USVI-On-Line

Hello Helpful Forumites! Not only did my new job force me to cancel my Nov STJ vacation, but it's also keeping me away from home for the holidays.

I will be in West Palm Beach for Thanksgiving, Clearwater for Christmas, and Ft Lauderdale for New Years; with weeks in Orlando, Jacksonville, and Birmingham thrown in between.

I know there are a few FL Forum Folks...do you have any advice for some fun, Off The Beaten Path types of things to do..? I'm an outdoorsy girl: biking, kayaking, hiking, exploring etc. No theme parks, please!

If you can't be at home or on STJ, I guess I will settle for Florida. Ready for a little sun on my skin. Detroit is freezing me out this week!

Thanks in advance!!

DELETED

Hey there,
Well I could think of worse off places to be than
the "sunshine state" over the holidays.

Okay, so I know a bit about the Clearwater/ST Pete area and I would highly suggest checking out Fort De Soto Park.


Also most FL cities have Christmas boat parades
that are kinda fun. From dinghies to yachts
all lit up and decorated.

Oh and I think Tropicana Field is having
some sort of College Bowl in December. I think
I read a post of yours that tells me you may
be interested.

Tampa is close by just across the bridge and there
are lots of places to visit. Great art museums
if you'd be interested. If so the Salvador Dali
museum is in St Pete...wild stuff.

Do checkout the De Soto site though.
http://www.pinellascounty.org
(click on visitors and the parks/rec will come up)

Over West of Lauderdale you can watch the
'Noles wrastle gators!! Seriously
though, the Everglades National Park may be of
interest; kayaking and gators

Have fun whatever you do and wherever you go...

Kathy

Do you dive? There is good diving in Key Largo--there is an underwater National Park there--John Pennekamp, I believe.

I would also recommend a tour of the Everglades. It's really interesting, and you'll see alligators!

Thanks Guys! Excellent advice so far. I think ya'll might know me too well: conch fritters, kayaking, alligators and football - Sounds perfect!

I appreciate it!

sun,
if you google kayaking florida you will come up with a bunch of operators who do everything from an hour to several days--- most (all?) of these are located either on the gulf or in the keys/glades--we like the guys in pine island, but not sure that will be convenient for you....often we see manatee down there.....totally cool

Hubs and I spent a Christmas in Clearwater. Do you know where you are staying?

I remember lots of Brits and Canadians staying at our hotel and they were a fun crew. Like us, they didn't mind being out at the pool and

Shepard's on the Beach had a lively scene on Christmas Eve. There was another restaurant on the bay side that we also liked, nice bar and live music. Can't remember the name, I will ask Hubs. I remember feasting on some sort of crab that night. Rock crab maybe?

We like driving down to Pass De Grille (I may not have the spelling right) and St. Pete Beach.

Hopefully Fla George chimes in, I think he is located just north of Clearwater.

PA Girl-
I think you feasted on Stone Crab! At least I hope so. Its been many years since I have been to FL during Stone Crab season and I hope to find some! I will check out your restaurants. Thanks!

I have actually rented a house for that week on the canal in Indian Rocks Beach. A little quieter than Clearwater, I think. But it comes with a dock and a kayak and is two blocks from the beach, so I don't think I can go wrong!

Florida in November is much better than Detroit in November!

I second the idea on the airboat ride. My brother's wife is from Okeechobee, and that's their favorite thing to take people to do. I hear the fishing is good too.

Everglades National Park is pretty cool. Lots of wildlife -- there are crocs and gators. It's the only place in the world where crocs and gators co-exist. My other brother worked at the park for 9 months. There's a boat ride you can take there too. I'm not kayaking with crocodiles, but you seem adventurous.

I like to just grab a fruity rum drink and chill on the beach. But that's what I do everywhere I vacate.

Yes, stone crab! I had rock crab stuck in my head and I knew that wasn't right.

The house sounds like a good choice. I remember seeing dolphins in canals/inlets when eating at The Wharf down by St. Pete Beach.

We liked walking on the beach each morning and would go for miles. I was surprised at how firm the sand is along the gulf. The first year I didn't take sneakers and regretted it. I always take sneakers now as my feet would get cold in the winter.

When you are in Orlando head about 30 minutes north to the Orange City area to Blue Spring state park. Its where all the manatees "winter" over from the St Johns River. The spring stays a constant 72 degrees year round and the manatees flock there in the winter months.

Disclaimer....we have not been there yet, but plan to in the next couple weeks as the manatees have returned due to the recent cold snap. I found out about it this year and it seemed to warrant a drive to check it out.

Thanks for the tips guys! Schnell- I'm going to check out Blue Springs on Monday. I hear good things. Juniper Springs canoeing tomorrow...wish me luck!

And PA Girl- I had some Stone Crab and thought of you today. Sorry I didn't have my camera for food porn! I'll do better next time!

If you go for conch fritters at Ernie's in FLL, drop me a line if you'd like, I'm currently residing just a stones throw away from there...Enjoy.

Sun, I just spent the weekend in Clearwater. We had a GREAT time.

Here is food we loved:
Positano's (near Clearwater - can't remember the town) - small Italian family owned - wonderful and great service.
Tio Pepe (Clearwater) - YUM! Amazing salad and wonderful food - it's a latin inspired restaurant.
Bern's Steakhouse (Tampa) - OK, I can't say enough about this - it was a 4 hour dining experience. Cost is about $100/pp but so worth it. After dinner, they give you a tour of the kitchen and their wine cellar - so fun! Then, you go to the second floor for dessert. WOW! They hand make everything (even roast their own coffee daily). You sit in a little 'pod' kind of feels like a huge wine barrel. I HIGHLY recommend this place.

We also watched sunset at Whiskey Joes - what a great view! I also saw that they have sunset every day at the Pier in Clearwater Beach - reminded me of Mallory Square and I'll check it out next time.

Safe travels!

Ondine- I'll definitely let you know. Ernie's is at the top of my list for early January. I love some conch fritters!

Nancy B- Thanks for all the food options. I'll put them on my list. My only night off that week is Christmas night...I'm sure my choices will be limited. But I'm going to call and around and see what's up. I can catch the sunset before work most nights. I'll check out Whiskey Joe's and the Pier! Yeah!

Thanks guys!