Category: Nature

My Summer Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date July 1, 2021

It’s Part 4 of my multi-part Thursday blog series on my recent 77-hour / (4-day / 3-night) / 472-mile road-trip spanning Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee Counties (in that order). It was my first extended visit ever along Florida’s Treasure Coast. While there I was always within about 5 miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the adjacent Indian River.

4 Thursdays ago was my 2ND full day exploring the treasure of Florida’s Treasure Coast. I awoke in my hotel room near downtown Vero Beach, and I drove over to First Watch for Breakfast. I could’ve walked over, but the skies were threatening with showers, so I played it safe. Over at First Watch they have an item known as the Floridian French Toast. Think French Toast topped with powdered cinnamon sugar and lots of fresh fruit – banana, kiwi, and strawberries. It’s amazing.

Time to work-off those calories. I visited Round Island Riverside Park – an Indian River County park off Florida’s State Road A1A (on the barrier island). It’s a fairly large park (83 acres) along the Indian River / St. Lucie County line, and I explored a small part of it via its nature trails, boardwalk, and observation tower. I would’ve explored more of it, but the mosquitoes were biting, and showers were in the area. This looks like a fun park to explore in the wintertime during a colder day when the mosquitoes are hibernating.

My next stop was the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum near Fort Pierce. I was their first customer at 10 AM, and I spent a full 2 hours there. Admission was $12 for veterans (surprisingly not free for a military museum). There’s plenty to see and do both inside and outside, and you can easily – especially if you have older kids (teens) – spend a half-day there. As for me I took a lot of photos (40) – nearly all of them outside. The parking lot of the museum is also the parking lot for the adjacent public beach, so families could spend a half-day there as well. That sounds like a full day’s worth of fun via a single parking space. (I didn’t visit that particular beach.)

So that’s my Thursday morning. It’s just past high noon now, and I’m checking-in at the Heathcote Botanical Gardens in Fort Pierce (inland) off U.S. 1. Admission was free as a veteran. I spent about an hour there. It’s a small park (5 acres), and there’s some interesting things to see. I actually wrote a short 5-star review for it on TripAdvisor, so you can look for it on there. (TripAdvisor is another social media site that I’ve been on continuously for a long time – over 9 years. I’ve posted 76 reviews on the site.)

My next stop was the hard-to-find St. Lucie County Regional History Center. (It’s their county museum.) It’s been there for over 50 years, and it looks it. Nevertheless looks can be deceiving from the parking lot.

This place was rather extensive – both inside and outside. It’s part guided tour and part self-guided. This place greatly exceeded my expectations for it. I had a nice 80-year-old man – a fellow veteran who was once stationed (some 60 years ago) at Homestead AFB (where I work today) – guide me at the start of my tour. He was very knowledgeable with local history. He checked-up on me a couple of times during my self-guided tour. He’s a volunteer for the county’s historical society. Once I’m retired and relocated in a few years I’ll very likely do something very similar – that is – volunteer as a museum docent for the local historical society. I think it’s my calling (past and future). Several years ago I volunteered as a museum docent for two full winter seasons inside Everglades National Park. I really enjoyed that unique experience.

Well it’s time for an early-dinner now in Fort Pierce. (Remember this was 4 weeks ago.) When I continue this road-trip recap with Part 5 next Thursday we’ll visit the beach. In fact we’ll visit 2 beaches – 14 miles apart. Looks like there will be a Part 6 on the following Thursday after next, so brace yourself for more fun !

Tags Florida, Travel

Blogging Driving Food Movies Nature Photography Travel Weather

My Summer Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date June 24, 2021

It’s Part 3 of my multi-part Thursday blog series on my recent 77-hour / (4-day / 3-night) / 472-mile road-trip spanning Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee Counties (in that order). It was my first extended visit ever along Florida’s Treasure Coast. While there I was always within about 5 miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the adjacent Indian River.

Last Thursday we left off at the Elliott Museum on the barrier island off the coast of Stuart known as South Hutchinson Island. From there I headed north along Florida’s scenic State Road A1A. I soon entered St. Lucie County, and once I reached the Fort Pierce Inlet I headed inland (along A1A since there is no bridge over the Inlet). In downtown Fort Pierce A1A and U.S. 1 share a concurrency for a little over a mile. A1A then heads back out to sea to the barrier island on the other side of the Inlet. I stayed on U.S. 1, and I took that most of the way up to Vero Beach – my hotel destination for 3 nights. Once I entered the city limits of Vero Beach I believe that it was the first time in my life that I had done so – as a 33½-year resident of South Florida.

After I checked-in to my hotel and room I walked over to the nearby Bonefish Grill. I got there a few minutes before they opened for the day at 3 PM. I was not only their first customer of the day, but I was their only customer during my entire meal ! The service was great, and the food was great. I think I’ve eaten at Bonefish Grill once or twice before in my life (while on vacation). There’s actually one about 18 miles from home, but I’ve never been to that one. (I should visit sometime. They are actually open for Lunch.)

After my early dinner I drove over to the local movie theatre in town to see “A Quiet Place Part II“. It was my first movie seen in a movie theatre in 2021. I saw 3 last year in 2020. During much of the 2010s I was averaging about 35 movies per year !

After the movie I headed over to South Beach Park (a city park) on the Atlantic Ocean. When I got there at about 6:35 PM I noticed that lots of people were leaving the beach and heading for their vehicles. I was the only person getting out of his car and heading towards the beach. Once I arrived surfside I realized why everyone was abandoning the scene – including the lifeguards. A raging thunderstorm was quickly blowing in from the sea. I took a few photos of the darkened sky, and I too headed back to my vehicle. I drove back to my hotel 2½ miles inland. It was starting to rain lightly as I walked inside my hotel. As it turns out the thunderstorm was a complete bust. It pretty much fell apart as it swept inland, and only light rain fell from it for a few minutes. I should have stayed in my car at the beach until the storm passed, and then enjoyed the beach after.

That’s the end of Day 1 of my road-trip adventures. That was Wednesday June 02ND 2021, and I drove 203 miles on that day. I’ll present Part 4 for you next Thursday, and we’ll head back over to the barrier island, and we’ll visit some fun places on both sides of A1A and U.S. 1 in the Fort Pierce area.

Tags Florida, Travel

Bible Blogging Christian Church Driving God History Ministry Nature Photography Scripture Travel

My Summer Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date June 17, 2021

It’s Part 2 of my multi-part Thursday blog series on my recent 77-hour / (4-day / 3-night) / 472-mile road-trip spanning Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee Counties (in that order). It was my first extended visit ever along Florida’s Treasure Coast. While there I was always within about 5 miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the adjacent Indian River.

Last Thursday we left off on Bathtub Beach located on the barrier island adjacent to Stuart (South Hutchinson Island). A mile up the road was my next stop – House Of Refuge Museum At Gilbert’s Bar. It’s a Historical Society Of Martin County museum. Admission was free for me as a U.S. Veteran. Normal adult admission is $8 with modest discounts for seniors, children, and AAA and AARP members. This was a fascinating place, and it greatly exceeded my expectations. I was the only customer at the time, so I was treated to a personal one-on-one tour following the short introductory video in the gift shop. Following the tour you get to step inside the last remaining House Of Refuge along Florida’s east coast – and the oldest living structure in Martin County. There’s an upstairs and a downstairs. You can easily spend 60 to 90 minutes here. Be sure to also visit the raw and unspoiled beach adjacent to the museum grounds. It’s not a sunbathing beach. It’s a sightseeing beach.

My next stop was another Historical Society Of Martin County museum – Elliott Museum. Admission was free for me as a U.S. Veteran. Normal adult admission is $14 with modest discounts for seniors, children, and AAA and AARP members.

This was a nice modern two-story museum (entirely indoors) with a focus on antique cars and other forms of transportation. I met a nice 90-year-old man by the name of Lawrence up on the second floor. He was sitting by a display that he made himself over the course of about 20 years. It’s a River Cruiser made from a Grumman Mohawk Drop Tank. He worked at Grumman for many years, and he retired from the company. We enjoyed an extended conversation together about his work, his career, and his ministry. He’s a born-again Christian, and he loves to talk about his Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. He gave me two cards – a business card with Scripture on it, and another larger card with Scripture on both sides of it. We encouraged each other. As it turns out he and his church family drove down to Homestead in the days following Hurricane Andrew in August of 1992 to deliver supplies to a church with no roof and pews that were cut-up to form shelving for all of the incoming supplies. I’m familiar with that church. I shared with him my ministry. I told him that I would incorporate our chance meeting at the museum into one of my future sermons to my church family. Our short time together was the highlight of my visit to the Elliott Museum.

I’ll present Part 3 for you next Thursday, and we’ll arrive at my destination for the next 3 nights – Vero Beach.

Blogging Driving Nature Photography Travel

My Summer Vacation 2021 Road-Trip

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date June 10, 2021

Last Wednesday June 02ND 2021 about 45 minutes before local sunrise I embarked on my latest fun road-trip exploring my great state of Florida. This was actually a road-trip that was planned more than 3 years earlier and scheduled for the exact same Wednesday to Saturday time-period in June 2018. I had to cancel that trip when I was offered the opportunity to attend an important work-related trip to Middle Georgia (Warner Robins) later that same month in June 2018.

Earlier this year I decided to resurrect that June 2018 road-trip exactly 3 years later. I took my original itinerary for the trip, and I updated and enhanced it. As it turns out I actually visited a majority of the places that were on the original itinerary.

This was a 77-hour / (4-day / 3-night) / 472-mile road-trip spanning Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee Counties (in that order). Aside from driving to and from Florida’s Treasure Coast I was always within about 5 miles of the Atlantic Ocean and the adjacent Indian River (which is actually a very long [121-mile] lagoon).

Starting today and continuing for the next 3 or 4 Thursdays I’ll share some of my road-trip adventures with you. I presented a sneak-preview of this road-trip recap this past Sunday here on my blog. (Check out “Sunday Scripture”.)

We start about 3 hours north of my home for a full Breakfast pitstop in Stuart Florida. I enjoyed a nice hearty meal at a local place called Berry Fresh Cafe. I’ve been there before (at their Jupiter Florida location), so I knew what to expect. I knew that I would be full when I walked out. My waiter was over-the-top energized and passionate about his job – perhaps even borderline bombastic – but in a good way. I told him that I was on vacation visiting the area, and he gave me a list of places to visit in Stuart. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that his restaurant was my only stop in Stuart proper. I now have a list of places that I can check-out on my next (perhaps longer) visit to Stuart. I actually have friends who live in neighboring Jensen Beach. I didn’t get a chance to visit them on this trip, so maybe next time.

My next stop was to a popular place located on the barrier island adjacent to Stuart (South Hutchinson Island) known as Bathtub Beach. My aforementioned friends go there on a regular basis with their young daughters, so I decided to check it out. It’s very unique in that it’s the Atlantic Ocean – but with subdued waves and currents. There’s a mile-and-a-half-long reef just offshore. It’s below the water surface during high tide, but during low tide there are exposed sections. This reef is not a typical coral reef, but rather a living worm reef. I’ll let this sign explain it in greater detail:

I spent a lot of time all along a 54-mile stretch of Florida State Road A1A – from 27.2° to 27.8° north latitude. I visited a lot of nice Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River County beaches on this road-trip. I think this was probably the nicest and cleanest beach of them all. Check out this photo of this beautiful wide beach:

As you may know if you’ve been following me for awhile I try to keep my blog posts to under 3 minutes or less, and I think that we’re close to that ceiling right now, so let me close this part of my road-trip. Next Thursday I’ll present Part 2, and we’ll visit House Of Refuge Museum At Gilbert’s Bar and Elliott Museum.