Florida Panhandle-East

Staying in the Big Bend Region of Florida

We picked Perry as a stop, as it was about halfway from Sarasota to Pensacola, and close enough to visit the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, and just before arrival, discovered so much more to visit! We did it all in only 3 days, driving almost 400 miles:

Day 1, Check out the “Highly Recommended”

• Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park, a National Natural Landmark, is home to one of the world’s largest and deepest freshwater springs, with manatees, alligators and lots of birds which we viewed from a riverboat tour and the diving platform. Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) was filmed there. Lunch at the Historic Lodge was delicious! And the hike afterwards was nice.
• St Mark’s Wildlife Refuge, one of the oldest wildlife refuges in the United States, was established in 1931 as a wintering ground for migratory birds. We stopped at a few viewing sites, took a short walk on a levee, visited St Mark’s Lighthouse, built in 1831, and noted adjacent Big Bend Seagrasses Aquatic Preserve, the largest aquatic preserve in Florida, along over 150 miles of coastline. 

Day 2, Tallahassee

• Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park (a short stop on the way to Tallahassee) is the site of the second largest Civil War battle in Florida and where the St. Marks River drops into a sinkhole and flows underground for one-quarter of a mile before reemerging.
• The Florida State Capitol, Tallahassee (#32) is a 22 story high rise, which replaced the historic capitol building in 1977. No tours offered, and we didn’t make it to the Museum in the old Capitol. We found the elevator system the most interesting. Hmmm.
• Mission San Luis is a Living Museum, whose history is one of triumph, tragedy, and revival, extending from the Apalachee pre-contact period to the present, which we visited in Tallahassee after our Capitol Tour.
• Shopped at our 40th different Costco, in Tallahassee.

Day 3, What else can we fit in?

• Forest Capital Museum State Park, just a mile from our campground, has a museum which “celebrates the importance of forestry in Florida, dating back to the early 1800s”. In addition, there is an authentic 19th-century cracker homestead, much like those scattered throughout Florida at the turn of the century. We started our 3rd day there, before heading to…
• San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park, located where the St. Marks River joins the Wakulla River and flows out into Apalache Bay, since the 1500’s Spanish, English, American and Confederate forces have occupied the site. Great video & displays in the Museum and historic walking trail around the park
• Gulf Specimen Aquarium, our last stop (other than dinner on the water across the street in Panacea, FL) is a fascinating little (but not as little as it first appeared) aquarium.

Heading west on the Florida Panhandle!

For more pictures, see (in-work) Adventure Album:  Florida thru Gulf Coast

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Note…Planning Updates!

We actually added a 4th day to our stay (due to a glitch in near-term reservations) and used that day to make progress on summer/fall plans & reservations (What’s Comin Up?). We even added a whirl-wind, 2 week trip to the Northeast (East Brookfield, MA; the Jersey Shore; Troy, NY; and Donora, PA) in late September.