Author: reweidman50

Back to Lake Apopka

reweidman50 Florida Alligators, Florida Wildlife, Uncategorized, Wandering Florida , , , , , ,

If you want to view Florida wildlife and social distance with little effort at the same time, the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive is the perfect choice! More than 360 bird species have been observed here and you are almost guaranteed to see at least a couple of alligators along the way as well. Note that the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive is open only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday between 7 AM and 3 PM. In addition, the Wildlife Drive gets crowded during this time of year, so budget at least 1 to 3 hours for your outdoor adventure.

Enchanted Forest Revisited

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Gopher Tortoise, Uncategorized , , , ,

It’s been some time since we spent a morning wandering the scenic trails of Enchanted Forest Sanctuary, so we headed out there last Saturday. A couple of the trails were a little soggy, but we had a great outing just the same. One of the gopher tortoises at the entrance even stuck his head out to greet us! All in all, a really nice hike and highly recommended if you’re ever visiting the Titusville area along the fabled Space Coast.

Lazy Day at the SandBar

reweidman50 Florida Bars, Uncategorized , , , , ,

We spent a recent Saturday at Capt. Hiram’s SandBar in Sebastian and had a blast as usual! There’s nothing like an afternoon at the SandBar where you can enjoy some great food (the Asian Tuna Nachos are highly recommended!), drink some amazing cocktails, listen to live music and simply soak in the laid-back atmosphere. Check it out!

Turkey Creek Sanctuary

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Florida Preserves, Florida Wildlife, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

As soon as we left the parking lot and made our way through the entrance of 130-acre Turkey Creek Sanctuary and walked as far as the boardwalk, a light drizzle turned into a significant downpour and unfortunately we had to abort our hike. However, this well-maintained sanctuary looks like an amazing spot in Palm Bay to enjoy the great Florida outdoors and we will return soon! By the way, Turkey Creek Sanctuary was established in 1981 and features not only the 1.85-mile boardwalk, but 1.5 miles of jogging trails, a one-mile mountain bike trail, the Margaret Hines Nature Center and more. It is part of the East Florida section of the Great Florida Birding Trail. Wildlife that call Turkey Creek Sanctuary home include Florida cooters, manatees, alligators, otters, ospreys and owls.

Barrier Island Sanctuary

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Gopher Tortoise, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

Nestled along A1A in Melbourne Beach, the Barrier Island Sanctuary Management & Education Center serves as the gateway to the 258-acre Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge. The Center itself features a variety of interactive exhibits, auditorium, gift shop and observation deck. Don’t miss the opportunity to take the one-mile hiking trail through several scenic habitats that are home to wildlife such as great land crabs, gopher tortoises, ospreys and great blue herons. 

Wandering Around Audubon Park

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Uncategorized , , ,

I accidentally stumbled upon Audubon Park while exploring Green Springs Park and the Spring-to-Spring Trail in Deltona. Audubon Park encompasses approximately 60 acres and features a nice boardwalk, four small water bodies used for stormwater management and access via the Spring-to-Spring Trail. It’s a great place to get away from it all (I nearly had the entire place to myself!).

Lake Woodruff

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Florida Parks, Florida State Parks, Uncategorized , , , ,

Several months ago, I got the chance to take a brief stroll and sample Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge in De Leon Springs after I hiked a little bit at De Leon Springs State Park (or was it the other way around?). It’s a great spot for hiking, birding and wildlife viewing in general. I need to return here (after hunting season ends!) and explore some more.

Black Bear Hike 2020

reweidman50 Florida Hiking Trails, Florida Rivers, Florida Wildlife, Uncategorized , , ,

In August, my son and I finally managed to hike the entire 7.1-mile Black Bear Wilderness Loop Area in Sanford. It was a great experience and several miles of the trail run alongside the scenic St. Johns River. We didn’t see any alligators this time out, but we did view two deer along the way. The trail is definitely rugged, so bring plenty of water and bug spray, and prepare to invest at least 3.5 hours if you plan to hike the entire thing. However, a good short hike involves going counterclockwise to the St. Johns River and back for a two-mile stroll.