.   Only nature at its best.  Mexico Beach in October is the greatest place on earth.  Come and see for yourself.