Send us your Florida questions!

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings made Cross Creek famous through her writing, and if you want to experience Florida as she did, there's no better place. From free-range venison starters at a Cross Creek restaurant to paddling the same creeks she did, immerse yourself in the world of Cross Creek. Here's how!

Spoiler alert: Cathy gives away the ending of The Yearling at the start of the podcast, because she says everyone knows. Rick disagrees, so if you don't know the story, consider yourself warned!

Links We Mentioned

The Yearling Restaurant

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park

Cross Creek paddle trips

Wood & Swink general store in Evinston

Ocean Grill in Vero Beach

Cathy Salustri's Writer's Talk at Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park (Feb. 24, 2024)

Salt Springs

Real Florida? The Ocklawaha River

Explore More of the Area

Exploring Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' homestead

Where's Waldo?

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Ryan Smart, the executive director of the Florida Springs Council, joins the podcast to talk about threats facing springs, some recent victories for Florida's environment, and how people can support the work that protects Florida springs.

Image of the Profanity Manatee courtesy of Florida Springs Council; used with permission.

Links We Mentioned

Manatee Profanity t-shirt and other merch that supports Florida Springs Council

Become a sustaining member

Ditch the plastic water bottles for hurricane prep: Get reusable five-gallon glass water jug and USB-powered pump dispenser

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Brad and Cathy take a deep dive into two of the best Florida State Parks in the Florida Keys: Bahia Honda and Long Key. 

Links We Mentioned

Florida Keys Eco-Experience Trail app for exploring the Florida Keys.

Bahia Honda State Park

Long Key State Park

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Today's guest, Charles Ellis, who serves as the Fort Mose Historical Society president, talks about the reconstruction of the Fort, what’s happening in February, and Florida's place on the Underground Railroad. 

Links We Mentioned

Fort Mose State Park

Flight to Freedom

Fort Mose Historical Society

Jazz and Blues at Fort Mose

Support Fort Mose and Black History in Florida

Gullah Geechee Heritage Trail

What is a "ring shout"?

How To Be an Anti-Racist

Middle grade offering from Zora Neale Hurston and Ibram X. Kendi

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

If you want to explore Sarasota, Rick and Cathy have plenty of favorites. 

Places to Eat

Owen's Fish Camp

Yoder's of Pinecraft and The Gabber Newspaper's feature on Yoder's

Bali Hut Tiki Hut

Outdoors and Nature Experiences

Myakka River State Park

Warm Mineral Springs

Selby Botanical Gardens

Mote Marine Aquarium (kayaking and the February Farm to Fillet)

Venice Beach and Shark's Teeth

Roadside Attraction: Sarasota Jungle Gardens

Arts 

Ringling

Sarasota School of Architecture

Urbanite Theatre

Sarasota Art Museum

Shopping: St. Armand's Circle

Links We Mentioned

Orchid scandal at Selby and Craig Pittman's The Scent of Scandal about that scandal

Feld Entertainment

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Flying into Key West is super-convenient, but people who fly into Key West miss one of the best parts of the Florida Keys: The Overseas Highway, which connects mainland Florida with the Florida Keys. The road didn't always look the way it does today, however. Brad and Cathy explain it all. 

Florida Keys Extras

No Name Pub on No Name Key used to be a brothel

The Pineapple Express? Yup, pineapples in the Florida Keys!

The Seven-Mile Bridge in True Lies

A pictorial trip across the Overseas Highway

Last Train to Paradise

Hurricane of 1935

Have you met Fred?

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

It's January! It's cold! It's the best time to see manatee! Where can you see them? 

Rick and Cathy name their favorite spots (see the links) and talk about whether manatee resemble sea potatoes or zaftig mermaids, manatee flatulence, and manatee nipples (when an animal has armpit nipples, you have to mention it.)

Links We Mentioned

Is it a manatee or a mermaid? 

How smart are manatee?

The year almost 800 manatee died

Panther attacks?

Where to See Manatee

Crystal River

Blue Spring State Park

Haulover Canal

TECO Viewing Center

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

A reader question about hiking shoes leads to a discussion about best places to hike in Florida. The Florida Madcaps' Chelsea Stevens joins to talk about hiking and water shoes, that time she stepped on a copperhead, and her favorite hikes. 

Links We Mentioned

FloridaHikes.com

Shoes for Hiking Florida Trails

Altra shoes

What are shoe gaiters and do you want them?

Fit2Run

Track Shack

Astral hiking shoes

Hikes in Central Florida

Little Big Econ State Forest

Chelsea's favorite Central Florida hike: Charles Bronson State Forest

Chelsea's favorite hike in Florida: Torreya State Park (and the nearby Apalachicola Bluffs)

Salt Springs

The Yearling Trail with Jody Spring and Long Cemetery

Rick's favorite Central Florida hike: Lyonia Preserve

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Florida does an amazing job with state parks, and perhaps this is best showcased in the Florida Keys. In the inaugural episode, take a tour of some of Brad and Cathy's favorite state parks in the Upper Keys.

State Parks to Visit in the Florida Keys

• Dagny Johnson Key Largo Botanical State Park for hiking and the chance of seeing the endangered woodrat. 

• Windley Key Fossil Reef State Park for the hiking and the history (they have ranger-led tours)

• Indian Key State Park for the history, solitude, lack of mosquitoes, and snorkeling. Paddle out to the island (which has no facilities). Snorkel the patch reef and grass flats by the island.

• Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park for ranger-led tours, history, and the chance to see one of the last virgin West Indian hardwood hammocks.

Links Brad & Cathy Mentioned

Key Largo woodrat (but is it a rat?)

Bayside Gourmet

Robbie's Islamorada

Matheson home at Lignumvitae

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Take a hike in the swamp! Cathy and Rick talk about hiking in Florida swamps, venomous snakes, and other things you might find as you experience Florida's wilderness. Also, Cathy talks about the time she got lost in the swamp and almost stepped on a venomous snake.

Pictured is the juvenile cottonmouth from Cathy's hike in Big Cypress. No, it's not a Magic Eye; look closely and you'll see him. Or her. Cathy didn't want to check.

Links We Mentioned

Clyde Butcher's swamp walk

Wild hog

Ranger-led tours at Big Cypress

Monroe Station

Cottonmouth facts

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at [email protected].

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!