Blue Angels/Pensacola, Florida

Knowing our love for aircraft and lighthouses, Pensacola seemed like the next logical step on our Gulf travels. 🧐

Our first adventure was to see the Blue Angels practice at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola. Currently they practice on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at NAS. I highly suggest you get to the security gate early, because the line at the gate is no joke. You are entering a military base and your ID will be checked. A friend of ours gave us some wonderful advice. Here is his website to pass on the helpful information if you plan on attending: https://www.facebook.com/BlueAngelsPracticeInfo Thank you so much Brian Margavich for the tips and amazing info! 😊

Once we were inside the gate, we continued on to the parking area next to the National Naval Aviation Museum. We found some seats in the bleachers and sat back to enjoy the show. 🛩️

Watching the Blue Angels live is an experience like no other. There were multiple times that I found myself holding my breath watching their maneuvers. It was absolutely incredible!!! 🤩

Blue Angels “Mirror Image”

Blue Angels Stunts:

Blue Angels Stunts Part 2:

Another tidbit of info, there is a gift shop on site where the Blue Angels did their show. You can also purchase the same merchandise in the museum gift shop. We went to both to find our treasures. Things can be a bit pricey, but since the admission to the show and museum is completely free, we felt justified paying the prices. I found an amazing Blue Angels T-shirt, Juliana got a camo teddy bear with a Blue Angels shirt on it, and Luke needed some really cool airplane pens. ✈️

As soon as we walked into the National Naval Aviation Museum, we were amazed! There are all types of aircraft displayed for everyone to see. It’s one of the largest museums in the world for aviation and aircraft! Unlike some places, you can walk up to most of them and look around. There were also many veterans who were happy to tell us about their experiences and the aircraft they flew or worked on. We appreciate all of them and are so grateful for their service! ❤️🤍💙

National Naval Aiviation Museum:

If you decide to go to the NNAM, I would highly suggest you make a visit to Hangar Bay 1 which is right next to it. We thought is was amazing! They have a Tomcat, Hawkeye, Intruder, and so many more! It was so cool! We also had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Patrick Cobb (my apologies that I don’t recall his title and rank) who was an electrician and served during Vietnam. He was so nice and showed us the wiring in the wings. Here he is with the A-6 Intruder he worked on followed by more aircraft we enjoyed seeing.

Here’s some info from the NNAM website about the VH-3A Sea King: “Delivered to the fleet in 1962, the VH-3A on display served in the Executive Flight Detachment of Marine Helicopter Squadron (HMX) 1 during the presidencies of Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford. No single helicopter is called “Marine One,” with any one of HMX-1’s aircraft assuming that name when the President is on board. The white top portion of the familiar paint scheme on board “Marine One” originally appeared in an effort to make the aircraft cooler for its passengers prior to the availability of air-conditioned compartments.” 🤯

Guess what! There’s also a lighthouse a short drive from the museum that is still on the military grounds. I was so excited to get there! 😁

The Pensacola Lighthouse was an amazing place! There was a small fee to be able to go into the lighthouse and museum. It was well worth it! They even have a really nice gift shop! 🎁

The beautiful Pensacola Lighthouse in Pensacola, Florida has a unique and fascinating history! The original 40 ft. tower was completed and lit in 1824. Due to trees near the lighthouse and also on Santa Rosa Island, the light was difficult for ships to see, so a new light was requested. The new 150 ft. tall brick tower was finished in 1859 and housed a first order Fresnel lens. In 1861 during the Civil War, the Confederates seized the tower. They took the first order Fresnel lens with them when they left the area in 1862. The Union then gained control and installed a fourth order lens to bring the lighthouse back into service in December 1862. Thankfully in 1869 the original first order lens was recovered and put back in the tower where it belonged. 😉

That’s amazing as it is, but wait! There’s more! In 1874 and in 1875 the lighthouse was struck by lightning! ⚡Then in 1886 there was an earthquake that lasted for over three minutes! Needless to say, the combination of the war and natural events caused damage to the tower. The cracks have since been repaired and the lighthouse was eventually automated in 1965. This iconic lighthouse is open to the public and you can climb the 177 steps to the top. There is also a wonderful museum you can tour. Fun Fact: The original lighthouse was completely white, but the upper two-thirds were painted black to be used as a daymark for navigators. 🖤

Here are some pics of the grounds and museum:

Seriously, this was absolutely one of our best days ever! After a quiet dinner, we walked to a beach area close to our hotel. We had a great time soaking up the last of the sun’s rays and watching the beautiful sunset over the gulf. 🌅

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Thanks so much and stay tuned for more Traveling with the Trapps!

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