How To Listen:

Listen online using the player at the upper right hand corner of this page (broadband) or click for the dial-up version.

Listen on your phone: iPhone, Blackberry, Cell Phone Listen Link You may also right-click to download the podcast: 084_Destin_Florida_Podcast.mp3 and put it on your portable media player or burn it to a CD and listen in the car!

iTunes listeners subscribe through our iTunes Destin Florida Podcast page.

Some Of The News Covered:

Oil is getting closer! Pensacola is the first of Florida's beaches to see signs of oil. Some tar balls and oil paddies have washed up on the beach. Alabama beaches are also seeing signs of the oil spill. No signs of oil on the beaches of Destin. Visitors are urged to view beach cams like www.billabongdestin.com to get an accurate beach report. The media has made false reports, which have caused reservation cancellations.

Toll is going up for the Mid-Bay Bridge. The toll was $2.50 to cross the Mid-Bay Bridge. The toll has increased by 50 cents to $3.00. To avoid paying the toll drivers can take the 331 Bridge or drive through Fort Walton Beach to get to Destin.

Margaritaville is coming to Pensacola Beach! Margaritaville is currently open in Panama City Beach. A new location will open on Pensacola Beach late May or early June. The new location is the first Margaritaville Beach Hotel. The hotel will have 162 rooms and be on the waterfront. The new hotel will take the location of where the Holiday Inn was once located. The Holiday Inn was built in 1972 and was destroyed by Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

Fishing is still ok in Destin. Boats are still leaving the Destin Harbor to do fishing trips. The no fishing zone continues to grow as the threat of oil increases. The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration has declared no fishing from Louisiana to Pensacola Bay. Many boats will resort to helping with the oil spill if fishing is shut down in Destin.

Oil Spill on Florida Beaches? We searched and found... Dolphins!

Links From This Episode:

Thanks to our sponsors for helping make this show possible. Please visit them at:

• Hammock Bay in Freeport, Florida
• Uptown Station in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida

Music selection for this episode is Monuments of Fort Walton Beach with their song Unleash the Fury

• Monuments Myspace Page

Got a show comment or suggestion? Or, are you a local band/artist who would like us to play your music? I love to hear from you and find out more that you would like to know about Destin and the Emerald Coast!

Email me at destinfloridapodcast@yahoo.com

How To Listen:

Listen online using the player at the upper right hand corner of this page (broadband) or click for the dial-up version.

Listen on your phone: iPhone, Blackberry, Cell Phone Listen Link

You may also right-click to download the podcast: 083_Destin_Florida_Podcast.mp3 and put it on your portable media player or burn it to a CD and listen in the car!

iTunes listeners subscribe through our iTunes Destin Florida Podcast page.

Some Of The News Covered:

Oil has not reached the Emerald Coast! There have been many false reports of tar balls and oil washing ashore in Miramar Beach and Seaside. There is no oil on the Emerald Coast. Many visitors have cancelled reservations due to the false reports being covered by the media. Where the oil is going no one really knows. Until it reaches our beaches visitors are encouraged to keep their reservations.

Maguire's is recognized for its unique menu! Maguire's Irish Pub is a favorite to locals and visitors as well. The restaurant offers some unique burgers. Along with the great food, Maguire's produces some tasty beers. Maguire's was featured on the television show "Outrageous Foods" on the Food Network. Aaron McCargo of "Big Daddy's House" brought camera crews to display some of Maguire's unique menu.

Fort Walton Beach ranked number one! Restaurant and Business Magazine ranked Fort Walton Beach number one for best place to open a restaurant. Panama City ranked 11th. Like home loans, business loans are just as difficult to obtain. With the market down, there are many places available for new restaurants to open.

Reality TV may come to South Walton! Five South Walton Beach locals are trying to put together a reality show called "The Beach Wives". The show would be based on five women and their daily lives on the Emerald Coast. The stars of the show would include an artist, a chef, a realtor, a singer and a flight attendant. The show would be a great opportunity for the Emerald Coast lifestyle to be displayed.

Trolley coming to 30-A! In a month, 30-A may see a trolley system. Sunshine Transportation will start its first trolley. The trolley will be bright with color, have air conditioning, bike and surfboard racks, flat screens and music. The trolley will be a great solution to reduce traffic and allow beach goers to travel safely.

Oil on the beach, We searched, here's what we found...

Links From This Episode:

Thanks to our sponsors for helping make this show possible. Please visit them at:

• Hammock Bay in Freeport, Florida
• Uptown Station in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida

Music selection for this episode is The Steenos of Santa Rosa Beach with their song I've Been Missing You

• The Steenos Myspace Page
• www.TheSteenos.com

Got a show comment or suggestion? Or, are you a local band/artist who would like us to play your music?

I love to hear from you and find out more that you would like to know about Destin and the Emerald Coast!

Email me at destinfloridapodcast@yahoo.com

We understand that everyone is concerned over the ongoing Gulf oil spill situation. As of this week the oil spill is still in the Gulf but no one's really sure what the future will hold. So far all the beaches are open and fishing and boating are only mildly affected.

We've assembled some local news stories to help you keep up informed on the ongoing situation.

Live Destin Area Webcams - See The Beach Condition For Yourself

• Regency Towers Beachcam

• Billabong Destin Surf Report

• Breakers Condos Beach Cam

• Navarre Beach Webcam

• InnerLight Beach Cams

Frequently Updated Oil Spill Sites - Check These Links For The Latest News

• Florida Department of Environmental Protection Latest News

• SERT GATOR Gulf Interactive Map

• Deepwater Horizon Official Site

• Bay County Public Information Website

• NOAA Deepwater Horizon Response Page

• NOAA's Deepwater Horizon Trajectory Maps

• Deepwater Horizon Wikipedia Page

• Deepwater Horizon Response Facebook Page

• NWFL Panhandle Volunteer Beach Rescue Group Facebook Page

• Crown Weather Oil Spill Page

Updated Stories On Oil Spill Affecting Emerald Coast (Newest links on top)

• Oil spill: Battle rages on surface of Gulf (August 5)

• Oil spill: Ala. waiting to reopen fishing area (August 5)

• Oil spill: BP funds go to Pensacola Beach fun (August 5)

• BP finishes 'static kill' by pumping cement down well (August 5)

• Cleanup operations downsized as bags of tar balls recovered from Bay (August 5)

• Fishermen vent about VOO program at standing room only meeting at Destin City Hall (August 5)

• EPA says Gulf dispersants not more toxic than oil (August 2)

• BP: Upcoming kill attempt might do the trick alone (August 2)

• Is mullet safe to eat after the oil spill? (August 2)

• Escambia fishing waters reopened Saturday (August 2)

• Florida beaches past the worst of the oil (August 2)

• BP refuses business owner's May claim (August 2)

• BP boss says it's time to scale back cleanup (August 2)

• Ebb tide at Crab Island: Regulars say oil spill has scared many away (August 2)

• Destin captains turn to task force to save season (August 2)

• NOAA: Surface oil no longer a threat to Fla. (August 2)

• Johns Hopkins to study how spill affects aquatic life (August 2)

• Are the Oil Spill Public Health Notices Hurting the Economy? (August 2)

• Water quality report for local beaches (July 29)

• For some, oil spill hard to cope (July 29)

• Pensacola Beach beautiful today (July 29)

• Oil spill: BP moves to oust CEO Hayward (July 29)

• Oil spill: Response efforts hit downturn (July 29)

• Blowout capped: Where's the oil? (July 29)

• BP to reimburse Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge (July 29)

• State oil spill task force asks BP for 'our seafood is safe' marketing money (July 29)

• Californians find the real oil story in Destin (July 29)

• Oil spill: Ships back at drill site after storm peters out (July 26)

• Pensacola camps help children cope with oil spill (July 26)

• Surf store co-owner's optimistic on spill (July 26)

• Downtown FWB businesses struggling amid fallout from oil spill (July 26)

• With cap in place, Destin tourism industry waiting for a pick-me-up (July 26)

• BP scaling back it's response in Bay County (July 26)