Tag: Florida

Arcadia + Punta Gorda Florida

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date July 10, 2025

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. For 6 weeks in May into June I wrote a 6-part blog series on my 5-day visit to Texas – and my brother’s 5-day visit to Florida during an unusual span of 10 out of 19 days together. That blog series was so much fun to write, as I essentially got to look back and electronically reenact it all. It actually inspired me to plan another vacation, so that I could write about it in another multi-blog series. I looked to the Atlantic beaches, and I thought about Vero Beach. I was last there on vacation 4 years ago in June 2021. I decided to look west instead of east – over to the Gulf beaches.

I knew that I wanted this vacation to include a lot of new places, and so it began a couple of weeks ago on a Tuesday morning. From my neighborhood I headed north on U.S. 27 – and then west on Florida State Road 64 – and then south on U.S. 17.

My first stop was the historic district of downtown Arcadia – a revisit from 3½ months earlier. On my stroll along historic Oak Street back in early-March 2025 – I walked by the Oak Street Deli (after enjoying lunch at a different place around the block). I thought to myself that on my next visit I’d eat there, and so I did for an early lunch. I ordered one of their specials – a grilled Reuben (my favorite sandwich) with a side of my choice (potato salad) and a brownie and sweet tea to drink. The Reuben was pretty good; although, it should’ve stayed on the grill for perhaps a couple of minutes longer. The bread was actually grilled nicely. It did not turn soggy like many Reuben sandwiches do from many restaurants (unfortunately). The potato salad was plentiful and definitely homemade. So was the brownie. And so was the sweet tea. The short return visit / pitstop in downtown Arcadia was definitely worth it.

After that nice meal I continued my trek southward along U.S. 17. I’m not so sure that I had ever previously driven along that southernmost 25-mile stretch of U.S. 17 between Arcadia and Punta Gorda. I actually reached and kept on going past the southern terminus of U.S. 17.

Fun Fact: U.S. 17 runs for 1,206 miles through 5 states from Winchester Virginia to Punta Gorda Florida. Both ends are at other major U.S. routes (U.S. 11 in Winchester and U.S. 41 in Punta Gorda).

My 2ND stop was in Punta Gorda at the Military Heritage Museum for the first time ever. I had been following them via their Facebook page for awhile, and I’ve always wanted to check them out. Their two-story museum is quite extensive and very modern. I spent about an hour and fifteen minutes there looking at all of the exhibits and talking to a few of the volunteers. They were fairly busy for a Tuesday afternoon in June. I can imagine that they are hectic on weekends and especially during the fall, winter, and spring seasons.

I did talk a little bit of museum business with the main lobby volunteers, but I did not reveal myself as a fellow museum volunteer / board member. They were actually busy with a steady flow of new visitors at the time.

Time to head north out of Punta Gorda and Charlotte County and into Sarasota County via Tamiami Trail (U.S. 41). Next #TravelThursday I’ll write about Venice (including Venice Beach) and Nokomis. Let’s keep traveling together.

Tags Arcadia, Florida, Punta Gorda

Blogging Church Commerce Driving Food Geography Holidays Home Shopping Travel

Return To Homestead

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date July 3, 2025

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Let’s get back on the road. Almost 3 weekends ago I drove down to my old Homestead – which was Homestead Florida – my home from 1987 to 2023. It was Flag Day on Saturday and Father’s Day on Sunday.

I departed home at 8:18 AM, and I arrived at my old home at 11:58 AM. That’s fairly average for a Saturday morning drive southward. I haven’t done many Saturday morning drives down to Homestead. My last one was last September (2024) – and before that – April (2024).

I entered my old condo for probably the very last time – exactly 30 years and 1 day after I first entered and moved-in to it on June 13TH 1995. I went there to look around one last time, pick-up my Shark Rotator vacuum cleaner (best vacuum I’ve ever owned – bought it in April 2014), and pick-up a few other assorted items from my kitchen cabinets. I was in and out in less than 30 minutes – taking with me for good – 30 years of memories of that home – from my late-20s to my late-50s.

Time for some food, so I ventured over to Outback Steakhouse for lunch. I enjoyed food and fellowship with a longtime former coworker at the airbase near Homestead. And we celebrated my birthday too, and the wait staff all gathered together to sing their fun birthday song to me and present me with a delicious dessert with a lit candle on it.

I spent the night at the Hampton Inn behind the Outback. I had a wonderful 5TH floor view of the Outback and the surrounding businesses along busy Campbell Drive. Outback got increasingly busier as the afternoon became the evening. My favorite Publix (# 1136) is in view in the shopping center in the background. That was built in 2007. This whole area of Homestead is mostly less than 20 years old.

The next morning – I went to my former home church across town in NW Homestead, and we celebrated my birthday again at the start of the service. After service a group of us battled the Father’s Day crowds and went to Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch. In fact – nearly half of our church attendance that morning went there, and we were scattered over a couple of tables. The place was packed for the holiday. (This just in – Dads love steak.) Longhorn is my favorite restaurant in Homestead. I’ve always received great food and service there ever since they opened in 2009. I’ve probably been there more than any other restaurant in Homestead over the past 16 years. Olive Garden (next door) is my second-most visited restaurant in Homestead. So many great memories next door to each other.

After Longhorn I headed home to Sebring. My route out of Miami-Dade County was endangered because it was shut down the previous afternoon due to a wildfire near Krome Avenue (Florida State Road 997) and Tamiami Trail (U.S. 41). Firefighters contained the fire overnight, conditions improved, and the highways were reopened on Sunday morning. I got home at 6:08 PM, and that was the end of my fun 373-mile weekend road-trip between Sebring and Homestead. It was my 4TH such trip of 2025, and 17TH trip since the start of 2024, and 36TH trip since I bought my home here in Sebring in February 2023. My 37TH trip has already occurred, and I’ll report on that trip in a few weeks.

#ButFirst – Next #TravelThursday I’ll stay on the road as I begin a multi-part series on my recent trip to and from Florida’s Gulf Coast Beaches. I’ll write about some areas that I visited for the very first time – and for the first time in a long time. Let’s keep traveling together.

Tags Florida, Homestead, Sebring

Blogging Geography Health Home Travel Weather

Walking Around The Neighborhood

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date June 26, 2025

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. Last week I wrote about our cold winter season here in Sebring Florida – in which we experienced 50 cold mornings with lows in the 30s or 40s, and 19 cold afternoons in the 40s, 50s, and 60s. It was my coldest winter season in over 30 years !

It certainly affected my walking this past season – both positively and negatively. I won’t walk when it’s too cold out. I generally won’t walk when the temperature is below 60°F / 16°C, so if it’s cold in the morning then I’ll walk in the afternoon. If it’s hot in the afternoon then I’ll walk in the morning. If it’s cold all day long then the walking can wait.

My season of walking started on the 19TH of September of 2024, and it ended on the 06TH of June. Here are the number of times I walked around my neighborhood in each month: September (3), October (10), November (3), December (13), January (10), February (10), March (15), April (12), May (10), and June (4).

My goal for this season was to walk more times than last season (2023-2024). I walked 87 times last season, and I made it to 90 walks this season. Goal met. Actually – my goal may have been to reach 100 walks. Didn’t make it. I’ll blame it on our cold weather in January. I also failed to surpass the number of miles I walked last season. I walked 109.72 miles this season – versus 113.50 miles last season. The average length of my walks was a bit shorter this season (1.22 miles) versus last season (1.30 miles).

Next season will be Season 19 of my neighborhood walks. Season 1 was 2007-2008, and you can read about my very first walk here. Season 19 will probably start in September when we start getting some cooler mornings here with the return of cold fronts from the north. My goal will be 100 walks and more miles than this season – and last season. I’ll try for 125.

#ButWait – Our local Performing Arts Center a couple of miles up the road is opening their doors every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 10 AM to 2 PM for people like me to come in out of the heat and get their steps in amongst air-conditioned comfort. You can basically walk around their 1,460-seat venue (excluding the stage). That actually sounds like fun. I may participate once or twice or more. (Those walks will not count towards my seasonal numbers.)

Next #TravelThursday I’ll write about my recent Flag Day / Father’s Day Weekend visit back to Homestead Florida. Let’s keep traveling together.

Tags Cold, Florida, Sebring, Winter

Blogging Driving Geography Home Travel Weather

Sebring Florida’s Cold Winter Of 2024-2025

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date June 19, 2025

Welcome back to #TravelThursday. This week it’s a change-of-pace blog post. Here in Sebring Florida our wintertime population increases exponentially from the summertime – perhaps even doubling or even more. In my 55+ neighborhood we are about 35% year-round residents and 65% “snowbirds” – our endearing term for our friends and neighbors who fly (or drive) south for the winter. They come from the north (many from the Great Lakes States) to all over Florida – especially Central and South Florida – along both coasts and down the spine. They come for our weather in-between hurricane seasons.

Some of our snowbirds arrive as early as September and depart as late as May. The majority are here from December to March with January and February being peak season. It gets busy around here from about Thanksgiving to about Easter, and especially after the New Year !

Our coldest months up here in the Highlands of South-Central Florida are December, January, and February. Our average afternoon high temperatures are in the low-70s, and our average morning low temperatures are in the mid-50s. A cold day is when we don’t reach 70°F / 21°C. A cold night is a night in the 40s / below 10°C. We are generally warmer during the day and colder during the night than our neighbors at both coasts some 80 miles away.

This past winter season we had 19 cold days when we did not reach 70°F. 14 of them occurred in January – including a brutal stretch of 6 days in a row from the 20TH to the 25TH – when on a couple of days – we couldn’t get out of the 50s – and on one day – we were stuck in the 40s all day. In fact – we were stuck in the 40s for 46 hours in a row. I briefly thought about flying to the U.S. Virgin Islands during that Arctic blast.

We also had 50 cold nights when we were into the 40s (and 30s too). 4 were in November, 12 in December, 23 in January, 2 in February, and 9 in March. January was a very cold month indeed with 4 mornings into the 30s. In fact – it was one of the Top 10 coldest Januarys in modern recorded history – and the coldest in 15 years !

It was my 2ND full winter season here in Sebring Florida. (I moved here at the end of the 2022-2023 season.) I previously lived in Homestead Florida for 36 winter seasons. Down there we averaged less than 20 cold days and nights combined per season (compared with 60 to 70 combined days and nights here).

I know that those cold days and nights are just about 5 months away, and the snowbirds – well – they will be heading back here to their winter homes starting in less than 3 months.

We’re in our 4-month rainy season now. That’s when about 70% of our annual rainfall occurs. We’re also in our 6-month hurricane season. That started on June 01ST and continues until November 30TH with peak season being September and October. Hopefully the rain will fall (we’re recovering from a severe drought), but the hurricanes will stay out at sea.

Next #TravelThursday I’ll recap my walking season. Let’s keep traveling together.