The Everglades are subtropical wetlands that stretch down the southern half of Florida from the Kissimmee River near Orlando through Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay at the southern tip of the state. In the wet season the water forms a slow-moving river that is 60 miles wide and over 100 miles long the giving the Glades their ‘River of Grass‘ nickname. The Florida Everglades has several different ecosystems this diversity makes it possible for many different species of plants, animals and birds to call the Everglades home.

One of the places I visited in the Everglades was Everglades National Park. The Park was established in 1947 and covers the southern 25 percent of the original Everglades. It’s the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, and the third-largest national park in the lower 48 states. This year, I was one of the over a million people who visit the park annually.

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As the weather begins to warm up in the North and the spring time thaw starts people’s thoughts turn to warm weather activities and they start looking forward to venturing outside for more than 15 minutes without freezing to death. Many people envision warm breezes, caressing their faces, palm tress gently swaying in the breeze, in short they picture Florida beaches.

Activities at Florida Beaches

I have lived in Florida over 25 years and when people come down to visit they always ask me where the best Florida beaches are and while I want to give them an honest answer it’s really, honestly, hard to choose just one. Having been all over the state and having visited more beaches than I can count I have to say there are too many to call just one my favorite or give it the title of ‘best’. When I’m asked this question tend to I ask a few myself, for instance I ask “What do you like to do at the beach, for instance do you like to fish?” It’s true you can cast a line off of any beach but if you’d actually like to catch something there are a few areas that are better than others. Destin, in the Panhandle, for instance, is known to have Cobia and other species running right off shore this may have something to do with the fact that the 100 fathom curve is only ten miles offshore at Destin and provides the fastest access to deep water fishing in the Gulf, surly the fish must use it too.

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As I watch the news, I see drivers up north getting stuck in snow storms and I think how nice it is to be able to drive on the beach. It’s a much nicer, more friendly environment and getting stuck in the sand isn’t nearly as awful as getting stuck in the snow. Winter is a great time to visit any of our Florida beaches and when you live on the beach as I do, winter is a great time for people watching and driving on the beach. Nearby Orlando is one of the premiere Florida vacation spots, as a matter of fact, it’s one of the premier vacation spots of the world. Winter is a great time to visit Orlando because it isn’t as crowed and it’s much cooler than in the summer, but still not as cold as the winter up north.

Motorsports Capital

When people ask me, as a Floridian, what I like to do during the winter, one of the places I always mention is Daytona Beach. Daytona Beach is known for many things, like the Daytona International Speedway home of NASCAR. During February, I try to go to Speed Week in Daytona, the many races and qualifying for the iconic Daytona 500 make it the place to be.

Harley Bikers and other motorcycle enthusiast gather for Bike Week in March. All these things are great draws to Daytona Beach but what I like about it is that you can drive on the beach there, that’s something you can only do on a few beaches in Florida.

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When I think of Daytona Beach several things come to mind. I remember hanging out on the beach during the day getting ‘the perfect tan’ then going back to the room to freshen up, out to dinner and then clubbing all night. I really enjoyed meeting all the people from all over the country there to party and have a good time.

Biketoberfest

Many of the bars of Daytona Beach are on the Main Street strip. One of the draws to Daytona Beach is Biketoberfest 2010, held in October. Bikers from all over the country and world converge on Daytona Beach for a few days of booze, bikes and babes. The Hogs Breath, Dirty Harry’s, Froggy’s and the Boot Hill Saloon, the Bank and Blues club; these are just a few of the names you’ll see. If you go to any one of these places during Bike Week or Biktoberfest you’ll find a party going on, wet t-shirt contests, live music, drink specials, food, fun and some fabulous bikes, its well worth the trip.

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Tucked into the Florida coastline just as you pass the border in from Georgia you’ll find a great little spot for a nice, quiet, fun filled family vacation, it’s called Amelia Island. Amelia Island is the southernmost of the Sea Islands, which is a chain of barrier islands that stretches along the east coast from South Carolina to Florida. Because it is just inside the boarder from Georgia, Amelia Island still has some of that Southern charm, the streets are lined with oaks rather than palms and the businesses are more sedate meaning you’re more likely to find them advertised in wood block signs than neon. It’s a little more subtle than the rest of Florida; it’s very quaint and peaceful.

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On a recent trip to the Florida Panhandle we stopped in a place called Destin, now I had been to Panama Beach, which is less than 50 miles away, before and it was a lot of fun but I’d never been this far west. The panhandle is also called the ‘Emerald Coast’ and as we were driving it became clear why the water is a beautiful shade of clear green. Another other thing I noticed was how the area, especially around Destin, was so beautiful and peaceful.

All along the road between Destin and Panama City Beach were these picturesque, little beachfront towns called, Seaside, Watercolor, Sandestin and Miramar. These towns are small and homey, with tree lined streets and pastel painted houses; they look like something out of a movie. In fact, the movie, The Truman Show was made in Seaside.

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Fort Lauderdale captures the essence of all that is Florida. It’s not as snobby as Palm Beach and not as trendy as South Beach Miami, what it represents is all the best of old Florida and how far we’ve progressed. Fort Lauderdale was once thought of as a spring break party town but it has really grown up. They have a fabulous art district and host many festivals throughout the year including the largest in water boat show in the world. They have a busy port that sails many cargo and cruse ships and the nearby Everglades National Park is a must see. The weather in Fort Lauderdale is great too it’s tropical with hot, humid summers and dry, warm winters which make the beach a great place to spend a day year round.

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