Candid Florida

It’s been about five years since I stopped in at Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park in Niceville, and this time, the trails were open and ready for business. On my last visit, I was too close on the heels of hurricane damage in the region, and my time was short. Did a full survey of the beautiful trail system here, three loops that offer views of bayou, stream, and cedar forest, and tromped through the campground twice, wishing I had indeed finalized plans to camp here, as it’s one of the nicer ones I’ve encountered. The sites look out over the water but are in deep shade.  Whether you’re picnicking, birding, camping, or enjoying the hiking trails (soon to be discussed in depth on Florida Hikes!), this park along SR 20 is worth the stop!

A “Great Florida Birding Trail” sign along SR 20 gave me pause to slow down and turn around for tiny Laird Park on the city limits of Freeport. I’d hoped the boardwalk led to a more extensive hike, but this is a small place, perfect for a picnic and a stroll along a creek for birdwatching. Ducks gathered near the outflow beneath the highway. This is a relatively new park, with restrooms, just west of the Freeport library on the south side of the highway.

Here’s another one that’ll get trotted out in earnest on the Florida Hikes! blog once I transcribe all my notes  from the hike. Talk about a beauty spot, and a hard-won one. I found this treasure deep within the forests of Washington County, between Fountain and Ebro, north of Panama City, after a rigorous several miles of hiking on rough terrain, tall bluffs, and broken karst landscapes. It was a geologically fulfilling stop, and this aquamarine pool was the ultimate prize. Too bad it was too chilly for a dip! You can get there by road, too … shhh … but it feels better when it surprises you along a hike.  And no, I’m not sharing the name, yet. I still have to dig that out of my audio files.

Arriving late in Blountstown after an afternoon of hiking hilly terrain around Lake Talquin, I was up for a hearty meal. Thanks to my friends Marti and Jeff Vickery, who supply the always-so-tasty Big River Coffee to this hometown bistro, I had dinner with them and their son Wesley at the Wisteria Cafe, a fun and funky restaurant just down the street from the Florida Trail and just off SR 20 in a lovingly restored Cracker home on the west side of town.

The eclectic menu includes sandwiches, wraps, salads, and burgers. I tried their chicken salad Waldorf style, and although I am rarely a chicken salad eater, I cleaned my plate. Jeff’s burger looked good, too.  But the kicker was the Key lime pie.  Since I review restaurants for my travel guides, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard “we have the best Key lime pie” across the state, and in general … WRONG! Hardly anyone knows how to coax the sour into a pie, but the folks at the Wisteria Cafe got their pie spot-on. I’d go out of my way for this one.

The Wisteria Cafe cooks breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but they are closed Sun-Mon.

Wisteria Cafe
16863 NW Charlie Johns St
Blountstown, FL 32424
(850) 674-2235

Collected another hike to add to my Florida Hikes website in the not-to-distant future, while visiting the Terry Rhodes Trail System at the Bear Creek Tract of Lake Talquin State Forest, between Tallahassee and Quincy in Gadsden County. Quite a beautiful place. It was late in the day and I was the only hiker there, and on a mission to complete at least the Ravine Loop before sunset. Good thing I didn’t go for the longer loop, since I just made it out of there in time, and it was tough hiking for a Central Florida flatlander.  I’ll have more about it at Florida Hikes soon, but meanwhile, there are several big draws for not-so-hikers: an educational center for the kids, a “talking trail” with kiosks along the paved trail, each with a voice interpreting the plants and habitat around you (which makes this a very accessible trail), and an arboretum of well-identified native trees of the slope forest. Birding, too.

For years, I’ve been passing a sign along SR 20 west of Tallahassee that made reference to a picnic area along Lake Talquin, the reservior created along the Ochlocknee River for a hydroelectric plant that serves the city of Tallahassee. On this last trip, I noticed the sign said “Lake Talquin State Park,” so not wanting to miss an opportunity to chalk up another state park visit on my tally (I’ve been to almost all of them), I stopped. And was I glad I did! There’s a beautiful nature trail through the slope forest above deep ravines that drop off to the lake, as well as the promised picnic pavillion.  Even better, a steep staircase drops down a ravine to the surface of the lake, where a boardwalk offers a place to sit and enjoy a novel … or cast a line. The view from the boardwalk reminds me of the Adirondacks of my youth.  This is a little gem for anglers, picnickers, and hikers to enjoy.