By: Mitch Jaugstetter
Do you remember your first trip to the beach?
That first time you set foot on the beach, you were elated. Seeing the ocean or gulf for the first time is a one-of-a-kind experience.
For some, the experience is life-changing. Enjoying much-needed time with family, meeting new people and being reunited with long-lost friends. So much can happen at the beach. It’s a place for relaxation, memory-making and trying new things.
Last week, we asked our 30A Facebook followers to share the stories of their first beach experiences, and boy, did you all have some great ones!
One of our fans, Jamie Spielman, who goes by the name Tater Salad on Facebook, has been coming to the Florida panhandle to vacation since she was a kid.
“It was the summer of 1981,” Spielman recalled recently. “My friend Kim and I, neither one of us had ever seen the beach. We dropped our bags and ran straight for the water. It was exhilarating!”
The 30-A area has been a life-long vacation spot for Spielman. Nowadays, she brings her daughters to vacation here. They try to come at least once a year and she hopes the family will keep up the tradition for many years to come.
“We have stayed in Inlet, Seacrest and Seagrove beaches and absolutely love the entire 30-A experience,” she said.
Another Facebook fan, Linda Work has been coming to the beach since 1946 when she was just 2 years old.
72 years of beach memories have left their impression.
“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of that place with a smile,” Work told us. “My memories are priceless.”
One of our favorite stories shared was by Bettye Jacobs, who has been coming to the beach since she was just six months old.
“We went to Dauphin Island and Gulf Shores,” Jacobs said. “Mom would dig a spot in the sand so that the waves would run around me. I’ve always loved the water.”
30A Fan Bettye Jacobs shared photos of some of her earliest beach memories.
Jacobs said one of her favorite things to do is to return to the area to shop, eat and just relax.
“I love to sit on the balcony and smell the air and hear the waves breaking against the beach,” she said.
Clearly, trips to the beach can leave us with life-long memories that make us want to come back year after year to make more and reminisce on those of the past.
So get to the sand, pronto, and create some more of these great stories. When you do, make sure to share them with all of us on our 30A Facebook page. We love hearing from you!
Mitch Jaugstetter is a Summer Intern at The 30A Company.
