Eyewitness Travel Family Guide Florida Read online

  14. Daytona Beach

  15. Museum of Arts and Sciences (MOAS)

  16. Blue Spring State Park

  17. Ocala National Forest

  18. Ocala Thoroughbred Farm Country

  19. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park

  20. Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park

  21. Florida Museum of Natural History

  22. Devil’s Millhopper Geological State Park

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  >>Where to Stay

  < The Northeast

  1. Jacksonville

  A city for all seasons

  Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)

  Founded in 1822, Jacksonville flourished as a port and railroad hub in the late 19th century. The largest city in Florida, it has the lion’s share of the Northeast’s major cultural attractions – museums with outstanding kids’ programs, large concert venues, and an award-winning zoo. With great weather almost year-round, the city and its beaches offer plenty to do outdoors, too. Due to the size of the city, it is essential to rent a car to get around.

  Key Sights

  1. Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens Play with digital paint on giant canvases, dance to create colorful patterns, and explore all forms of art at the Art Connections program in this museum.

  2. Museum of Science and History (MOSH) The KidSpace educational play area, a next-generation planetarium, and a schedule of thrilling shows make MOSH a huge draw for families.

  3. Jacksonville Landing Shop at classy stores, dine in the international food court, and catch exciting events at this entertainment complex.

  4. Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Five galleries filled with modern and contemporary art, plus interactive fun at the ArtExplorium Loft await visitors at this impressive museum.

  5. EverBank Field From major concerts, symphony performances, and outdoor festivals to NFL football with the Jacksonville Jaguars, this 76,000-seat facility hosts some of the biggest events in Jacksonville.

  6. Adventure Landing and Shipwreck Island Waterpark There is lots to please kids at this theme park, including miniature golf, laser tag, go-karts, and a game arcade, as well as water rides in summer.

  Left Museum of Contemporary Art Middle Adventure Landing and Shipwreck Island Waterpark Right Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens

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  Kids’ Corner

  A river that flows north!

  The St. Johns River is unusual because, like the Nile in Africa, it is one of the few rivers that flows south to north.

  The river averages more than 2 miles (3 km) in width between Palatka and Jacksonville.

  It drops only 30 ft (10 m) from its source to the sea, making it one of the laziest rivers in the world.

  Sharks’ teeth

  You shouldn’t expect to find an enormous tooth like you would see in a shop, though you might get lucky. Check the patches of small shells along the waterline for something tiny, black, and shiny.

  Really the biggest?

  Jacksonville is thought to be “the largest city in the US” in terms of square miles. But that’s not really accurate – it’s just the largest in the contiguous 48 states (the 48 that touch each other). Yakutat, in Alaska, is really the largest city, with 9,459 sq miles (15,223 sq km) of land area.

  Saving sand dollars in the sandbank

  The wide beaches of Jacksonville are scattered with more than 50 kinds of local shells that are fun to find and save. Look for lightning whelks, olives, angel wings, baby’s ear moonsnails, scallops, and even a “Florida jewel box.” The best time to find shells is at low tide, especially in late fall, after storms.

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  < The Northeast

  2. Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens

  Into the wild on a walking safari

  Entry to the Range of the Jaguar exhibit

  Opened in 1914, Jacksonville Zoo started out with just one red deer. Today, it has grown into an award-winning regional zoo with more than 1,500 animals; among them are fierce-looking Komodo dragons, playful gorillas and bonobos, docile giraffes, high-spirited elephants in their massive pool, and delightful penguins. Extensive boardwalks with specially designed overlooks meander throughout this huge zoo, allowing visitors to experience a “walking safari.”

  Key Features

  1. Wild Florida Florida’s treasured wildlife is the focus of this exhibit. Check out more than two dozen species of reptiles and amphibians in the Reptile House.

  2. River Valley Aviary See a variety of birds, from Inca terns to colorful macaws, in this aviary. Also see the world’s smallest deer and the largest freshwater fish.

  3. Stingray Bay This interactive exhibit allows visitors to observe, touch, and feed stingrays.

  4. Play Park Kids can cool off in the huge Splash Ground or find their way out of a hedge maze in this park. See penguins at close quarters in the Tuxedo Coast exhibit.

  5. Carousel and Zoo Train The classic Wildlife Carousel with beautiful animal figures is a kid-pleaser. Don’t miss a ride around the zoo on the Zoo Train.

  6. Asia and Australia While the Komodo dragon exhibit steals the show at Monsoon Asia, kangaroos and wallabies delight visitors at the Australian Adventure exhibit.

  7. Range of the Jaguar This award-winning jaguar exhibit also features a replica of a Mayan temple that is home to boa constrictors and bushmaster snakes.

  8. Africa Loop Walk along an elevated boardwalk to view African animals, such as pelicans and zebras, in re-creations of their natural habitat. The African Reptile Building has cobras and mambas.

  Left Carousel and Zoo Train Middle Africa Loop Right Stingray Bay

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  Kids’ Corner

  Penguins quiz

  The zoo’s Tuxedo Coast is home to Magellanic penguins. Do you know how they differ from other penguins? See if you can figure out if the statements below are true or false: They live on the coastline of Argentina and Chile.

  They were named for a famous explorer.

  Only one parent helps keep the egg warm until it hatches.

  They only eat plants.

  >> Answers

  Cheetah champs

  If all the world’s four-legged animals ever enter a race, you should bet on the cheetah to win – they are the planet’s champion sprinters, able to run at a speed of 70 mph (113 km/h).

  Spot the jaguar

  A baby jaguar doesn’t have to “grow into” its spots – the kittens are born with plenty of them on their yellowish fur. A jaguar’s special markings are called “rosettes.” These are open rings that have up to four different dark spots inside them. Some Native American tribes believe the spots are like stars or suns, and that the rosettes look like eclipses swallowing the stars.

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  < The Northeast

  3. Talbot Islands State Parks

  Marshes, highlands, and rivers galore

  Aboard the St. Johns River Ferry from Jacksonville

  From marshes, highlands, and rivers, to 40 miles (65 km) of Atlantic beaches, this remarkable cluster of state parks offers a great chance to explore a broad range of natural habitats. Families can choose from a wide variety of exciting outdoor adventures including fishing, canoeing, kayaking, surfing, and beachcombing. Be sure to carry sunscreen, insect repellent, drinking water, and a picnic – the parks do not sell any food or drink.

  Key Sights

  1. Yellow Bluff Fort Historic State Park Hike and picnic in this small peaceful park, a Civil War site that was used as an encampment by both Confederate and Union soldiers at different times.

  2. Fort George Island Cultural State Park Attractions here include the Ribault Club visitor center and the Kingsley Plantation – the oldest plantation home in Florida.

 
3. Little Talbot Island State Park Noted for its stunning beach, the park offers campsites within walking distance of the ocean, complete with picnic pavilions and bathhouses.

  4. Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve State Park A vast area of uplands with miles of hiking and biking trails, this park also has great launch sites for kayaking and canoeing.

  5. Big Talbot Island State Park With skeletal remains of oak trees scattered along its shore, Boneyard Beach is this park’s best-known attraction.

  6. George Crady Bridge Fishing Pier This mile-long pedestrian bridge across Nassau Sound is a favorite with North Florida anglers.

  7. Amelia Island State Park Swim at a beautiful beach, hike through the coastal forest, fish from the shore, and kayak through creeks and marshes in this park.

  Left Little Talbot Island State Park Middle Skeletal remains of oak trees at the Big Talbot Island State Park Right Fishing at Amelia Island State Park

  >>Practical Information

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  >>Eat and Drink

  >>Kids' Corner

  Kids’ Corner

  Test your “bird brain”

  See if you can spot the following birds at the park, using these descriptors: Sandwich tern These birds have shaggy black crests (crown on the head) and yellow-tipped black bills.

  Laughing gull Look out for long, red beaks and reddish-black to black legs.

  Great blue heron These herons have very hairy heads, chests and wings, and yellowish bills.

  Black-masked bandits

  If you’re camping in northeastern Florida, a raccoon might want to steal your food. Just latching the cooler won’t do. In one study, scientists found that it took fewer than ten tries for raccoons to figure out complex locks. Ask a park ranger for advice on keeping your food safe from raccoons.

  Digging into the past

  Native Americans lived on the Talbot Islands for thousands of years before Europeans arrived, and the area was the site of dozens of little settlements and hunting camps. More than 400 years ago, the Spanish mission San Juan del Puerto was established on Fort George Island, as well as smaller missions called visitas (visitors). Archaeologists’ explorations indicate that one named “Sarabay” was on Big Talbot Island.

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  < The Northeast

  4. Fernandina Beach

  Shrimps and small-town charm

  Old courthouse in the Historic District, Fernandina Beach

  Located on Amelia Island, with the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Amelia River on the other, this quaint and quiet coastal town was the birthplace of the modern shrimping industry in the US. The historic business district, around Centre Street, is bordered by the docks, where visitors can watch the shrimp fleet return at sunset. In the heart of Fernandina Beach, the 50-block Historic District is a neighborhood of gorgeous Victorian-era buildings. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the district is filled with shops and restaurants. Stroll the streets on a self-guided or museum-led tour, or take a trolley or a horse-drawn carriage, which kids are sure to enjoy.

  >>Practical Information

  >>Take Cover

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  >>Kids' Corner

  Kids’ Corner

  Fernandina’s flags

  Fernandina Beach is the only place in the US to have flown eight different flags. Can you find out which governments these national flags represented?

  Every year the town celebrates its history with the Isle of Eight Flags Festival. Learn more about the story on www.shrimpfestival.com.

  >> Answers

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  < The Northeast

  5. Fort Clinch State Park

  Relive the Civil War

  Kids learning how to work a water pump at Fort Clinch State Park

  Named for Duncan Lamont Clinch, a general in the Seminole Wars (1816–58), Fort Clinch is more than just a historic military site. In addition to the fort, the site has a beach, trails, and campsites. Begun in 1847 to protect Fernandina Harbor, the fort was built right where the St. Marys River flows into the Atlantic Ocean.

  The clean, quiet beach is a major draw for swimmers and sunbathers. Anglers frequent the beach to fish off the pier and the finger jetties, or to make the most of excellent surf fishing opportunities. Outdoor enthusiasts can walk the nature trails or bike the off-road trails.

  However, for many families the prime attraction is the chance to see skilled re-enactors – or “living historians,” as the park calls them – re-creating living conditions at the fort during the Civil War (1861–5). Watch them perform kitchen and laundry chores, and at times – to the delight of most kids – marching drills and artillery demonstrations.

  >>Practical Information

  >>Letting Off Steam

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  Kids’ Corner

  Fort Clinch Quiz

  Fort Clinch is five-sided, which makes it: (a) an octagon (b) a hexagon (c) a pentagon

  Was the fort occupied by Confederate forces or Union forces in the Civil War?

  Which of these can be seen at the military site: (a) manatees; (b) alligators; (c) ghosts

  >> Answers

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  < The Northeast

  6. Cumberland Island National Seashore

  In the lap of nature

  A wild horse at the Dungeness Mansion in Cumberland Island National Seashore

  Although Cumberland Island is just across the border, in Georgia, visitors to Fort Clinch can see its southern edge across Cumberland Sound. Unlike most barrier islands on the Atlantic, Cumberland is not home to golf courses and gated communities, but to pristine beaches, marshes, and a variety of bird and animal species. The ferry ride from St. Marys is fun; lucky visitors may see dolphins leaping near the boat. The island’s tranquil shell-strewn beach is a treat for shell-collectors. Nature-lovers will love the hike trails winding through maritime forests, wetlands, and even historic districts. Look out for herds of wild horses grazing among the ruins of Dungeness Mansion. The island also offers plenty of bird-watching opportunities.

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  Kids’ Corner

  Wild horses at play

  Do you know how a herd of wild horses ended up on an island in the Atlantic Ocean? They may have come to the area with Spanish explorers, or they may have swum ashore from sinking 16th-century galleons. It’s thought they’ve been here for centuries – maybe even as long as 500 years.

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  < The Northeast

  7. St. Augustine

  A little bit of Spain

  The González-Alvarez House

  This remarkable city is home to living history museums and elaborate Spanish-style architecture. Its historic district includes 144 blocks, with a wealth of interesting sights, restaurants, and unique shops. Spanning the Matanzas River, the famous Bridge of Lions connects the city to Anastasia Island, which has a classic striped lighthouse and miles of white-sand beaches.

  Key Sights

  1. Villa Zorayda Museum Built in 1883, this building is a one-tenth scale replica of a portion of the Alhambra in Spain. Now a museum, it houses a superb collection of artifacts from the Middle East.

  2. Plaza de la Constitucioón Surrounded by historic buildings, this shady square has been a central part of the city’s life – from treaty ceremonies to family picnics – for more than 400 years.

  3. Bridge of Lions During Florida’s land boom in the 1920s – when the city had plenty of money – this historic landmark was built at an exorbitant cost, complete with the marble lions that guard it.