FLORIDA DAY TRIPS
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One of my Florida day trips was from Naples to Orlando and return on Saturday, April 10, 2010 and April 11, 2010.
Towns passed through or visited:
Naples, Fort Myers, LaBelle, Palmdale, Lake Placid, Sebring, Avon Park, Frostproof, Babson Park, Highland Park, Lake Wales, Dundee, Lake Hamilton, Haines City, Orlando, Dr. Phillips, Windemere, Winter Garden, Plymouth, Zellwood, Mount Dora, Tavares, Ellsworth, Astatula, Howey In The Hills, Groveland, Mascotte, Bay Lake, Lakeland, Mulberry, Brewster, Fort Meade, Bowling Green, Wauchula, Zolfo Springs, Arcadia, Nocatee, Fort Ogden, Punta Gorda, North Fort Myers, Fort Myers, Estero and Bonita Springs.
Saturday April 10: Naples to Orlando.
I-75 to State Road 80.
State Road 80 to LaBelle. Wide four lane with not much traffic through farm lands and woods.
State Road 29 from LaBelle across the Caloosahatchee River to US-27 south of Palmdale. Two lane lightly traveled, ranch land, woods.
US-27 is four lanes of rolling highway lightly traveled. The wonderful smell of thousands of orange grove blossoms perfumed the air all the way up to the mural city, Lake Placid, and beyond through Sebring and Avon Park. The easy driving makes this one of the most relaxing Florida day trips.
From just north of Avon Park, I got on US-27A also known as County Road 17 through Frostproof, Babson Park, Highland Park, Lake Wales,Dundee, Lake Hamilton, Haines City. Same beautiful orange blossom fragrance. Hundreds of small lakes, rolling hills and little towns. Old well maintained Florida grove homes, small affordable lakeview mom and pop motels. If you love the smell of orange groves, this is one of those Florida day trips that gives you plenty of that wonderful aroma.
From Haines City took US17 to Ronald Reagan Parkway (SR532), then got on I-4. Took I-4 to Sand Lake Road and west to my friend's house in Dr. Phillips.
Dr. Phillips in the old days was just a place name on Apopka Vineland Road. Now it is the center of huge housing developments and fantastic shopping and dining locations. Close to Universal Studios and Lake Buena Vista. Florida day trips in Central Florida can be jammed with traffic unless you take the backroads.
Sunday April 11: Orlando to Naples
The nice thing about Florida day trips is that you can take a different route going home than the one that got you there. That's what I did on this trip.
Left Doctor Phillips on Apopka Vineland Road to Conroy Road. Mormon Temple rising in the distance, a magnificent white edifice towering over the lakes and orange groves.
Conroy Road to Windemere. Windemere a quaint small town of huge oaks and orange groves. Downtown is gentrified, brick streets, tennis courts, coffee shops, benches, traffic circle. Home in the past and now of Disney and Universal executives. This town is always a highlight of any of my Florida day trips.
Took Vineland Winter Garden Road to Winter Garden. Art show going on downtown. Lots of happy people wandering around looking at stuff.
Took 429 to 437 on east side of Lake Apopka, great views of the lake in the distance and farmland being reclaimed. Caught 441. Rolled through Plymouth, Zellwood, then into Mount Dora.
Mount Dora was busy, tourists from Florida and elsewhere enjoying the downtown shops, restaurants and quiet streets. Beautiful lake views from the many hilly streets and neighborhoods. This town is among the best small Florida towns and is in the heart of the chain of lakes country.
From Mount Dora took Lakeshore Drive along the north shore of Lake Dora to Tavares. Tavares is the County seat of Lake County and has a large courthouse that still looks modern after 40 years or so.
Caught SR-19 south out of Tavares, then took 561 south through Ellsworth and Astatula to 455. Took a side trip to the western dead end of SR-48, a boat ramp on the eastern shore of Little Lake Harris.
Took SR-455 west to US-19, then north on 19 to Howey In The Hills, one of my favorite little Florida day trips and a neat little town. Lots of old houses left from the 1920's, I looked at a brick home for sale for $ 60,000 in a nice neighborhood on a hill, a short walk downhill to Little Lake Harris. Lots of big oaks, Spanish moss, quiet little downtown area. A sleepy little town a short drive from Mount Dora.
South on 19 to Groveland in the heart of what was once the citrus capital of the state. Groveland is on SR-50, that connects Titusville on the east coast with Weeki Wachee and Bayport on the west coast, going through Orlando, Clermont, Brooksville and Spring Hill on its way.
Drove west on SR-50 from Groveland to Mascotte for a few miles, then south on 565 from Mascotte to Bay Lake.
Bay Lake is on the edge of the Green Swamp, and is not to be confused with the incorporated City of Bay Lake near Lake Buena Vista created by the Disney organization more than 40 years ago. This other Bay Lake is really a crossroads with a Baptist church and a cemetery.
Drove from Bay Lake east on Lake Erie Road to SR-33. This is wilderness through the middle of the Green Swamp; one old house and a newer on on the whole route. Most of the land in the Green Swamp is government owned preserve.
Then I drove south ib SR-33 to downtown Lakeland. For those visitors who get off of I-4, they will see one of the most beautiful small cities in Florida. Beautiful lakes with many swans, live feathered ones and sculptures. Wonderfully authentic and renovated downtown Lakeland historic districts. People enjoying feeding the swans, relaxing in the many parks, riding bikes, skateboarding and just generally enjoying a sunny Florida Sunday.
I took SR-37 from downtown Lakeland through Mulberry, the capital of phosphate mining country, to SR-630 near Brewster. The roads and sideroads in this area are constantly changing as the phosphate mining companies open up new lands for mining. The landscape is desolate, with many dikes protecting the quarries from overflow flooding. Once in a while huge excavating draglines will loom up ahead of you. These are gigantic machines with a cab the size of a major city office building and a huge bucket that could swallow up several normal houses.
I drove west through this watery moonscape on SR-630 to Fort Meade, then south on US-17 from Fort Meade through Bowling Green, Wauchula, Zolfo Springs, Arcadia, Nocatee, Fort Ogden to downtown Punta Gorda.
The home stretch was US-41 from Punta Gorda through North Fort Myers, Fort Myers, Estero, Bonita Springs to Naples. Had a tasty dinner in Estero at Panera Bread Company at Coconut Point mall.
Photos of this trip and other Florida day trips are available at My Facebook Page.
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