Your Guide To Northern Florida

TripAdvisor.com has a theme…get the truth than go! I have found TripAdvisor a helpful travel site to find the best hotels and motels or just find out what to do at the destination of your trip. Hotels are given reviews, which is nice.

Whether you check out their forum or just use their hotel finder with a review of the best to worst hotels and motels. Once you find the hotel you would like to stay in, up pops check rates. This gives the prices from Expedia, hotels.com, Bookit.com, Orbitz, WhataHotel.com and PerfectEscapes.com, all at the same time.

I enjoy using the forum. Let’s say you want to travel to St. Augustine, Florida, type in your destination and people that have posted will fill you in on vacation hot spots, in St. Augustine. I especially like to read what the Local Expert says. This is one way I find out the best hotels and restaurants in the town when I am traveling through, ask a local. Of course they will know what is the best restaurants or tourists sites to visit.

TripAdvisor must be helpful, today on the top of their website they mention helping 17,361,025 travelers plan their trip this week. I wish I were one of them.

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The Florida Folk Festival was cancelled in May due to the fires that were near Stephen Foster State Park. The festival has been rescheduled for November 9- November 11, 2007.

As one of the oldest folk festivals in America, the event now brings 30,000 concert goers to the festival each year to hear more than 200 music shows a day on multiple stages.

For three full days and nights the Suwannee River is filled with Florida’s music, and stories presenting the history of Florida’s many cultures. Over 600 of Florida’s folk and roots artists from little towns and large cities through out the Sunshine State gather in the hamlet of White Springs to celebrate Florida’s land and it’s people.

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Are you looking for last minute late travel deals?

Florida is your state to find late summer travel deals. Discover over 20 Lighthouses in Florida. My favorite has been the St. Augustine Lighthouse. The view is spectacular from the top. Marsh lands on one side and the ocean on the other.

The 161-foot tower has 6 flights of spiral stairs ascending to the lantern. The Lighthouse is painted with black and white spiral bands.

Historians say Ponce de Leon discovered St. Augustine in 1513. It was the earliest port and the busiest harbor in Florida.

St. Augustine is the nation’s oldest city. An abundance of history can be found in this Florida town, and is a perfect place to spend a day or two. You will find the best-fried shrimp you have ever had at Osteen’s Restaurant on Anastasia Blvd, across the Bridge of Lions.

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The summer crowds have left and Ichetucknee is coming alive. Fall is an excellent time to visit the park to enjoy a peaceful stroll on the trails at the north end of the park or to canoe or kayak down the river. See Ichetucknee Springs in a new light as the leaves are slowly changing colors and the wildlife is out in abundance.

Visitors can enjoy picnicking, snorkeling, canoeing, swimming, hiking, and wildlife viewing at Ichetucknee Springs. October through March scuba diving is available in the Blue Hole only (you must be cave certified). Picnic areas, equipped with tables and grills, are available throughout the park. The park located four miles northwest of Fort White, off State Roads 47 and 238.

Special Events for Ichetucknee Springs State Park

Date: Saturday, October 13, 2007. 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.
Description: Meet at the south entrance of Ichetucknee Springs State Park to register and participate in the Walk For Life. Lunch will be provided for all participants.
For more information contact Catherine Estes, Director, Crossroads Pregnancy Center, 386-497-4978. Sponsored by Crossroads Pregnancy Center.
Fees: Park entrance fee may apply.
Contact: For more information, call 386-497-4978.

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Jameson Inn is chain that is pet friendly hotel mostly located in the southeast part of the United States. You would find that this is a pet friendly hotel.

Jameson Inns do have high standards. Fresh baked cookies and milk are served early evening. Jameson Inns have an excellent free breakfast with Belgian Waffles, biscuits and gravy cereal fruit, etc. Jameson Inns have large clean rooms with high-speed Internet, pool, and fitness rooms. The outside structure reminds me of a huge southern mansion. I highly recommend this chain of hotels. They do have specific rooms for the traveler that is looking for a pet friendly hotel.

A pet friendly hotel disgusts some people, especially if they are not pet owners themselves. Those that need to travel with their pet and need to find a pet friendly hotel, are challenged at times by the lack of finding nice accommodations. If traveling near Atlanta on the way to Florida check out either the Jameson Inn or Hotel Indie.

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The National Hurricane Center maintains a continuous watch on tropical cyclones over the Atlantic, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and the Eastern Pacific from May 15 through November 30. The Center prepares and distributes hurricane watches and warnings for the general public, and also prepares and distributes marine and military advisories for other users.

HurricaneStore.com carries products to help people remain safe, nourished, and informed during and after an emergency. Our products sell nationally throughout the year - not just during hurricane season.

Hurricane Season is almost over, but storms hit year round. Beings I do not live close to the shorelines, the threats of a hurricane are minimal where I live. Nevertheless when a hurricane or storm threatens our area it is wise to be prepared.

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The Florida Panther is a large, long-tailed, pale brown cat that grows to six feet or longer.

The most endangered of all Florida’s symbols is its state animal, the panther which was chosen in 1982 by a vote of students throughout the state.

The Panther has been protected from legal hunting in Florida since 1958. It has been on the federal endangered species list since 1967 and on the state’s endangered list since 1973. The Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission is responsible for management and preservation of this endangered State Animal.

Historically Panthers have ranged across the southeastern United States including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and parts of Tennessee and South Carolina. Now, the breeding population is found only in the southern tip of Florida.

In recent years, young male panthers have traveled as far as northeast Florida. Females do not roam as widely.

I have had the experience of seeing a Florida Panther while driving in North Florida. I wish I would have captured the panther on my camera. I was driving 55 m.p.h. down Highway 240, in Columbia County when this Panther gracefully ran across the road and hopped onto a wooden fenced pole. He perched with all four legs on the pole for a split second, then continued to run into an open field. I was in awe to see such a beautiful creature right before my eyes!

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Daytona Turkey Run Car Show

Plan Ahead for this Annual Event

November 21–November 25, 2007

This classic automobile swap meet and sale is held annually at Daytona International Speedway. Turkey Run features more than 5,000 special interest vehicles including street machines, customs, street rods, classics, sports cars, muscle cars, race cars and trucks.

Admission Fee: $15 Thurs., Fri. & Sat.; $10 Sun. Children (under 11) free.

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For decades, The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens has given Jacksonville, Florida residents, and all visitors a place to see exotic animals. It is also a place to see beautiful plants, a first-of-its-kind botanical garden inside the Zoo.

Jacksonville Zoo has a train so you can travel through the Zoo the easy way, aboard the exciting Zoo Train.

Make a day of checking out the Jacksonville Zoo, Kingsley Plantation and Little Talbot Island all within 1/2 hour of each other.

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