Naples beach: north gulfshore beach

8/26/2018

Florida Balm visits Naples North Gulf Shore public beach

Naples, Florida: Gulf Shore North Gulf Access

naples beach: North gulfshore is beautiful, family-friendly

Naples beaches are arguably some of the most beautiful clean coastlines in the country. It's on the southern tip of the gulf coast, in Southwest Florida (Collier County). Naples is a unique small town with an approximate 100 golf courses AND 100 art galleries, tons of shopping and restaurants, beaches, attractions and activities to do for all ages.

Just visiting a Naples Beach for the day? TIP: Weekday mornings try the Naples North Gulf Shore Access public parking lot. Just $8 for the full day, and walk a few steps to the shaded public access cobblestone walkway straight to the beach! We visited on a Friday at 11am in August and we were one of 4 cars in the lot.

Fairchild tropical gardens

5/9/2018

Fairchild Tropical Gardens, Coral Gables Florida

Fairchild tropical gardens

Fairchild Tropical Gardens is located in Coral Gables (Miami), in southeast Florida. If you like nature, you'll LOVE spending a day at this place! They have shuttles and walking tours, or go it yourself! You'll find everything from the most gorgeous koi ponds to pine rockland and tropical hammocks, rainforest and butterfly habitats and exhibits.

On weekends, they have fantastic events dedicated to Mangoes, Chocolate, Orchids, more! They are very family friendly with shuttles if you'd rather ride than walk! And they have a spot to stop for lunch. ALSO... they have a fantastic gift shop to visit and shop in, even if you don't enter the park. Great unique gift giving!

Loxahatchee river battlefield park

5/3/2018

Loxahatchee River Battlefield Park (aka Riverbend Park) is one of the most beautiful, family oriented parks we've visited in Florida. It's vast, spanning 64 acres and includes the site of the two battles of the Second Seminole War (1838), This park is meticulously maintained and offers many activities including biking, great canoeing/kayaking/paddling, nature trails and even 7 miles of equestrian trails! There are also Saturday tours of the historic battlefield, as well as lots of public events throughout the year. It's located in Jupiter, Palm Beach County in Southeast Florida and within a short 1-3 hour drive from most of Florida. Also known as Riverbend Park, its FREE to get in, and has FREE easy parking!

Gator Grass Scented Candles
fresh palm leaves, lemongrass, aloe & night-blooming jasmine... smells so good!

Great sandy launch for canoes, kayaks, paddleboards.
Beautiful narrow, shady, windy part of the Loxahatchee!

Trapper nelson's

5/1/2018

Trapper nelson interpretive site
on the Loxahatchee river

Trapper Nelson's site along the Loxahatchee River is inside of the Jonathan Dickinson State Park. It's right on the river, easily accessible via canoe or kayak. The Loxahatchee River is one of the last wild and natural rivers in Southeast Florida. Trapper Nelson began living here in the early 1930's and became a local legend known as "the Wildman of the Loxahatchee River". He built his jungle zoo and gardens and eventually had boats of people coming to visit his popular tourist destination. His cabin, some of his wild animal pens and other structures still stand. The park is well maintained and a great spot to stop for lunch and some real Florida history.

Just a couple hours of paddling out of Riverbend Park or Jonathan Dickinson... and you'll hit the best spot to bring your cooler for a lunch stop! Remember to bring a trash bag... 'leave no trace' at this gem in Florida history!

key west nas Truman annex military lodging

9/23/2017

Key West, Truman Annex Military Base Beach, Florida Balm

Take advantage of Key West Truman Annex lodging if you're Military

On the west tip of Key West is a lesser-known but fantastic part of Key West locally known as the Truman Annex. It's just outside of Old Town Key West where famous Duval Street and all the restaurants, bars, shopping and fun is at. Truman Annex (named after President Truman who spent time here during his presidency) has a beautiful large community of townhomes and condos and they are often available as vacation rentals, though very pricey and often hard to reserve. Just beyond this housing development you enter onto a section of Key West that's shared by the US Navy and Fort Zachary Taylor State Park. Pass a Coast Guard Cutter or Navy ship on your right, then the new Eco-Discovery Center, and you can either enter onto the Naval Base or the state park.

If you have military cred... USE IT HERE! Amazing location central to all the fun, a private beach and movie nights! Rent a bike, try to make reservations early (can't beat your nightly rate!). But from what we hear, they try to accommodate all military all the time - you deserve it!

STILTSVILLE, a must-see when boating in miami

9/9/2017

Miami Springs Boat Club at Stiltsville hovering above Biscayne Bay

Miami Springs Boat Club @ Stiltsville

Stiltsville at Biscayne National Park is full of rich South Florida hitory

Stiltsville, a small group of wooden stilt houses, which appear almost out of nowhere when boating Just off Key Biscayne and the Cape Florida Lighthouse in Miami. The grouping has a rich and spicey Miami past including gambling, night clubs, party houses and illegal activities starting in the early 1920's during Prohibition. The history and facts are pretty murky and there are plenty of conflicts in the historical accounting of Stiltsville activities. What we do know for sure, is that our beloved Stiltsville Village only has seven "houses" today.

The structures were built, at the time, as weekend getaways. Some were built by fishermen like "Crawfish Eddy", but quickly became dominated by the Miami powerful and elite. Because the location is one mile offshore, it's thought they were originally built there to be safe from any U.S. illegalities. But between zealous lawmen and hurricanes... eventually Stiltsville which once grew to nearly 30 structures (some historical accountings say more like nearly 60), only seven Stiltsville structures remain, none of which are original.

Sunset BEACH IN TARPON SPRINGS FLORIDA

9/4/2017

Sunset Beach in Tarpon Springs Florida, making friends with seagulls

Sunset Beach in Tarpon Springs is gorgeous: bring snorkeling gear and a volleyball!

After morning coffee and baklava at Hellas Bakery in Tarpon Springs, I headed over to Sunset Beach. It's about a ten minute drive east on Gulf Road. Though Sunset Beach is connected to the mainland, it is far enough out into the ocean that it has a great island feel. The park is nicely done with plenty of picnic shelters, playground, restrooms, plenty of parking. The beach is nearly 360 degrees around except for the road in and out, giving it a huge expanse of fantastic white sandy beach area. There's plenty of shallow water with plenty of swim area. Because it's out away from the mainland, and generally never overcrowded, you're sure to see crabs and fish almost as soon as you enter water. I wish I had brought my snorkeling gear, it's on my to-do list for next time I visit.

tarpon springs florida

9/1/2017

Seagulls enjoying Sunset Beach Florida in Tarpon Springs basking in sunshine

Sunset Beach in Tarpon Springs, Florida

I visited Tarpon Springs: fell in love with Greek culture and Sunset Beach!

Tarpon Springs is a place most Floridians have heard of (come on, it IS the Sponge Capital of the World!) but admit they haven't visited. Which means tourists know even less about this small unique little town. For those of us who have been there, selfishly we want to keep it the hidden secret it is... to preserve it's uniqueness and small town charm with it's Greek cultural flair.

Curious how the town got it's name, I did a quick online search. Apparently one of the first settlers of the area witnessed tarpon jumping out of the water and aptly named it after them. However, there seems to be some speculation that what he saw were actually mullet! We may never know for sure, but this great little town was established by fishermen in 1876 and by the 1880's it was home to a booming sponge industry. Greek divers were brought in for their expertise, and soon the town grew to be home to the largest concentrated Greek population in the US. And as visitors, we get to enjoy Greek food and shopping and an atmosphere is is completely unique to Florida and the rest of the country.

Recommendation: sit street side at Hellas Bakery enjoying the view of the sponge docks... the Baklava and
fresh Greek coffee are pure heaven!

Everglades Outpost Wildlife refuge

8/3/2017

Everglades Outpost Wildlife Rescue Entrance Sign, beginning to an amazing day

Everglades Outpost Wildlife Refuge is an unforgettable, special place to visit and we bet you'll fall in love with a lemur!

I'm always in search of two things: 1) the best strawberry milkshake in the universe and yes I keep a score card and 2) cool new places to visit. So if there's a strawberry milkshake along the way TO a cool new place to visit... WINNING!

One morning while in Miami, I hopped in the car and headed south towards the Everglades, to Robert Is Here fruit stand in Homestead. I've visited Robert's before, but it's been a long time and the craving set in. Countless types of milkshakes listed on the handwritten menu above... but my heart was set on strawberry. There's always a line, but I put my order in and went shopping among all the local fruits and veggies waiting for my number to be called.

I wanted a strawberry milkshake
and ended up in love with a lemur

My strawberry milkshake didn't disappoint. Just as heavenly as I remembered. In my humble opinion, BEST IN THE WORLD strawberry milkshake. While sipping, I strolled into the back of Robert's, and spent some time with the animals. They've added a bunch since I last remember... emu, goats, tortoises, birds, fish. A big pond, waterfalls. It's a pretty cool place to sit and hang out. [I'll come back to Robert is Here in another blog post in the near future. It definitely deserves it's own post!] But the day was young, and I was now in farm country and very close to the Everglades.

I had previously heard of the Everglades Outpost Wildlife Refuge not far from Robert's, so I left in search of more animals. Lucky for me, it was only about 3 miles down the road. The first thing I noticed on my way was a beautiful mural of a sunset over the everglades. And from that point on, I had the best day ever. Entering the park I was greeted by volunteers who give a little overview and a point in the right direction to begin. I walked around for hours and fell in love with each animal and their story, one by one. Wolf, zebra, tiger oh my! There's an alligator pit, tortoises, birds and so much more. I listened as the volunteers shared each animal's story... how they were rescued, most with a sad past life and amazing recovery story.. And then I found Kenya.

florida beach camping at cayo costa state park

7/22/2017

Florida Beach Camping at Cayo Costa State Park offers 9 miles of pristine beach and gorgeous skies

Florida Beach Camping: Cayo Costa State Park

Florida beach camping offers some of the most unique, fantastic vacationing for lovers of nature and the outdoors. But it can be tricky. Location, time of the year, and preparedness will make or break your Florida beach camping experience. Our FAVORITE Florida Beach Camping is at Cayo Costa State Park. There's nothing else like it. Located on the west coast of Florida, it's an barrier island only accessible by boat and visited by very few people. It offers amazingly beautiful water and beaches full of shells, fish, birds. Fantastic snorkeling and fishing can be enjoyed from the beach or a rented kayak or boat.

Recommendation: secure your campsite or cabin ahead of time, for late fall or early spring to avoid battling mosquitoes and sweat.

We've camped there several times and each trip is a completely different experience. We've collected beautiful shells, seen pods of dolphin just feet away off the shallow beach, did some great beach fishing and had some of our most memorable campfires. You can walk the nature trails, visit an early 1900's graveyard, and the kid's favorite... ride your rented bike over to the (tiny) convenient store on a hot sunny day and buy some freeze pops! ( <--- that may sound a little silly, but trust us... it's a thing!).

During the day there are ferries and charter boats that bring visitors for half day or full day excursions. These companies can be found heading out of Bokeelia, Captiva, Ft. Myers and Punta Gorda. They are also a great way to get to the island with all your camping gear if you plan to stay overnight or longer. Just make sure you make the arrangements with them on days and times of pickups needed. Once you reach the main dock, there are big plastic wheelbarrows you can use to unload your camping gear from the boat and a tram driven by a park volunteer that will take you and all your gear over to your campsite. It's a pretty awesome set up.

Peacock Springs

7/1/2017

Peacock Springs Florida State Park underwater photo in peacock blue springs

Finding Florida at Peacock Springs State Park

Peacock Springs State Park is REAL FLORIDA! Florida isn't just beaches and sunshine. Visit most anywhere along the Suwannee River in this area and you will experience some of the most unique, beautiful fresh water springs and nature preserves you never knew existed. Surround yourself with magnificent cypress trees and swampy terrain barely touched by civilization. You'll realize Florida is so much more precious and unique than anything you might imagine. Peacock Springs is one of those places. It's fairly hidden along the Suwannee River, and though named after it's previous owner Dr. John Calvin Peacock... it's also perfectly named due to the color of the water. The best experience at Peacock Springs will depend on the time of year and the Suwannee River water level. Check before you go! This spring looks different every single time you'll visit, and the water clarity will depend on the water level and time of year.

suwannee river paddling, camping

6/30/2017

SUWANNEE RIVER PADDLING, CAMPING BEST WAY TO SEE NATURAL FLORIDA SPRINGS

The best way to experience the Suwannee River is by canoe. It's the only way you'll truly be able to experience the incredible natural phenomenon of crystal clear blue freshwater springs INSIDE parts of the Suwannee River. Yes, paddle down the big brownish colored waters of the Suwannee River and all of a sudden... a big bright blue circle of crystal clear 70 degree water appears.

The Suwannee flows through the south of Georgia and north Florida for about 246 miles and then rolls into the Gulf of Mexico. When you paddle, you see natural forests and wildlife, trees hundreds of years old, and the beloved natural Florida springs.

Some of the springs have caves, some have rope swings, some are deep enough to swim in. All of them are unique, and the best way to encounter their brilliance is when you spot them on your paddling ride down the river. Stop the canoe, tie it up and go enjoy a uniquely-Florida freshwater natural spring. It's that easy, and that wonderful.

Miami beach best beach and parking tip

6/20/2017

Miami Beach beautiful sunny beach day

Miami Beach Best Beach and Parking Tip

Miami Beach is home to beautiful beaches, year-round sunshine and beautiful ocean breezes. It's easy to find the sand and water, but where's the best beach? Highly subjective answer, but we say it's a stretch of beach next to the Eden Roc and Fontainebleau. Why do we like this one best? Well, sure, all the beaches of Miami Beach share the same water and sand. The same fish swim, same seagulls fly... back and forth. But when you're talking about Miami Beach, you HAVE to factor in things like crowds, cleanliness and parking.

Parking can be brutal especially if South Beach is your destination. We do like visiting South Beach because it's beach has a boardwalk, park with hills and it has Smith and Wollensky (great restaurant and bar with a view). But it gets so very crowded, and finding parking can be incredibly frustrating. Depending on the day, this spot is probably not a best choice.

key west Sigsbee NAS & campground

6/18/2017

Sunset over Key West Harbor, from Sigsbee Naval Camground, www.floridabalm.com

Enjoy Key West with your military privileges

Key West is a place everyone loves to visit. If you haven't been yet, it's time! Whether you're single or married, no matter what age, whether you have small children or grown... Key West has plenty for everyone to enjoy. But did you know? If you have military privileges... you'll be able to see and take advantage of Key West like non-military never can. Perks? Here's a bunch...

key west Mallory square sunset gathering

6/17/2017

Mallory Square Sunset Gathering with amazing street performers, art, food and fun, www.floridabalm.com

Key West Mallory Square Sunset Tradition

Mallory Square is the heart of Old Town Key West. Each night at sunset, a gathering at Mallory Square occurs no matter what day or time of year. Street performers, many of whom have performed here for many years, claim their space on the Square and give one fantastic performance after another. Entertainment, food, drinks, art, shopping all appear almost out of nowhere just for sunset and all overlooking Key West Harbor. It's family friendly fun, and there's plenty of it for everyone!

Key west beach on Truman annex

6/16/2017

Gorgeous day at Key West Beach at Fort Zachary Taylor in Truman Annex, www.floridabalm.com

Key West Beach @ Fort Zachary Taylor, Truman Annex

Key West is home to several of the most beautiful beaches in Florida. Everyone that knows Key West well has their own favorite beach. Each has a different vibe with different amenities and characteristics. On our most recent Key West weekend getaway we chose to spend the day at the Key West Beach on the Truman Annex at Fort Zachary Taylor. This beach is large and sandy, though parts of it can be a bit rocky. We like I because it has plenty of parking (for bikes and cars), plenty of picnic tables and grills, tons of shade so you can stay there all day without feeling "cooked", good restroom and outdoor shower facilities... and a mini-restaurant! Yep. Cooked food! A good lunch PLUS frozen key lime pie on a stick for dessert... pure awesome.

Key west fort Zachary taylor state park

6/15/2017

Fort Zachary Taylor pre-civil war fort on a gorgeous Key West day with American Flag flying proudly

Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in Key West

Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in Key West Truman Annex on a gorgous sun shiny day

Fort Zachary Taylor dates back to before the Civil War. It's at Key West's western tip and is part of the 87 mile Florida State Park. Visiting the fortress/compound makes for a relaxing hour or two of enjoying the park and Truman Annex area. The Fort is primitive and has been left to the elements... there's no gift shop or fancy recreations. What you see is what's left after decades and up to 200+ years of aging. Which in our opinion, is kinda unique and cool.

Key West Truman AnneX

6/15/2017

Key West beach at Truman Annex www.floridabalm.com

Truman Annex, beach at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in Key West

Key West Truman Annex: the ultimate something-for-everyone weekend!

Key West is like no other place on Earth. When we're asked for the best things to do in Florida... Key West ALWAYS tops the list. Whether you visit just once, or once a year like we do... you gotta go! Our favorite part of every trip is spending time at the Truman Annex. It's filled with presidential and military history dating as far back as the Civil War. If you like history, read up on it before you visit, it's super interesting. Key West might be the southernmost part of the US, but during the Civil War... it fought for the Union. That's right... the north was represented in the south at Fort Zachary Taylor. And just one hour south of Key West is Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas with even more cool history and the BEST SNORKELING!

peace river at Zolfo springs

5/20/2017

Our Peace River Shark Tooth Paddling Expedition a great success!

We've heard stories of how easy it is to find fossil shark teeth along the Peace River. But come on, shark tooth in a freshwater RIVER? The ocean, yes... sure, maybe even on a beach if you're super lucky. But in the middle of the state of Florida? We're happy to report, indeed, our mission was a success!

We make our Peace River trip a 2 night 3 day camping trip. In our opinion, camping is the best way to really experience the area and natural surroundings. We paddled about 10 miles total, stopping intermittently at a couple of small beachy picnic spots to snack and rest a bit. But it wasn't one of these accessible spots we found our treasure....

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pLACES

Alligator Lighthouse
Anastasia State Park
Biscayne National Park
Deering Estate, Miami
Elliot Key & Boca Chita
Cayo Costa State Park
Everglades Outpost
Everglades National Park
Fairchild Gardens, Miami
Fort Myers Beach
Johnathon Dickinson
Key West Aquarium
Key West Beach
Key West Fort Taylor
Key West Ghost Tour
Key West Mallory Square
Key West NAS Lodging
Key West Sigsbee NAS
Key West Truman Annex
Knaus Berry Farm
Miami Beach
Naples Gulfshore Beach
Naples Zoo
Peace River, Zolfo Springs
Peacock Springs
Riverbend Park, Jupiter
Robert Is Here
Silver Springs State park
Stiltsville, Miami
St. Augustine
Sunset Beach, Tarpon Spg
Suwannee River
Tarpon Springs
Trapper Nelson's
Volcano Bay, Orlando

events

Deering Seafood Festival
FantasyFest Key West
South Florida Seafood Fest
Coconut Grove Art Fest

Florida Balm Scented Natural Soap Bars, Gator Grass

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Pirate's Breath Natural Soap on Deck

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Pink Flamingo Natural Soap on Deck

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Seashore Serenity Natural Soap on Deck

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Pirate's Breath 3 Wick Candles by Florida Balm

Pink Flamingo Scented 3 Wick Candles by Florida Balm