Fort DeSoto - St. Petersburg, FL

Last year the family and I were supposed to go camping at Fort Desoto but life unfortunately got in the way and we were unable to go.  I called the campground and they said that my reservations could be used anytime within the next year without any additional fee, so I planned a girls trip to go camping for my friend and I.  A little time away from work, kids and life to just enjoy nature and relax.  It was about a 2 hour drive that was very pleasant and seemed like it flew by.  We arrived around 2:30 on Friday and registered then we were off to the site.  We were very happy to see that it was extremely shady and only 10ft or so away from the restrooms.

Once we got our site set up (which only took us about an hour) , we decided to hop in the car and go exploring.

We wanted to check out everything so we started at one end of the park and work our way back to the otherside.  We rounded the corner to see a bunch of kites in the air and upon closer inspection there were a bunch of guys kite boarding.  It looked like a lot of fun, but also a ton of work trying to keep yourself on the board and your kite up in the air.  I would have loved to try this at least once.  We were also able to see the Skybridge from this area.

After exploring the entire area by car we decided to get out and check out the old Fort.  It was pretty cool, not much of it still stands except for the area were the guns were held and you could climb up to the top of the Fort, which was beautiful to see the Gulf and the Pier.

After exploring the fort we made our way out onto the beach and the pier.  There was a small area that had a rock formation that blocked it from the current so the water was extremely warm and tranquil We were presently surprised to see all of the different birds and even a few dolphins playing around.  We sounded like a bunch of little girls giggling when the dolphins popped up, pointing and acting like the paparazzi!!

By this time I needed something to drink due to the heat and the fact that a blue raspberry snow cone sounded awesome.  We decided to stop and hang out for a little while watching the birds trying to get all of the fish. I ordered a medium and this is what I got, I would hate to see what there larges look like.

After our snow cones we decided to head back and eat some lunch and check on our site.  After lunch (which was like 6:00) by this point we just hung out and enjoyed the site and around 7:30 decided to head back to the pier for the sunset.  I am so glad we did because it was just amazing.

That evening we grilled out shish kabobs under the bright light of a Coleman latern and relaxed.  We decided to get to bed a little early because we knew we had a big day in the sun on Saturday.  We awoke on Saturday and made bacon and eggs on the grille (they were delicious) and decided to head out for a kayaking adventure in Mullet Key Bayou.  We arrived around 9:30 and decided to do a double kayak.  It was around $30 for two hours.We got in and we were off. 

It was so peaceful and relaxing and then out of nowhere we had dolphins jumping around us everywhere.  Off course everytime they came near I was kayaking and wasn't able to get to the camera in time.  I was able to get one pic of them when they were around 4 ft from the boat. 

The Mangrove trees were very interesting to look at and they made up little islands everywhere.  We eventually made our way out into the bay and continued to explore.  It was a lot of fun, but also quite a bit of work.  Especially when we were kayaking against the current.  Luckily for us we got into a groove and was able to speed along.  

After kayaking we went back to the campground and made lunch.  We grilled burgers and sauteed onions, mushrooms and peppers for them, had fruit and made asparagus.  It was just what I needed after the kayaking trip.  It was then decided we would head out to the beach and swim in the Gulf.  The warm was like bath water and was so relaxing.  The current outside of the rock area was exceptionally strong and if you didn't pay attention it would send you careening into the rocks.

We spent about 2.5 - 3 hours swimming and finally decided it was time to head back.  After we showered and got ready we decided to eat dinner out of the campground and headed toward Treasure Island to go to Caddy's Waterfront.  It was a nice restaraunt on the beach that had live music, good food, and reasonable priced drinks.  We found us a seat that we would be able to view the sunset from and had a fabulous time.

Sunday we woke up around 7:30am and broke down the site and was back on the round around 9:00am heading for home.  It was a wonderful time and I would strongly recommend this to everyone!!!!

Below is the link for the Fort DeSoto area.  You can look up the beaches, park and even the campground information all from this site.  The sites run around $30/night and all have water and electric hookups.

http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_ft_desoto.htm

Fernandina Beach & St. Mary's, GA

Each year we try to take 4 mini vacations and everyone gets to choose were they would like to go.  Cody wanted to go to Jacksonville so Duane brought up Fernindina beach and Fort Clinch.  So we were off.  I always do research before we go anywhere so I can find cool things for us to do.  We decided not to purchase a hotel in advance, but instead we would find something driving around.  We found us a Comfort Suites that was about a block away from the beach.  Very reasonably priced and very nice.  (see pic below, view from the hotel)

By the time we got there we were starving, but decided it would be best to drive down to downtown Fernandina, walk around and then decide what we wanted to do.  We decided to go to the Mexican restaurant, Pablos.  It had a good ambience and was reasonably priced.  ( see pic below, we dressed Cody up in their props)

After lunch we decided to walk around a little more and they have statues on the streets everywhere that made for great photos.  Fernandina was once home to many pirates and they really celebrate their heritage.  You can see the pirate memorablia everwhere and they have an area that you can read all about their history.

Once we had seen all that downtown Fernandina had to offer we decided to go over to Fort Clinch.  It was only $5.00 to park and then $2.00 per person to tour the fort. We were in Fernandina during the time that they were having the reinactments.  I believe it was the south that was there.  This link is the link to all of the events at the fort. (http://www.floridastateparks.org/fortclinch/events.cfm) They walk around and act like they are living during the times that they inhabitated the fort.  It was very interesting and neat seeing them doing their firing drills. 

The next day we woke up early and decided to take a ferry from Fernandina over to St. Mary's, GA.  We took the Cumberland Sound Ferry (http://www.ameliarivercruises.com/cumberlandsoundferry.html) over and it took about an hour.  It was very relaxing and there was narration about the area, such as Cumberland Island.  It is an undeveloped island that you can go camping and hiking on.  Apparently back in the day one of the gentleman that lived on the island took horses to it.  The horses escaped and were not captured.  Since then they have lived wild on the island, with no one feeding or taking care of them.  We happened to view one from the boat. The captain let Cody drive the entire way over to St. Mary's.  He said that after that he wanted to be a captain of a boat. 

Once over at St. Mary's we decided to rent a golf cart at one of the small establishments so we could view the area without killing ourselves walking.  I will have to say that was an event in itself.  Every 20 minutes it seemed like we would have to go back to the place to recharge the golf cart and Jasmine wanted to help push it so bad one of the times it was running out of juice that she jumped from it while it was driving.  We even went to a non busy area and let both of the kids drive the golf cart.  We had lunch on the island and took the ferry back to Fernandina.

Sunday on our way home we decided to take the a quick trip to the beach and do a little metal detecting and just to check it out.

On our way home we wanted to do something else to end our trip on a cool note so we decided to take the St. John's ferry across the St. John's river and have lunch at Singleton's Seafood Shack.  (http://www.stjohnsriverferry.com/)  The ferry was really neat as we got to drive the car on it and cross the river.  The kids and I had never been on anything like that before so it was a new experience.

Singleton's Seafood Shack  - Mayport, FL is not much to look at, but the food here is great.  The price point is very reasonable and the kids loved it. If you are ever in the area, I would suggest you check it out.

St. Augustine - Trip 1 - Educational - St. Augustine, FL

Almost 2 and a half years ago we went on our first mini vacation here in Florida.  Duane said that St. Augustine was a good place to go and learn about the history of Florida and that there was also a lot of fun things to do and see.  So off we went.  We drove the 2.5 hours up the A1A so that we could see the ocean and the scenery was just beautiful.  We decided to stay at the Howard Johnson's in St. Augustine.  Home to the "Old Senator" one of the oldest trees in Florida.  That day we took the sightseeing tram to figure out all there was to do and see.  It was very informative and I am really glad that we did it, because we found out all the hot spots and also some background information.

The first stop was the Old Jail.  This was great and since we were on the sightseeing tour we were able to get a discount.  We went inside the jail and they pretended we were criminals back in the olden days.  The kids, especially Cody, got a big kick out of it.  We had to be good to get our pass back to freedom. Outside of the jail they had a lot of pic moments to capture the feeling of the jail.

Our next spot was the Ponce DeLeon's Fountain of Youth.  We were allowed to walk around the grounds a lot and then went to the area that they have set up as the actual fountain that Ponce deLeon considered to be the fountain of youth.  Each person gets to go up and have a drink from the fountain.

The third stop was at the Shrine of the Lady, which once served as a mission and now was a church for the community.  They had a rather large cross that you could walk to as well as many famous saint statues.  The grounds were extremely pretty and we had a nice relaxing time walking through them.

Back on the train, we were off to the downtown area of St. Augustine.  This area you can get off the tram and really walk around exploring the many streets and areas of historial St. Augustine.  One of our stops was the first school house.  This is a small tour throught the "first school house" in Florida.  It is cute and not expensive if you use the coupon from one of the numerous coupon books that you can find around the area.

After exploring the many restaurants, shops and things to do we decided to head across the street and check out Fort Mantanzas.  We paid a small amount to enter and then got to explore the fort and the grounds.  It was really neat to be able to walk around and see how they lived back in the day and how well the fort itself has been preserved throught the years.

Upon walking around we found something that was definitely interesting.  It was palm tree that had grown right up the trunk of another tree.  The legend is that a palm nut fell down a small home of the other tree and grew out of love.  They then named this the love tree.  The legend is that if you kiss under this tree you will be together forever.

There are many other things to do and see around the old historic area of St. Augustine.  I would definetly suggest eating lunch at the old Spanish Bakery.  It is inexpensive, you have to take cash, and  delicious.  They have been cooking the same way since the 1700s.  It is not much to look at, but boy will you walk away full and satisfied.

Want to see more of St. Augustine - take a look at the blog St. Augustine Trip 2.  We went back in the summer and had fun with scooters.

St. Augustine on Dwellable