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Nokomis Beach Florida

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Last week I wrote about my Wednesday morning and afternoon in June along narrow and winding Casey Key Road, and then onto Siesta Key. I wrote about my ride on the Breeze Siesta Islander (Route 77) trolley from Siesta Key to and from downtown Sarasota. I wrote about Bayfront Park and Marie Selby Botanical Gardens – my first visit to both in nearly 11½ years. And the trek continues.

From the underwhelming Siesta Beach I drove back to my hotel, and then shortly after I went for a late-lunch / early-dinner (I call it #LuDinner) at a popular and highly-rated restaurant dockside called Pelican Alley. When by the sea I must enjoy seafood, and so I did. I enjoyed the deep-fried Grouper Tempura with fries and slaw while enjoying beautiful scenery out the window. It was all good !

Due to the threat of thunderstorms late in the day and into the night I decided to check out Nokomis Beach for the first time. It’s actually Sarasota County’s oldest public beach. At 3:30 PM the beach was busy, but not unbearably packed. I hear sunsets can bring out the crowds, and they occasionally do some organized ceremonies just before sunset there at the “Drum Circle”. That’s something that I need to experience in the future, and in hindsight I should have experienced it on this Wednesday evening.

I really liked my short time walking on Nokomis Beach. It was a good family crowd. I definitely want to return sooner than later. I can imagine checking out a pre-6 PM sunset against a cloudless deep-blue winter sky in November, December, or January. I didn’t get to view the sunset on either night because of weather.

After an early hot breakfast the next morning at the hotel I checked-out and got on the road again – up U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail) and onto Florida State Road 681 – which served as the final 4 miles of I-75 from 1980 to 1986 before construction was finished extending the Interstate southward to Naples (and across the Everglades to Broward County).

I thought about taking Florida State Road 681 to I-75, and then 5½ miles of I-75 to Florida State Road 72, but at the last minute I decided that I didn’t need the 5½ miles of anxiety that would come with that. (I rarely drive on Interstates, Expressways, Turnpikes, etc. due to a disorder I have called “being terrified”.) Instead – I made a left onto Honore Avenue (signaled intersection on the pseudo-freeway), and that runs parallel to I-75 on the west side.

Last week I mentioned Sarasota County Road 72 – which is the far-western extension of Florida State Road 72 that continues on to Siesta Key (from U.S. 41). Eastward it continues on for 41½ miles to just west of downtown Arcadia (which I wrote about in Part 1 of this blog series). I didn’t stop this time in downtown Arcadia. I continued on – northward on U.S. 17, eastward on Florida State Road 64, and southward on U.S. 27 to my neighborhood.

This (almost exactly) 48-hour road-trip to and from the Gulf Beaches was a lot of fun, and definitely worth it. I got to revisit places that I hadn’t seen in nearly 11½ years, as well as places that I had never seen before. I discovered a new favorite beach named Nokomis, and I rediscovered an old favorite named Venice. I visited a couple of nice museums and a few nice parks. I enjoyed two great dinners where locals love to eat. I drove 229 miles on that Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (I also walked 6 miles on that Wednesday.) It was a lot of fun looking back at this trip and then converting those great memories into words via these last 4 weeks of #TravelThursday blog posts. That’s what this is all about. I’m truly embracing my life as a travel blogger. I love to travel and tell !

Next #TravelThursday I’ll write about my 37TH and final trip to Homestead Florida a little over a month ago to close on the sale of my longtime home, and to close that chapter in my life. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

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Casey Key, Siesta Key, Sarasota Florida

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Last week I wrote about my Tuesday afternoon and evening in June in Venice and Laurel / Nokomis Florida. And the trek continues the next morning.

I started my Wednesday morning by driving the final mile westward to the Gulf Beaches along Albee Road. I made a right onto Casey Key Road – which Google Maps did not want me to do (based on my eventual destination). Was Casey Key Road a private road ? Was it damaged and impassible somewhere along the way ? I would soon find out on this exploration trek.

I drove for a little over 4 miles along narrow and winding Casey Key Road. It’s essentially a sandy neighborhood road past quite expensive multi-million-dollar houses surfside. Many of the houses suffered damage from last year’s hurricanes (Helene and Milton), and they were being repaired or rebuilt.

After that slow (15 to 25 MPH) neighborhood drive-thru I headed inland (eastward) along Blackburn Point Road to U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail).

Heading northward on U.S. 41 – I made a left (westward) onto Sarasota County Road 72 – which is the far-western extension of Florida State Road 72. (I’ll write more about the State Road next week.)

At the end of the road – I made a right onto Midnight Pass Road (unique name with a unique history – see next paragraph) – and I was officially on Siesta Key for the first time ever. I continued onto Beach Road, and I parked my car at the main parking lot at Siesta Beach.

Fun Fact: Casey Key (to the south) and Siesta Key (to the north) are actually connected to each other, but you can’t drive between the two keys (barrier islands). You can walk though. Where the two keys meet is a very narrow strip of land that disappears sometimes due to hurricanes and tropical storms that move through the region. When the sea overtakes the land – it creates a new inlet called Midnight Pass – and sometimes that inlet is in a different place than previously. (It migrates back-and-forth.) From my understanding – developers want it closed (no pass). Locals want it open (pass). Ultimately – Mother Nature decides when and where Midnight Pass appears.

I walked across the street, and I waited at the trolley stop for a few minutes for the free trolley to arrive. This was a carefully and extensively researched and studied initiative for several weeks beforehand to take the Breeze Siesta Islander (Route 77) trolley from Siesta Key to and from downtown Sarasota. The trolley is extremely popular with visitors during the peak Fall, Winter, and Spring tourist seasons. In the summertime – the locals mostly use it. The trolley ride to downtown Sarasota was uneventful. It wasn’t narrated, as it’s not a sightseeing trolley. It’s Sarasota County (Government) transportation.

I took the trolley to Bayfront Park. It was my 2ND visit ever. (My first was in February 2014.) I did a lot of walking and photographing there. It’s very picturesque in every direction.

I then walked down the street (Bayfront Drive) to Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. I was last there the same day in February 2014 that I last visited Bayfront Park. Again – lots of great pictures were captured during my approximate 90-minute visit amidst nature’s beauty.

I picked-up the free trolley right in front of the Botanical Gardens, and I took it back to my car in front of Siesta Beach. I then walked over to the beach to check it out. I was unimpressed by all of the hype that I’ve heard over the years regarding Siesta Beach. The beach was packed like sardines with thousands of (I’m guessing) locals under umbrellas, tents, and other coverings. You couldn’t even see the Gulf due to the sheer number of people and obstructions from end to end. So I essentially turned around and went away – away to a nicer less crowded beach.

Next #TravelThursday I’ll write about that beach, as well as my final dinner on this trip. I’ll also write about my trip back home. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2025 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

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Blogging Driving Geography History Nature Photography Travel

Florida’s Nature Coast

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. On Day 1 of my ongoing retirement road-trip to and from North Texas I departed my home in the Heartland of Florida at dawn. I proceeded northward on U.S. 27 / U.S. 98, and I continued up U.S. 27 to Lake Wales, and then westward along State Road 60. I picked-up U.S. 98 again through Bartow, Lakeland, and points north and west.

My first stop on this road-trip was Weeki Wachee Springs State Park – the legendary roadside attraction that has brought millions of people through its front gates off U.S. 19 for the past 77 years. During its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s it was one of the most popular tourist attractions in Florida (along with Silver Springs and Cypress Gardens). Everyone wanted to not just catch a glimpse of the mermaids, but also see them in action, and meet them in person, and have their picture taken with them before and after the shows. I saw the mermaids perform Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” for their regularly-scheduled 11 AM show in the Underwater Theater.

Weeki Wachi Springs became a Florida State Park on November 01ST 2008. (The state now owns and operates it.) It was added to the U.S. National Register Of Historic Places in January 2020. It appears to be doing great business, and on some days – they reach capacity and can no longer let additional people into the park. On this particular day (a Monday) the park was thriving with hundreds of kids and their parents. Buccaneer Bay – the on-site water park – is also a main attraction. Personally – I thought that the park was underwhelming. I don’t do water parks, and aside from the 30-minute mermaid show (which was fun for all ages) – there was not much else to see or do at the park. Remnants of the park (from when it was independently owned – including by ABC-TV) still exist, and it’s a sad reminder of what the park once was all of those years ago.

I visited two other Florida State Parks on that Monday – Crystal River Archeological State Park and Forest Capital Museum State Park (near Perry). Both were pleasant surprises and much nicer than I anticipated. The former – with its traditional museum inside and its collection of Native American mounds outside – was nothing short of spectacular – especially the scenery from atop one of the mounds.

Crystal River (flowing from left to right towards the Gulf Of Mexico)

Fun Facts: All 3 of these Florida State Parks are located along the Nature Coast – a region of 8 mostly rural counties located directly on the Gulf Coast from the Big Bend region southward to north of the Tampa Bay region.

I love Florida’s Nature Coast. I love driving along scenic U.S. 19 / U.S. 98 and seeing historic motor inns and restaurants along the way – some of which are still in business with modern amenities. (Others are long dormant and rotting in place.) There’s so much to see and do in this area, and I’m just getting started.

Next #TravelThursday – It’s on to Mobile Alabama to explore more history by land and by sea. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2024 Christopher M. Day, CountUp

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Blogging Driving Food Geography History Nature Photography Travel

Sugar Express

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. This past Sunday afternoon I took a fun 2-hour / 46-mile train ride aboard the Sugar Express. It was my first such train ride here in the U.S. in my lifetime. I didn’t really know what to expect with it until it actually occurred.

I picked-up the train at the Highlands County Fairgrounds adjacent to the Alan Jay Arena across from Sebring High School near downtown Sebring Florida. U.S. Sugar actually owns and operates the railroad track that runs adjacent to the Fairgrounds, and we stayed exclusively on their railroad track (also known as the “South Central Florida Express“) for all 23 miles southward and then back northward.

Passengers were already aboard the train over an hour before our 2 PM departure. (I got there early too – surprised that so many others got there even earlier than I.)

The train departed on-time at 2 PM, and we began our slow southward trek towards south of Lake Placid. One of the most surprising things that occurred throughout much of the trip were people (I believe mostly locals who know the train schedule) getting out of their vehicles and taking pictures and recording our train as it passed by. (Lots of tripods were setup.) This occurred at street crossings and adjacent to neighborhoods and businesses where people came out of homes and stores to record us and wave at us. (And many of us waved back.) The scenery was beautiful on a sunny Sunday afternoon – from natural unspoiled Florida scrub to abundant orange groves to sandy hills to picturesque lakes around Lake Placid. It was interesting to see such a diverse and different part of my hometown county that I never see while driving 55 to 65 MPH along U.S. 27.

We arrived in the area south of Lake Placid known as Childs. It’s a sugarcane loading site between train and truck for U.S. Sugar. The train came to a stop for a moment, tested its brakes, and then began slowly moving back northward for the return trek to Sebring.

This was a fun ride. Customer service all around was outstanding. They actually made two trips back and forth through the passenger cars with complimentary bags of chips and cookies – far more than you get on a standard airplane in coach. You also get unlimited Zephyrhills bottled water out of a well-stocked cooler. They even pick-up your trash after you’re done. You’re able to walk through all of the passenger cars at your leisure – even while the train is moving. They sell souvenirs in one of the cars. The top speed of the trip was just shy of 40 MPH (outside of both Sebring and Lake Placid); although, for much of the trip it averaged from 15 to 30 MPH. The ride was mostly smooth except when it reached top speed when it got a little bit “jerky”. It’s got a nostalgic feel to it with original passenger cars from the 1950s, and continuous big band music from the 1940s playing throughout the sound system.

Next #TravelThursday – I’ll look back at the cloudy and dreary and rainy and chilly El Niño Winter of 2023-2024 here in the Heartland of Florida. Let’s keep traveling together.

All rights reserved (c) 2024 Christopher M. Day, CountUp