Gulf Coast Stories

Plant Museum in Tampa, Florida

Dave G — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 05:08:06 +0000

Today we visited the Plant Museum located on the University of Tampa campus in Tampa, Florida. The museum is full of late 19th and 20th century pieces that Margaret and Henry Plant used to decorate the Tampa Bay Hotel. The Hotel was built by Henry B. Plant in 1891. Henry Plant brought the railroad to Tamp in the 1880′s and began to construct an exotic hotel. The buildings architecture is unique in its design with the many turrets, domes, and minarets reaching for the bright sun of Florida.

The staff at the museum absolutely showed their southern hospitality and pride in talking about the museum. The museum is not that large, but will take at least 2 hours to carefully read the interesting history and admire the historic pieces. The University of Tampa is across the Hillsborough River and is an easy walk from downtown Tampa.

Englewood Beach at Chadwick Park

Kelly G — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:39:31 +0000

We rediscovered paradise one Sunday afternoon when we happened to encounter Englewood Beach at Chadwick Park. The newly renovated boardwalk with lovely shaded pavilions showcased the white sands and quiet surf of Englewood Beach. The beach itself was clean and just wide enough to provide a nice walk between the boardwalk and the surf. I was particularly interested in the signs that were posted just off the boardwalk before entering the sand dunes, which described the area as a Sea Turtle nesting area. If you like shelling, there was a nice variety for the taking. Clean rest rooms and easy access parking made the visit a pleasurable experience. There is a fee for parking so make sure you bring change as the parking machine does not provide it. Located just across the street from the park are several nice restaurants and cute stores. What a relaxing, beautiful location! We recommend that you check it out!

South Lido Park – Lido Beach – Sarasota

Dave G — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 04:11:15 +0000

South Lido Park is located at the southern point of Lido Key and minutes from Lido Beach Sarasota Florida. This little park is directly across from Siesta Key which is rated as one of the top five beaches in the world.

South Lido Park has everything you need to enjoy a day at the beach. The park has excellent amenities for a county park. There is a beautiful picnic area under Australian pine trees with grills throughout to cook those hot dogs and hamburgers. The beach has plenty of area for swimming, fishing, and you can collect some of the coolest shells around. This is also a great place to watch the boats come through Big Sarasota Pass between the bay and the gulf.

It was a little to cold on the day the pictures were taken to go into the water, but there was a lot of people still sunbathing on the white fine sandy beach.

Want a place to watch a beach sunset? This is the place. We didn’t stay long enough to get images on this day, but I’ve been here during the summer on a boat parked on the sand bar. This is on of the worlds best beach sunset you will ever experience. Very romantic.

This county park is a great no thrills place to launch a kayak and take the family for the day. Plenty of parking is available and you don’t have to walk far to get to both the beach and picnic area. The amenities and restrooms were wonderful and clean.

How do you get to South Lido Park? Really easy. From State Highway 41 in downtown Sarasota, you want to take the John Ringling Bridge across the bay to St. Armands Circle. Once at St. Armands Circle, yes you need to go about half way around the circle and follow the signs for Lido Beach and Ben Franklin Drive. Stay on Ben Franklin Drive until you cannot drive anymore. A word of caution, if you haven’t been to St. Armands Circle, you should stop on your way back from the park. Another great place in Sarasota to take a stroll to shop and eat. That is another story.

Hope you have fun and please provide your comments if you do visit. We love to hear about your experiences.

Venice Pier at Sunset

Dave G — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 04:23:19 +0000

The above image in the header is Venice Pier at sunset. This most romantic place is great to relax as the passing minutes go by with the sunset. You can only get this on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Venice Pier and beach are great to visit on winter sunset. You might need a sweater or wind breaker during the winter months. Tee shirt and shorts for the summer. The shots taken here are from the summer of 2007.

You have Sharky’s right next to the pier with great food and a bar. This restaurant is a great family place with very good food and service.