Butterfly Rainforest - Gainesville, Florida

There is a saying called 'Butterflies in the stomach', but here it's butterflies everywhere. I am talking about Butterfly RainForest. This is one of the top attractions of Ganiesville. It is part of the Florida Museum of Natural History. 

The rainforest typically contains 60 to 80 butterfly and moth species at any one given time. Trying to limit the number of varieties below.

Great Orange Tip

The flowering plants and butterflies in the exhibit change regularly, making each visit unique and full of new discoveries. Below is a gallery where butterflies are being nurtured before being released to the exhibit.

Blomfild's Beauty

Blue Morpho

Extreme left - Clipper

There is a small man-made waterfall with turtles and fishes which creates a great environment around and make it feel like a real rainforest.

You can also see Live Butterfly Releases Monday to Friday at 2 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.

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Ride down the Withlacoochee River

During my short stay at Gainesville, Florida I was searching for places to visit in and around the town. One of my friend suggested to go for a AirBoat ride in a place near Inverness. Going for a Boat ride is different but the thought of AirBoat ride excited me and others as well. Researched the location and called Wild Bill's Airboat Tours to reserve slots for 8 people for Sunday afternoon. It is an one hour ride along the Withlacoochee river.

Withlacoochee River commonly known as the Crooked River originates from central Florida's Swamp area, east of Polk City. It flows west, then north, and then turns northwest and finally west again before it empties into the Gulf of Mexico near Yankeetown.

There are different varieties of birds and alligators in and along the river and it was a pleasure to hunt for them during the ride. The different shades and the colors of water at different places, leaves and the woods around was truly amazing. The climate was also just appropriate.

We stopped at various places of the swamp and enjoyed the unspoiled beauty of nature with brief narration from the capt.

We learnt that there are huts alongside the swamps where people stay and they mainly engage in fishing. Most of them have their own small air boats. Other than the Wild Bills Airboat Tours, there are other groups as well who arrange for such rides.

For those who don't know what an AirBoat is; It is a flat bottomed boat driven by air propellers and mainly used in the shallow and marshy areas. The air propellers push the boat forward unlike motors in the normal boat. This prevents it from being stuck in the swamps.

A family riding the smaller one

Smaller boats glided along the narrow streams sprinkling the water along its sides and making a lot of noise.

Our capt. mentioned that today was a noisy day with many smaller boats in the river disturbing the peace of the area. Ours was a bigger boat with a capacity of around 30. While we were trying to spot the alligators in the swamp, noticed a smaller boat getting stuck by the side and few people were trying to get that out. More than finding the alligator in the park, the ride was the one which we enjoyed the most.

Can a wonderful Sunday afternoon end without a group pic? My answer would be no. After spending around an hour and enjoying the ride, we left the park with a group pic followed by Starbucks coffee and an hour of chatting on the way.

The Team

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St. Augustine Beach - From white to golden brown

St. Augustine Beach is another beach in the stretch of St. Augustine beaches. This stretch of beach is located in the heart of Anastasia Island.

Compared to the Crescent Beach, this beach is comparatively crowded. The color of the sand changes from white to golden brown. Closing watching, it is primarily because of the broken shells which lies all over the beach.

Waves being more here, this seems to be a surfers paradise. We could at least spot some 10 surfers doing their tricks right from the spot we were sitting giving me a chance to capture some good pics. Shell picking can be an interesting timepass on this beach. One can find different varieties of shells here. I gathered quite a few smaller ones for myself.

There are several facilities on or nearby that usually have activities and events available, including the St. Johns County Pier, pavilion, playground, fishing pier, volleyball courts, bait shops, fine restaurants, and more. There are also camping areas available nearby.

However, day came to an end and we had to head our way back to Gainesville after a sip of Starbucks Coffee.

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Crescent Beach - One of St. Augustine Beaches

St. Augustine's beaches is a stretch of beaches in Florida right from Vilano Beach north of the city to Crescent Beach in the south. Among them Ponte Vedra Beach, North Beach, St. Augustine Beach, Crescent Beach, Butler Beach, Fort Matanzas are few of the many beach access points. The gorgeous coastline is a beach recreation and relaxation for the people of Florida.

Crescent Beach is the southmost beach situated on the Anastasia Island three miles south of St. Augustine Beach on Highway A1A. This is white sand beach and named so because the shoreline has a natural crescent moon shape. This is the most scenic and unspoiled beach.

Crescent beach

Wooden bridges connects the beach with the road at different places. To enjoy the most serene part, you can choose to cross the furthest bridge.

Wooden bridges connecting the Beach and the Road

Some of the common activities include boating, diving, and fishing. You will also find horses ready to take the visitors for a trip on the sand beach. Visitors are sure to enjoy the ocean breezes and white sand on this family-friendly beach.

Kids Playing with Kiteboards

Birds especially Seagulls are in plenty in and around the beach and you can find them roaming all around you. Birdwatchers and Photographers can spend hours together in the lap of nature. They will even come close to you and take food stuffs almost from your hand. Probably that is why this beach is called the pet-loving beach.

Kids playing with Birds

Families come here to relax in the sun, taking the scent of salt water and the gentle ocean breeze, fish, go shelling or hit the waves to swim, kayak, windsurf or kiteboard. It’s also a fun to stay on the soft sand and walk bare footed.

Sit and Relax

For adventure lovers there is also an Alligator farm near this beach where you can enjoy Crocodile Crossing.
http://www.alligatorfarm.com/crocodilecrossing.html

May not be one of the most famous beaches in Florida but definitely not one that can be neglected.

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