Is taking the Dauphin Island Ferry to Fort Morgan worth it?

It's a fun change of pace if you don't have a tight agenda to keep.

quote:

---

if you don't have a tight agenda

---

I don't operate any other way. I'm for getting places as quickly as possible

quote:

---

The timing lines up where we would likely get there to the ferry terminal maybe 20 minutes before departure.

---

We tried to take it last time we stayed in Fort Morgan. The ferry was not on time.

I've taken it several times before. You'll see some rigs, seagulls, and dolphins.
On Dauphin Island, the aquarium is a good stop if you have kids with you.

If you miss it or it shuts down, you have gone way out of your way.

Friend,

When gephyrophobia got the best of me we avoided the Mobile causeway by taking that ferry. If timed right, taking the ferry and staying along the beach into east of Destin added one hour to the trip. Of course, missing the ferry or hitting traffic in Gulf Shores could add another hour.

But there were several benefits. First, it meant we avoided the awful causeway and tunnel in one of the worst cities in America with some of the worst drivers in the world. Two, it broke up the trip nicely into nearly two equal halves (usually 2.5 hours to the ferry and 3 hours from Fort Morgan to east of Destin). Three, it cut a good hour from riding along the monotonous concrete I-10. Fourth, we would stop in Bayou La Batre along the way and load up on jumbo lump straight from Junior Barbour when he sold from his plant. I remember when jumbo lump was $10/pound. Fifth, we would also get to stop at Lighthouse Bakery in Dauphin Island.

In short, circumventing America’s worst city and drivers by taking a ferry is an excellent idea.

Yours,
TulaneLSU

Can be a long wait on a holiday weekend.

quote:

---

Can be a long wait on a holiday weekend.

---

This and the heat would be the primary negatives this weekend. Whether it is worth it from a time saving perspective depends on where you are going. As mentioned above, it won’t save you time headed to FL but it does add something different to the trip, particularly for kids.

The island is pretty average - it is hot and a long walk to the beach. The fort is neat.

The whole experience is worth it - fun boat ride, beach day, and back. We used to go every summer.

We took some boys from our scout troop there last summer to camp at Fort Morgan, and decided to try the ferry the morning we were leaving to head back north. It was a neat little trip before the long drive home. Someone said the road from Fort Morgan back to Gulf Shores was over 20 miles, and then we'd be dealing with Sunday morning beach traffic with everyone leaving their condo and beach house rentals. Shooting over to Mobile was much better.

We've used it a couple times. The wife checks the Mobile Bay Ferry facebook page which they update daily with the times and how many boats are running.