Replies

Tonight is our last night in a rental house on Grayton Beach, 10-15 miles east of Destin, halfway between Pensacola and Panama City. The water is smoother than it's been all week, like glass, but we have had storm after storm pass through here this week.

Trying to decide which way to drive home Saturday to Northern VA, I think I-95 is a bad idea. Thinking of going through Atlanta and then I-81.

Take 331 north to Montgomery, then I-65 to Birmingham, then I-59 to Chattanooga, TN where you can pick up I-75 to Knoxville, then I-81 to Bristol, VA. I live in Chattanooga, and my family has had a place at Sandestin since '84. I've driven that route many times, and it's not that bad. I'd go north, then cut back east to miss the evacuation traffic. I've been watching some of the Destin webcams, and you're right, the ocean is un-characteristically calm. We've been on standby here to bolt down there and board up if needed all week, and have been paying very close attention to both Bonnie and Charley. My wife and I got ran out of Destin in Sept. '98 on our honeymoon due to Hurricane George, which thankfully turned out to be not that big of a deal. Grayton Beach is gorgeous----like Destin used to be before every retailer in America decided to set up shop there. Good luck!