The Navarre Beach Pier Is Open Again. Bring Your Own Ice.

On Friday, October 9, Hurricane Isaias reached the Navarre Beach Fishing Pier before it touched anything else in Santa Rosa County. The pier runs a mile out into the Gulf, and Navarre Press reported that winds over 100 mph and storm surge damaged it. Drone footage by Jason Stanley showed sections of the pier missing.

Eleven days after the storm, the gates opened again. Santa Rosa County's Hurricane Isaias Update #17 set the hours at 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily starting Tuesday, October 20. The notice asked anglers to bring their own ice because none would be sold "until further notice," and said bait should be restocked by Thursday, October 22.

That reopening shows how Navarre is coming back this fall. The pier is open with no ice for sale. A gala became a breakfast. Saturday markets need little more than a parking lot. The bigger repairs will take longer, and the calendar is being rebuilt around what works now.

The pier came back before its supplies did

Navarre's pier reopened before its bait and ice supply did. The county's October 18 notice told anglers to pack a cooler with ice and said bait would follow a couple of days later. Before you head out, check whether ice is back on sale. As of the most recent county notices, it had not been announced.

The pier sits at 8579 Gulf Blvd. on Navarre Beach. Expect the walk out to look different from your last trip in September. The drone footage from October 9 is still the clearest public picture of the damage, and the county's reopening notice doesn't say how far out you can go. It's smart to plan on barricades and to check with the pier office before you carry gear to the end.

On the same beach, a hotel got back to business even sooner. Navarre Press reported that SpringHill Suites Navarre Oceanfront closed after the storm. Repairs focused mostly on part of the roof and on Beach House Social, the restaurant attached to the hotel. On Tuesday, October 13, the hotel announced it was open again, and the paper's photo caption says both the hotel and Beach House Social are back.

A gala that turned into a breakfast

The Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce had planned a formal evening gala for its Annual SAIL Awards on Saturday, November 14. After Isaias, the Chamber dropped the gala and scheduled a breakfast on Friday, November 20, from 7 to 9 a.m. The event page explains the change in plain terms:

"In the days following Hurricane Isaias, many of our Chamber Members and community partners are still cleaning up homes and businesses, working with insurance companies, feeding employees and neighbors, and trying to prepare for what is normally one of the busiest times of the year."

The theme is still "Destination Navarre: Where Community & Business Meet in Paradise," and the awards still recognize businesses, organizations and people who went above and beyond this year. A two-hour weekday breakfast asks far less of business owners than a Saturday night out, and it moves the date six days later. The Chamber map puts the event at 6464 Gulf Breeze Pkwy.

Where things stand on the calendar

Here's the November schedule as currently posted, along with the one recent event that has already been postponed. Dates can shift during recovery, so confirm with each organizer before you go.

Nearly everything still scheduled is a morning event that needs little more than open ground, a few tables and volunteers. The first Saturday of the month has two markets running at the same hours. The Hwy 87 Market sets up at Sand Dollar Plaza. The Pik-itz Open Air Market lists local arts, crafts, baked goods, dairy and honey.

The next Saturday starts early in two places. At the Holley Navarre Senior Association, the monthly pancake breakfast is open to nonmembers, and the proceeds support the center. On the beach, lines drop at 6:30 a.m. at Blue Heron Pavilion for Cast for a Cause. The family-friendly surf fishing tournament is hosted by Together We Thrive. It honors Derrick Stone's legacy and raises support for child safety, safe sleep, injury prevention and caregiver education. Awards are at 1:30 p.m. Surf fishing works from the sand, so it doesn't depend on the pier.

The Windjammers-on-the-Pier Makers Market pop-up set for October 17 was postponed while Windjammers and the pier team worked on repairs and cleanup. No new date has been posted for that market's November run, so check with Windjammers before you plan a third-Saturday evening on the pier.

The pile at the curb will be there a while

The longest-running part of the recovery sits at the end of the driveway. Countywide curbside collection began Wednesday, October 14, on public, county-maintained roads. In Update #19, posted October 22, the county said a typical storm takes about three passes to clear the roadways. It also said this storm left far more debris than usual, so crews will make as many passes as it takes.

The numbers explain why. On October 18 the county estimated 1.5 million cubic yards of debris countywide. By October 22 the estimate had grown to 1.8 million, with removal expected to cost about $23 million. As of October 22, crews had collected more than 350,000 cubic yards of vegetative debris, against a total estimate of 1.8 million. The county has promised plenty of advance notice before the final pass, so there's no need to rush everything to the curb in a single weekend.

Until your street gets its next pass, the county's posted guidelines boil down to these:

• Separate by type. Pile debris along the public right-of-way, either loose or in paper bags, and keep household garbage out of the piles.
• Drop off yard debris close to home. Lenny James Tolbert Memorial Park, better known as Holley Ball Park, at 3124 Bob Tolbert Road takes vegetative debris free from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily until further notice. Bring proof of residency. The site doesn't accept commercial loads, bagged material, household garbage, construction debris or appliances.
• Or drive to Milton. The Central Landfill at 6337 Da Lisa Road takes vegetative debris at no cost Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Call with questions. The county's Debris Removal Information Line opened October 23 at 833-495-3919 and is staffed 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day.

The county keeps its full debris guidance on the Hurricane Isaias Debris Information page.

Navarre Park is open. Some of your usual spots are not.

As of Update #19 on October 22, every county park is open except those on a short closed list and any areas marked for caution. The county also asked visitors to watch for leftover debris even in open parks. Navarre Park isn't on that list.

Two closures sit to the west. Tiger Point Park and the Oriole Beach boat ramp were both closed as of October 22. If you usually launch at Oriole Beach or have a weekend game at Tiger Point, check the county's next update before you load up. The rest of the closed list is Bagdad Recreational Park, Bal Alex boat ramp, Benny Russell Park, East Milton Park, Fidelis Park, McCallister Park, Nantahala Beach Road boat ramp, Optimist Park and Sandpiper Village Park.

What the first week of November looks like

For the first weekend of November, start with the Hwy 87 Market and Pik-itz on Saturday morning, November 7. Bring a full cooler to the pier and confirm Windjammers' plans before counting on a third-Saturday market. If the Blue Angels stay on the Navy's posted schedule, the Homecoming Air Show is that same weekend, November 6–7, at NAS Pensacola.

William Maybin will keep following Navarre's recovery, from the pier gate to the next debris pass. If you have a question about what's open near you this fall, reach out anytime. And whenever you're curious about your own place, the instant home valuation is on the website.