Summer 2024 is officially in the rearview with October bringing visions of Fall, Festivals, and Football. Dramatic sunsets paint vivid hues of red, orange, yellow, pink, and sometimes purple across the sky, as Autumn days grow shorter and the sun sinks lower. Sun rays have a larger distance to travel before reaching our eye, interacting with more air molecules, while the dryer, cooler fall air allows more of these colors to pass without being scattered by water molecules.

Some people were born to be restaurateurs. Count Bo Hamilton, owner of Ox Kitchen Fairhope, and newly opened Ox Kitchen Pensacola, located at The Garden at Palafox and Main, as one of them. Both restaurants serve a limited menu, including a perfect burger. Bo’s food philosophy is simple, fresh, and delicious, and his story is an interesting one.

Perdido, Alabama sits at the Northeast corner of Baldwin County, Alabama, near the Northwest corner of Florida to the east. The headwaters of the Perdido River are nearby. The river that runs through this area’s northern exposure toward the south is clean and cold and empties into Perdido Bay near Lillian, Alabama.

Jennifer Knight, owner of End of the Live Café in Pensacola, is wrapping up a three-year renovation and expansion with a full bar offering, and a new kitchen, and is bringing back many of the events and community projects that make End of the Line Cafe more than just a great restaurant. You may remember Scenic 98 Coastal’s story from a year ago.

When Elener and Joe Kralik brought their grandmother from Ukraine to live with them in 1946, she buried a chicken wishbone under the carpet of the small farmhouse on County Road 32 in Baldwin County. Little did she know that the farm would one day become an upscale vineyard and winery. Dawn Fletcher tells me that when she was renovating the house to be fashioned into an office, she found a pearl earring and a wishbone as she pulled up the flooring.

Summer fishing trips are a favorite pastime for locals and visitors to the Scenic 98 Coastal area. The Orange Beach Billfish Classic kicks off the Gulf Coast Tournament Fishing season every year in May, and the Zeke’s Landing Charter Boat Billfish Tournament closes the season in early September. 

Almost 2000 years ago, the first frozen milk and cream served with honey and flavored with fruits were brought to the Roman Emperor Nero. Thus, the summer edible delight, ice cream, was popularized and perfected. In the Scenic 98 Coastal communities, the delectable ice cream of choice is Cammie’s Old Dutch Ice Cream.

Chloe Salinas took some painting classes a few years back, but the lessons didn’t really take. She loved the experience of being around so many creative people, though, and it pushed her into a new direction. For the last year and a half, she’s served as the executive director of the Foley Art Center, which serves as an inviting and accessible gallery for local artists and artisans.