Great
Day Trips
Gator Country: Three Day Trips from Gainesville,
by Anne Sponholtz
My husband and I took three day trips from Gainesville
this winter. We live in North Florida, so some of the places
we visited were familiar territory for us, but other places
were new adventures. Our trip yielded some expected pleasures
and some surprises, too. That's what makes road trips so exciting
- you never know what you might find around the next bend.
East to Palatka, 44 miles
Palatka is a straight shot from Gainesville.
Get on Florida Highway 20, head east and in 44 miles Palatka
welcomes you. We arrived in time for breakfast at Angel's
Diner, on Reid Street, where long ago I learned that the lunch
deserves a thumbs-up. The diner is named after Porter Angel,
who began serving breakfast here more than 75 years ago, earning
it the title of Florida's oldest diner.
Angel's is a blast from the past - the 1950s
past - all done up in green, pink, yellow, black and white.
It's famous not only for its food but also for a unique beverage,
the pusalow, which everyone raves about. No one seems to know
exactly what the drink has in it, but the consensus is that
if you stop at Angel's, you've got to have one. Be sure to
bring cash, as the diner does not accept credit cards.
Behind the diner is Palatka's downtown district,
where small businesses, shops and government buildings are
located and where I discovered a full-sized replica of Elvis
Presley on a street corner greeting shoppers. The passenger
line Amtrak stops a few blocks away, and the old train depot
houses a museum filled with train memorabilia, thanks to the
work of the Palatka Railroad Preservation Society, which organized
in 1993. The community has done a lot over recent years to
fix up the town, and though some buildings still need more
attention, Palatka becomes more appealing with each visit.
Head east from the diner and you'll come to the
town waterfront, which stretches along the west bank of St.
Johns River. Picnic tables, swings and benches provide plenty
of spots to kick back and watch the fish jump. Anglers come
from across the state for bass tournaments here, but the brackish
waters are also home to many saltwater fish, shrimp and blue
crabs. You can enjoy much of Florida's seafood at Corky Bell's
Restaurant at Gator Landing, a long-established Palatka favorite.
Not far from the waterfront is Ravine
Gardens, a state park known for its collection of azaleas.
The most popular way to see the gardens is on a driving tour
down Ravine Drive; if you are in an RV, be aware that the
entrance has a low arch and a turn at the exit has a clearance
of less than 20 feet. Palatka hosts an annual Azalea Festival
in March, and is also known for its bluegrass
festivals, which attract thousands of people twice a year
to Rodeheaver Boys Ranch, south of town in Ocala National
Forest.
Returning to Gainesville on Route 20 you'll pass
near the Florida School for the Arts, which offers a full
roster
of public exhibits and performances during the school
year. It makes a nice stop, and the students' passion for
their work is contagious.
West to Chiefland, 39 miles
Chiefland is another easy trip: Just head west
on Florida Highway 26, then south at Trenton on U.S. Route
129. Chiefland's most popular attraction is Manatee
Springs State Park, located about five miles west of town
on the Suwannee River. When my husband and I left on this
trip, the air temperature was 19 degrees. Yes, Florida does
sometimes get pretty darn cold in the winter! The following
day, with temperatures hovering in the 60s, we watched two
brave swimmers make their way into the springs, where the
water temperature remains at 72 degrees year-round.
Cypress trees shade the boardwalk where visitors
line up to catch a glimpse of the manatees, those strange,
lumbering "sea cows" that make their way up the
river from the Gulf to shelter in the warm winter waters.
In the summer a different species arrives in the river: the
endangered sturgeon. Unlike the docile manatee, the sturgeons
- some reported as large as seven feet long and weighing 170
pounds - can pose a danger for boaters, and they amaze onlookers
when they jump out of the water.
Manatee Springs is one of the best state parks
I've found for viewing Florida wildlife. Over the years, I
have seen deer, opossums and armadillos. I've even had an
up-close-and-way-too-personal experience with a raccoon, which
leaped on top of our tent in the middle of the night. Bird-watching
is a treat here, too.
Another area attraction is Dakotah
Winery, upriver on Florida Highway 19. The grounds are
filled with antique grape-growing equipment. An arbor-covered
picnic area overlooks the vineyards, and ducks and fish splash
in a pond nearby. But the real fun happens inside the large,
attractive winery, which includes a gift shop, wine tasting
room and underground wine cellar. The wine list includes wine
made from Florida muscadines - native grapes that come in
a number of varieties, bringing to the table different colors,
sizes and tastes. If you've never tasted a muscadine, try
some muscadine jelly or sip a glass of muscadine wine; the
flavor is gentle, slightly sweet and grapey.
Back in town, the newly renovated Chiefland Golf
and Country Club attracts golfers, and the Watermelon Festival,
held each June, draws thousands for a day of fun. Shopping
and dining is pretty typical of most small towns, and a couple
of motels provide accommodations for out-of-town guests. But
if you want a really unique overnight stay, or if you just
want to spend a few hours watching the night sky, you can
sign up for a membership ($35) at Chiefland
Astronomy Village, a kind of astronomy commune that offers
30-amp RV hookups for folks wishing to visit "one of
the premier dark-sky observing sites in the Eastern United
States."
South to Williston, 26 miles
Florida Highway 26 will take you out of Gainesville
to the small town of Archer; here the route turns south, headed
to Williston, just 14 minutes away. Although Williston has
a general aviation airport and an 18-hole golf course, it
is the most rural of the towns we visited. This is horse country,
whose rolling farms and thoroughbred horses create a picturesque
landscape. It is the birthplace of Foolish Pleasure, the 1975
Kentucky Derby winner. While driving down a side road, we
happened upon three jockeys putting their horses through a
practice race. Who knows, we might have witnessed a future
Kentucky Derby winner.
There are more than 600 springs in north and
central Florida, and many of the larger springs attract scuba
divers, cave divers and snorkelers. The springs connect through
Florida's underground aquifer, where the water is filtered
by limestone to a crystal clarity. Williston is home to two
of the most famous springs: Blue
Grotto, the largest clear-water cavern in Florida, and
Devil's Den,
a prehistoric spring located within a dry cave. Devil's Den
is one of the most awesome sights I have seen in my Florida
travels. Here scuba divers and snorkelers descend two flights
of underground stairs to reach the water, all the time surrounded
by stalactites, fossil beds and other underground rock formations.
I was not prepared to dive, but was permitted to take the
underground journey to the water's edge. Devil's Den is on
the grounds of Devil's Den Resort, a diving resort that provides
many amenities and accommodations for divers. There are quite
a few rules and regulations when it comes to diving at any
facility, so be sure to call ahead.
For most folks familiar with the region, it is
the Ivy
House that has put Williston into their GPS "favorites"
list. A combination bed and breakfast and gift shop housed
in a historic house on Main Street, the Ivy House caters to
anyone looking for a special meal in a special setting. Southern
comfort food is the specialty, and the owners promise "no
mysterious ingredients." The few antiques shops scattered
around the small town are also a draw for those who would
like to poke around before returning to Gainesville.
A Detour Provides a Moment of Excitement
These three excursions turned out to be great
trips, and close enough to Gainesville so our adventures didn't
gobble up the gas. We did decide to make a detour off the
beaten track, somewhere in the direction of the small town
of McIntosh, a little east of Williston. Suddenly, in the
middle of nowhere, the GPS announced: "Satellite signal
lost." I immediately went into panic mode, realizing
there was not a soul within 10 miles of our location, and
we had no idea which way to go at the approaching stop sign.
Finally, after several minutes, which seemed like hours, the
signal returned and we were on our way. Maybe I'll carry an
old-fashioned map as backup on our next road trip.
Anne
Sponholtz
3/2/09
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