Have you ever been blessed to see some very dark and murky water near the Gulf up and down County Highway 30A on the Emerald Coast in Florida? Did you see it and think it was dirty? Think you should walk on by and avoid stepping into it?

On the contrary! Make sure to stop and take in this amazing experience- these are RARE Coastal Dune Lakes!!  Only found in a few places in the world including New Zealand, Australia, Madagascar and…SOUTH WALTON FLORIDA! WOW!!

There are 15 named coastal dune lakes up and down 30A. What a beautiful and amazing bonus to a beach trip.  Crabs, fish and herons can be found in this dark water that resembles the color of sweet tea. It is called brackish from rainfall that washes the sediment from the pine trees into the lakes where freshwater mixes with saltwater.  After a big rain, there is often an outflow of the lakes directly into the Gulf. What a SIGHT! God’s creative best right before your eyes! So enjoy the one of a kind experience and let your little ones have supervised play along the gulf side shore of the lakes. The water is calm, warm and usually shallow. The big “kids” will enjoy paddle boarding or kayaking in the less rough water.  I promise… You will not be disappointed!