usvi-on-line
Southren Florida
Southren Florida
Going to Punta Gorda March 18th going to be staying with friends for 4 or 5 days will have 3 or 4 day's to explore South Florida before having to fly out of Fort Meyer what should I do?
Tom
Hey Waterguy...We were down in Northport last February, and loved it! Northport is just north of Punta Gorda on the Tamiami Trail...A few of the things we enjoyed:
Mannasota Beach - Just north of Norhport, there are shark's teeth all over the beach. Because of this, we didn't go into the water! But fascinating nonetheless.
Fishermen's Village in downtown Punta Gorda was a cool place to do a little shopping and grab something to eat...It is right on the water.
If you are into wildlife and want to take a trip a bit inland (probably 40 minutes from Punta Gorda), you can head to the Babcock Wildlife Refuge. We did this last year, and again, it was great! But don't expect any bells and whistles, this is old school Florida! In fact, if you have seen the Sean Connery/Lawrence Fishburn movie "Just Cause", many scenes were filmed on location in Babcock. http://www.babcockwilderness.com/
Siesta Key in Sarasota - A bit of a drive for you from Punta Gorda, but the beach is worth it.
Sanibel/Captiva Islands - If you're heading down to Ft. Myers, check out these two islands.
I really like this part of Florida. Much slower pace, and the Gulf always seems warmer and calmer than the East Coast. There are many other cool beaches/state parks that we visited that I just can't remember the names of right now! I really liked Punta Gorda...Port Charlotte, not so much. But PG is beautiful!
Mannasota Beach - Just north of Norhport, there are shark's teeth all over the beach. Because of this, we didn't go into the water! But fascinating nonetheless.
Fishermen's Village in downtown Punta Gorda was a cool place to do a little shopping and grab something to eat...It is right on the water.
If you are into wildlife and want to take a trip a bit inland (probably 40 minutes from Punta Gorda), you can head to the Babcock Wildlife Refuge. We did this last year, and again, it was great! But don't expect any bells and whistles, this is old school Florida! In fact, if you have seen the Sean Connery/Lawrence Fishburn movie "Just Cause", many scenes were filmed on location in Babcock. http://www.babcockwilderness.com/
Siesta Key in Sarasota - A bit of a drive for you from Punta Gorda, but the beach is worth it.
Sanibel/Captiva Islands - If you're heading down to Ft. Myers, check out these two islands.
I really like this part of Florida. Much slower pace, and the Gulf always seems warmer and calmer than the East Coast. There are many other cool beaches/state parks that we visited that I just can't remember the names of right now! I really liked Punta Gorda...Port Charlotte, not so much. But PG is beautiful!
July 2003 - Honeymoon at The Westin
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
I love Punta Gorda too we are within walking distance of fishermans warf. The Friends we are staying with just got a new 40ft boat so I'm sure we will be out on the gulf a couple of days weather permiting every time we go down we seem to stay within an hour of Punta gorda looking to expand my horizions. 
Tom
I would say, jump in the car and head north young man! The Sarasota area is GREAT!waterguy wrote:I love Punta Gorda too we are within walking distance of fishermans warf. The Friends we are staying with just got a new 40ft boat so I'm sure we will be out on the gulf a couple of days weather permiting every time we go down we seem to stay within an hour of Punta gorda looking to expand my horizions.
Oh, I almost forgot. I am not really a donut guy. However, my father in law is. Anyway, there is a place in Venice, FL right on the Tamiami Trail called "Abbey's Donuts". They make the donuts right there, and yes, it was the best donut I or my FIL had ever eaten, and he is a connoisseur! Get there early though, because the line is generally out the door. Pretty sure we stopped there everyday on the way to the beach, and I of course gained 10 lbs on the trip. Whatever.
http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_h03zjc?btv=tstA
July 2003 - Honeymoon at The Westin
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/30/1282332/ ... North-Port
Sorry - it's "Abbe's". That's a better link with a map.
Sorry - it's "Abbe's". That's a better link with a map.
July 2003 - Honeymoon at The Westin
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
July 2004 - Glenmar, Gifft Hill
July 2005 - Arco Iris, Fish Bay
December 2007 - Dreamcatcher, GCB
July 2008 - Ellison Villa, VGE
-
michigancouple
- Posts: 609
- Joined: Wed Feb 04, 2009 5:37 pm
- Location: West Michigan
Agree with recommendation that Sanibel is a wonderful place to visit. Its very pretty and lots of shells on the beach. Nice wildlife refuge and you can kayak in the mangroves. If you like historical places, there is a village of historical buildings set up to depict early life on the islands Fun place to visit. You can rent bikes and see the island at a slower pace.
We like to rent a boat on Sanibel and go up to Cayo Costa. We always see lots of dolphins on the trip. Undeveloped beach with tons of shells.
Sarasota is one of my favorite places in Florida. As noted in the other post, Siesta Key is a beautiful beach. If you like gardens, Marie Selby Gardens is really nice. Its right on the water and has a lot of tropical plants and a historical house. Sarasota Jungle Gardens is an "old-time" Florida park with beautiful gardens and dozens of birds, including some Macaws who have been at the park for decades. You can interact with Flamingos and hold the macaws and parrots. (If you like glitzy parks like Disney, you won't like this - its very small and no high tech. I love it for its "Old Florida" charm and interaction with the birds.) Lunch at Marina Jacks on the water is nice.
The town of Venice is scenic with Royal Palms planted along the main street. Nice shops in the town, although can be pricy. Be sure to go to Sharkey's Pier on Venice Island - great food, a fishing pier you can walk out on, and sharks teeth on the beach. Often see dolphins and schools of fish there.
Agree with the others that this part of Florida is nice.
We like to rent a boat on Sanibel and go up to Cayo Costa. We always see lots of dolphins on the trip. Undeveloped beach with tons of shells.
Sarasota is one of my favorite places in Florida. As noted in the other post, Siesta Key is a beautiful beach. If you like gardens, Marie Selby Gardens is really nice. Its right on the water and has a lot of tropical plants and a historical house. Sarasota Jungle Gardens is an "old-time" Florida park with beautiful gardens and dozens of birds, including some Macaws who have been at the park for decades. You can interact with Flamingos and hold the macaws and parrots. (If you like glitzy parks like Disney, you won't like this - its very small and no high tech. I love it for its "Old Florida" charm and interaction with the birds.) Lunch at Marina Jacks on the water is nice.
The town of Venice is scenic with Royal Palms planted along the main street. Nice shops in the town, although can be pricy. Be sure to go to Sharkey's Pier on Venice Island - great food, a fishing pier you can walk out on, and sharks teeth on the beach. Often see dolphins and schools of fish there.
Agree with the others that this part of Florida is nice.
I also agree with a trip to Venice. Rent a Florida snow shovel and hunt for sharks teeth. Sharkies is a one-of-a-kind eatery on the beach.
My folks lived there (snowbirds from MI). Hubby proposed to me there and we lived there for a year.
If you have a boat, there is a great pass called Stump Pass. Great secluded picnic and swimming beach. Sorry, but I don't have great directions. Dad took us there and it's south of Venice and is an exit from the intercoastal to the Gulf. I believe you can drive to it from Manasota Key. It's more fun by boat as you can get to a more secluded part of it. Water there was almost like STJ color. Not good snorkeling as it's just sand bottom. I did get bitten by a crab, however! It latched onto me and scared the crap out of me!
Sister lives in Punta Gorda. Nice home with their boat docked in their backyard. They are into boat sales and are both captains. They have sailed a guy and his boat to STJ and got paid for it! He was staying at Maho back then. But he was going to start his own charter business.
My folks lived there (snowbirds from MI). Hubby proposed to me there and we lived there for a year.
If you have a boat, there is a great pass called Stump Pass. Great secluded picnic and swimming beach. Sorry, but I don't have great directions. Dad took us there and it's south of Venice and is an exit from the intercoastal to the Gulf. I believe you can drive to it from Manasota Key. It's more fun by boat as you can get to a more secluded part of it. Water there was almost like STJ color. Not good snorkeling as it's just sand bottom. I did get bitten by a crab, however! It latched onto me and scared the crap out of me!
Sister lives in Punta Gorda. Nice home with their boat docked in their backyard. They are into boat sales and are both captains. They have sailed a guy and his boat to STJ and got paid for it! He was staying at Maho back then. But he was going to start his own charter business.
Connie that area was our vacation grounds for years until we started to go to the Caribbean. Lots of great family memories for sure . It was nice to go back but I gotta admit I'm a beach snob since St John. I remember hunting for sharks teeth with the kids at Venice we found a bunch. We used one of those screeners ya get with those sandbucket kits. My boy still has a bunch of them in a Venice Beach shot glass.
[/img]