During the glory days (1970’s) of “The Bay” at Ft. Pickens it wasn’t unusual to be in the lineup and see huge ships like this pass by – in toward NAS, or out to the gulf. There were large commercial ships as well, that would dock downtown at the Pensacola Port. One time, and only once, I was walking with Yancy III along the water toward the point where we spotted a large submarine not too far off the shore. We couldn’t believe it! That was super eerie, to me.
This photo, courtesy of Owen Terry, shows the USS Lexington passing by as surfers are waiting for a set at the Bay. The Lex was stationed here for almost 30 years, from 1962 till 1991. I suspect the fact that they dredged the pass regularly during those years had something to do with better Point waves back then.