St. Augustine has interactive history. Go ahead and drink the water! Hope springs eternal and this is after all the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park in St. Augustine. I’m sipping water from a spring found by Spanish explorer Ponce de…
Alafia River State Park has Epic Bike Trails
Epic.Now there is a word you do not hear very often.But you hear it often at Alafia River State Park, a reclaimed phosphate mine with some of the most challenging elevation changes in the state of Florida. The park is…
St. Pete Pier is an Awesome New Experience
The St. Pete Pier is all new and absolutely amazing. Twenty-six acres in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, called the Pier District, transformed seamlessly into A park experience, A playground experience, A garden experience, A dining experience, A beach experience, A…
Sculptures & Gardens Make a Satisfying Walk
by Lucy Tobias, copyright©2020 Sculptures and Gardens – an unusual combination. I inhaled deeply and got ready to ask this question: “What do you want garden visitors to take away with them?” My pen was poised and my reporter…
Are You A Real Floridian?
Are you a Real Floridian? Only one way to know – look at this checklist and see if you’ve notched these five adventures. Not done some of them yet? Then get started and be on your way to earning your…
Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory Beckons
I’m just inside the door at the Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory at 1316 Duval Street, Key West, my feet rooted to walkway, looking around at astounding beauty – plants, trays of cut up fruit for butterflies, birds singing,…
DeLand Delivers Good Vibrations
Pop quiz: Name the first municipality in the state of Florida to become a Monarch City USA. Tick tock. Tick tock. Got it yet? Hint: Check out the photograph below. And the answer is DeLand, Florida. Yeah for DeLand! This…
Bradenton Brims with History, Fun and Food
Bradenton brims with history, fun, food – a family friendly place, easy to navigate and enjoy
Have Dog, Will Travel
Jennifer A. Huber is Saturday Morning Magazine’s guest blogger for December, 2018. Welcome, Jennifer! We love how adopting a dog lead you to new adventures. Both the story and photos are by Jennifer A. Huber/ SoloTravelGirl.com A traveling pet parent…
Explore the Wild Side of Englewood
Englewood, Florida has a wild side. I’m thinking parks and beaches and dining discoveries. What were you thinking? Moving right along – Swim, paddle, board a boat, walk, run, amble or meander, it all works in Englewood. Day of Discovery…
Walk or Paddle into Florida Mangroves
Mangroves. It is the Wild West out there in the roots. The blue crab raised both claws up in the air ready for a fight with me. I stood back at a respectful distance and zoomed in with my Nikon…
Visit Tallahassee Florida’s Capitol City
Visit Tallahassee, Florida where the past, present and future merge together. A little known slice of history: state officials took turns traveling between two cities, every other year, in the early 1820’s. Travel then was not fun or fast. In…
Labyrinths are Mindful Walks in Florida
Update 1/27/2019 Lucy Tobias’ book Circle the Center Labyrinths in Florida is now available. Get your copy at this link: https://gumroad.com/l/CircleTheCenter Labyrinths. What a nice surprise to find them in Florida. Egan’s Creek Park, for example, has been transformed with…
Florida State Parks are Calling Your Name
I LOVE FLORIDA STATE PARKS Yes, I do. Deeply. Passionately. Just thinking about taking my dogs for walks on dirt trails shaded by tall trees or getting my wading shoes wet climbing in and out kayaks for river trips makes…
A Taste of Cuba in Historic Ybor City
“History is a fragile thing,” says Max Herman, our guide with Ybor City Historic Walking Tours – a family-owned business started by his dad Lonnie Herman. Take Ybor City as an example – a place that came to be because…
Myakka River State Park has a Airboat Tour – all aboard!
Don’t let a little mystery keep you from going to Myakka River State Park and taking a Myakka Wildlife Airboat Tour aboard one of the world’s largest covered airboats. The mystery? Prior to the 1850’s English maps called the river…
Jack Kerouac Slept & Wrote in College Park, Florida
Jack Kerouac slept here. Believe it! For a short while, during a piece of 1957-58 Jack Kerouac and his mother lived in a two-room apartment at the back of a bungalow in College Park, a laidback neighborhood in northwest Orlando.…
Florida Bed & Breakfasts Pamper Guests
Florida Bed & Breakfasts – you never know where you will find one. Wandering around Florida’s Forgotten Coast I found myself in the fishing village of Apalachicola and discovered the Coombs Inn & Suites, three lovely historic Victorian Mansions. I…
Emerson Point Preserve & Waterfront Doings in Palmetto
All that walking at Emerson Point Preserve worked up an appetite for lunch and I found myself at the Riverside Café, watching cloud shows and devouring the Dieters Delight. “How do you like it?” the waitress asked. This is my…
Florida Lighthouses Welcome Visitors
Florida Lighthouses – When it comes to climbing St. Augustine Lighthouse, remember this number – 219. It will become important to you. Getting to the top of St. Augustine Lighthouse means going up, up, up, yes, you got it, 219…
Don Pedro Island, Sombrero Beach and more beaches calling your name
This is a test: Ever heard of Don Pedro Island, Klondike Beach or Sombrero Beach ? Hands up for Yes. My hands are down. All new to me! Florida native David McRee, aka The Beach Hunter, is our guest blogger…
Go Greek for a day (or two) in Tarpon Springs
“Once a week, go Greek.” Look for this motto on shirts worn by the wait staff at Mr. Souvlaki’s restaurant on Pinellas Avenue in Tarpon Springs. Be quick to take a peek because the waiters are moving pretty fast, threading…
Florida Manatees head for warmer waters
Florida manatees don’t do cold. Can you blame them? All the temperature has to do is dip down in the 40s and I break out a fleece jacket, socks, big wool scarf and knit hat. Florida manatees forego the fleece…
Florida Coloring Books Are Yours for Free
‘Tis the season for free Florida coloring books and free Florida parks. Put them together with children on school break looking for things to do and – oh my, road trips coming up! Combine seeing the real thing with these…
Explore Ocala with Nana & Grandchildren
I am delighted to present a guest blogger this month – Barbara Fitos, Executive Director of the Community Foundation for Ocala Marion County. Barbara also has another title: she is Nana to four awesome grandchildren. For her blog she shares…