Beneath Panama City Beach’s sugar-white dunes, silent concrete rings still stare out to sea—ghostly reminders of the nine tense months in 1942 when artillery crews watched for German U-boats instead of dolphins. Most vacationers walk right past these World War II bunkers without ever knowing they’re there… but not you.
Key Takeaways
– Two hidden World War II gun platforms sit under the dunes at St. Andrews State Park, just 4.8 miles from Panama City Beach RV Resort.
– Drive 10 minutes or bike 25 minutes, park in the Jetty Lot, then walk a 0.2-mile boardwalk to reach them.
– Spend about 1 hour exploring; early mornings mean cooler sand, fewer people, and better phone signal.
– Bring water, hats, reef-safe sunscreen, closed-toe shoes, a small flashlight, and an offline map or charged phone.
– Stay on marked paths, keep off fragile dunes, and avoid climbing the old concrete—rusted rebar can cut skin.
– Leave every bolt and rusty piece where you find it so others can enjoy the history too.
– Make it a learning game: count anchor bolts, record GPS spots, and match old wartime photos to today’s view.
– Add stops like the Tyndall Field aircraft park or Liberty Ship markers to deepen the World War II story.
– Check park and weather alerts before you go; storms often bury or uncover parts of the bunkers.
These fast facts set the stage for a seamless outing, whether you’re wrangling toddlers, teens, or three generations of beach lovers. Skim them now, screenshot them for later, and you’ll be halfway to planning a morning that blends history, exercise, and Gulf-view selfies in one tidy package.
Even seasoned travelers overlook how easy it is to combine bunkers, boardwalks, and poolside naps—all before lunch. Keep the list handy, and every sand-dusted detail that follows will plug effortlessly into your perfect Panama City itinerary.
Ready to swap crowded souvenir shops for a real-life treasure hunt the kids will brag about, the grandkids will ponder, and your Instagram feed will thank you for? Lace up, grab a flashlight, and keep reading—because in the next few minutes you’ll learn exactly where to find the hidden gun platforms, the safest paths to reach them from the RV Resort, and the stories etched into every weathered bolt. The dunes are shifting; history is resurfacing. Let’s uncover it together.
Plan Your Half-Day Bunker Quest
St. Andrews State Park sits a breezy 4.8 miles from Panama City Beach RV Resort, which means you can finish breakfast at your rig and still watch sunrise gild the concrete gun rings. Even if you haul beach gear, a ten-minute drive or a twenty-five-minute bike ride delivers the whole family to the Jetty Lot, the closest parking to the platforms. Parents appreciate that the first stretch travels over a boardwalk rated stroller-friendly, while active visitors can tack on a scenic pedal down Thomas Drive—the same wartime road once used by supply trucks.
Most groups spend 60–90 minutes exploring the bunkers, then add an extra half hour if a picnic or GoPro setup is on the agenda. Early morning offers cooler sand, fewer crowds, and stronger Verizon bars for anyone livestreaming, though cell coverage fades behind taller dunes. Pack hats, reef-safe sunscreen, and water; shade is scarce until the sea breeze kicks up after 10 a.m. A compact checklist makes prep simple: closed-toe shoes, mini-flashlight, offline maps, and a fully charged phone so the kids can track coordinates even if reception drops.
From Sugar Sand to Coastal Stronghold: A 1942 Snapshot
When German submarines torpedoed 24 Gulf ships in 1942, the U.S. Army responded by designating this shoreline the St. Andrews Sound Military Reservation. Engineers poured two 155 mm “Panama mounts” deep in the dunes, then camouflaged the circular slabs with sea oats and netting. Today those same rings peek through drifts, unchanged except for wind-etched grooves and the occasional gull footprint captured in drying cement. Archival photos from December 1983 confirm their resilience, allowing us to time-travel through the lens of FloridaMemory’s gun-platform images.
The bunkers never fired a hostile shot, yet they formed a key link in a broader coastal defense story. Liberty Ships rolled off the nearby J. A. Jones Shipyard—108 of them between 1943 and 1945—while trainee gunners at Tyndall Field scanned the same horizon with binoculars and Browning .50-cals. Post-war boom pushed memories beneath shifting sand until storms such as Hurricane Michael peeled dunes back, exposing mounts locals hadn’t seen in decades; WideOpenSpaces reveal reminded us that nature still turns the pages of this living textbook. Additional context from PCB history sources shows how the city grew around these silent sentinels, weaving wartime relics into today’s vacation landscape.
Step-by-Step Directions to the Hidden Gun Platforms
Start by entering St. Andrews State Park (vehicle fee $8, or 50 percent off with a Florida veteran pass) and follow signs toward the Jetty Lot. Flush restrooms, covered picnic tables, and soda machines cluster here, making it the launch pad for families, photographers, and veterans seeking a seated vantage. From the lot, a 0.2-mile boardwalk threads through saw palmetto until the Gulf opens wide; glance right and you’ll spot the bunker’s concrete halo tucked beneath sea-oat fronds.
For the sharp-eyed explorer, anchor bolts poke through the rim like metal stubble—perfect markers for a kid-friendly counting game. After heavy rain, fresh sloughs sometimes reveal new edges; resist the urge to blaze shortcuts, because dune roots act as the coastline’s natural rebar. Veterans wanting a contemplative pause will find a wooden bench 50 yards west along the same boardwalk, offering a flat, shaded perch and a direct line of sight to the platform without trekking into deeper sand.
Safety First, Footprints Last
Concrete that baked under Florida sun for eighty years can be surprisingly slick once dusted with powdery sand. Closed-toe shoes with good tread prevent a vacation-ruining slip, and a pocket flashlight helps you probe recesses for debris before stepping. Keep at least an arm’s length from any crumbling rim; rusted rebar lurks at the surface and can snag a sleeve or worse, a shin.
Leave-no-trace rules protect both history and habitat. Stick to existing paths so sea-oat roots stay intact, and swap the urge to climb for a creative low-angle photo—the weight of repeated visitors hastens cracks that storms will widen. Pack out every crumb, choose reef-safe sunscreen to keep runoff gentle on seagrass beds, and resist pocketing rusted fragments; each artifact left in place stitches another piece into the generational narrative future explorers will uncover.
Pick the Adventure Mode That Fits Your Crew
Families chasing a screen-free morning can roll out at 8 a.m., reach the bunkers by 8:30, and launch a scavenger hunt that asks kids to spot blast rings, hex-head bolts, or faded olive-drab paint. By 10 a.m., swing through the ranger station to stamp a Junior Ranger booklet and browse wartime photos, then snag fresh shrimp at St. Andrews Marina for a poolside lunch back at the resort. The whole loop wraps by early afternoon, leaving nap time intact.
Retired service members or snowbirds may prefer a deeper dive: after the bunker tour, head 15 minutes north to the Panama City Publishing Museum for Liberty Ship imagery, then enjoy chow at Captain’s Table, where weekday veteran discounts apply. Weekend warriors short on daylight can edit the script—arrive pre-sunrise, mount a GoPro on the western rim for first-light flares, snag that perfect #PCBunkers shot, and be back on the road before beach traffic thickens. Whether you’re a history buff or a casual beachgoer, tailoring the timeline keeps energy high and boredom low.
Turn the Hunt Into a Living Classroom
Download a free compass or GPS-tracking app before you leave the resort, then challenge the crew to log the exact coordinates of the gun mounts. When you overlay a 1944 aerial map on a present-day satellite view, the experience shifts from simple sightseeing to detective work, letting kids match a wartime world to the modern skyline. Add binoculars for a round of “bunker bingo,” spotting pelicans skimming waves one minute and rusted anchor bolts the next.
Back at camp, encourage everyone to journal or sketch what they saw—no tablets required. Studies show that hand-drawn memories reinforce learning, and you’ll leave with personalized souvenirs rather than plastic trinkets. For budding storytellers, the resort’s fiber Wi-Fi makes uploading footage painless once the day’s sand shakes free from shoes and camera lenses alike.
Connect the Dots Along Bay County’s WWII Trail
The dunes are only the prologue to a county-wide tale. Fifteen minutes inland lies the aircraft park outside Tyndall’s main gate, where WWII-era trainer planes rest beneath longleaf pines. No base pass is needed, and flat concrete paths make the stop wheelchair-friendly. Late-day light hits polished aluminum just right for reflective photos—literally and figuratively.
From there, trace Beach Drive as interpretive markers outline where yard workers lived while Liberty Ships took shape. Pair the stroll with sunset over St. Andrews Bay, then cap the evening at Oaks by the Bay Park, whose new signage knits shipbuilding, coastal defense, and bunker heritage into a single, easy-to-grasp loop. Curious mariners can even ask charter captains to point out offshore anti-submarine block remnants at low tide, bringing the day full circle from shore to sea.
Know Before You Go
Accessibility ranks high for every traveler type. The Jetty Boardwalk meets ADA standards, and the gun platform’s concrete surface sits level enough for manual wheelchairs with a helper, though soft sand beyond it can prove challenging. Restrooms with flush toilets operate year-round, while a seasonal snack bar opens most spring and summer weekends.
Guided experiences are available if you crave expert narration; park rangers host “Battles on the Beach” walks several times a year, and luxury RV guests can arrange a private historian-led tour with two weeks’ notice. No public Wi-Fi exists within the dunes, but the resort’s fiber connection awaits once you’re back, ready to handle high-resolution uploads. Finally, remember that Gulf weather rewrites the sand every hurricane season, so check park alerts before arriving and expect each visit to tell a slightly different chapter.
Those quiet gun rings will keep watch whether you visit or not—but the stories hit different when you can roll out of bed, sip coffee under swaying palms, and be standing inside a WWII bunker before the rest of the beach wakes up. Make Panama City Beach RV Resort your basecamp: full hookups, pet-friendly sites, a heated pool for post-exploration soaks, and neighbors who love a good campfire history chat as much as you do. Ready to swap ordinary beach days for living textbooks and sunset swims? Check our availability and reserve your spot today. The bunkers are waiting, the coastline is calling, and your front-row seat to Emerald Coast history starts the moment you pull into the resort. Book now and let the adventure begin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can we really turn the bunker hunt into a half-day adventure that still leaves pool or beach time?
A: Yes—most guests spend about 60–90 minutes at the gun platforms, add 30 minutes for a boardwalk stroll or picnic, and are back at the resort in under three hours, which fits neatly between breakfast and early-afternoon relaxation.
Q: Is the route stroller, wheelchair, or cane friendly for multigenerational groups?
A: The Jetty Boardwalk meets ADA standards and stays flat all the way to a clear bunker viewpoint; the final 40 feet of sand is firm but may require a push for wheelchairs or a quick handoff if you’re using a stroller with small wheels.
Q: Where do we park and are restrooms close by?
A: Follow park signs to the Jetty Lot, pay the entrance fee at the gate, and you’ll find flush restrooms, covered picnic tables, and drink machines less than a one-minute walk from the trailhead.
Q: How far is the site from Panama City Beach RV Resort and can we bike, golf-cart, or shuttle there?
A: The park entrance sits 4.8 miles away, making it a ten-minute drive, a twenty-five-minute bike ride, or a short resort-arranged shuttle or golf-cart transfer for guests who book through the front desk at least a day in advance.
Q: What safety steps should we take with kids exploring the concrete rings?
A: Closed-toe shoes, a pocket flashlight, and a “no climbing on crumbling edges” rule keep little explorers safe from slick sand, exposed rebar, and hidden debris while preserving the fragile structure.
Q: What role did these bunkers play in coastal defense during World War II?
A: Installed in 1942 as part of the St. Andrews Sound Military Reservation, the circular “Panama mounts” held 155 mm guns that guarded Liberty Ship lanes from German U-boats, though they never had to fire in combat.
Q: Are there interpretive signs or ranger-led tours that explain the history in more depth?
A: Seasonal ranger walks titled “Battles on the Beach” leave from the visitor center, and simple plaques at the platforms outline dates, unit names, and weapon specs; printed brochures are also available for self-guided visits.
Q: Is there seating or shade for visitors who need frequent breaks?
A: A wooden bench sits about 50 yards west of the main viewing spot under a scrim of palmettos, offering both shade and a level surface for resting while still keeping the bunkers in sight.
Q: Do veterans or seniors receive any discounts on park entry or nearby museums?
A: Florida residents with a veteran designation get 50 percent off the $8 vehicle fee, and the Panama City Publishing Museum extends a standing military and senior discount on admission and gift-shop items.
Q: What are the exact GPS coordinates or easiest digital way to locate the mounts?
A: Plug 30.1287° N, 85.7421° W into Google Maps or your favorite hiking app and select “Jetty Boardwalk — WWII Gun Platforms” for turn-by-turn navigation right to the concrete ring’s edge.
Q: May I climb inside the bunkers or stage photos without breaking rules?
A: Photography is encouraged, but climbing, chalking, or removing artifacts is prohibited; stick to the floor of the ring, avoid the eroding rim, and you’ll stay both legal and safe.
Q: What’s the best time of day and angle for that perfect Instagram or GoPro shot?
A: Arrive 20 minutes before sunrise, position yourself on the eastern lip of the ring, and let the first Gulf light back-glow the circular walls for a natural halo effect that hashtags well under #PCBunkers.
Q: Will my cell phone have enough signal to livestream or do I need to record offline?
A: Verizon and AT&T usually deliver two to three bars on the boardwalk but drop to one bar behind higher dunes, so plan to record in 4K and upload later using the resort’s fiber Wi-Fi if you need a flawless stream.
Q: Are there other hidden coastal history spots nearby to stack in the same morning?
A: Yes—within 15 minutes you can reach Tyndall Air Park’s WWII trainer planes or the shipyard markers along Beach Drive, creating a tidy three-stop history loop without crossing the Hathaway Bridge.
Q: I’m a local teacher; are there volunteer or preservation groups I can join?
A: The Friends of St. Andrews State Park host quarterly dune clean-ups and welcome residents who want to help stabilize sand or document new bunker exposures for the park archive.
Q: Where can locals or day-trippers park legally if the Jetty Lot is full?
A: Overflow parking is available at the Boat Ramp Lot just inside the park gate, and a free tram circles every 15 minutes, dropping passengers at the boardwalk entrance without needing a resort pass.
Q: Can the resort concierge arrange a private historian-led tour for our RV club?
A: Absolutely—give the front desk a two-week heads-up and they’ll coordinate with certified battlefield guides who meet you at the Jetty Lot, handle all narration, and even provide folding stools for comfort.
Q: What nearby dining pairs well with a history-filled afternoon?
A: Captain’s Table on the marina serves Gulf shrimp and displays Liberty Ship photos on the walls, while Pirates Cove offers waterfront seating and a 10 percent discount when you show your park receipt.
Q: Are drones or metal detectors allowed around the bunkers?
A: To protect wildlife and cultural resources, the park bans metal detecting year-round and only allows drones with a pre-approved permit from the ranger office, so plan ground-based photography unless you secure written permission in advance.