Florida Spectacular

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] With Cathy traveling through what she calls "historic West Florida", she and Rick talk about forgotten parts of Florida's history — and geography, the War of 1812, and some less savory parts of the early history of the United States and why they get left out of history classes. Links We Mentioned Map showing Florida and a "contested" area "sold" to the US by France [https://www.legendsofamerica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Lousiana-Purchase-800.jpg] Documents Accompanying the Message of the President of the United States of the Fourteenth Instant on the Subject of East Florida [https://openlibrary.org/books/OL16914342M/Documents_accompanying_the_message_of_the_President_of_the_United_States_of_the_fourteenth_instant_o] (abstract only; paid subscribers should email us [cathy@floridaspectacular.com] for a full copy of the letters) The Other War of 1812 [https://www.ugapress.org/9780820329215/the-other-war-of-1812/], by Jim Cusick Image in the public domain.  Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/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 [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Did you know cattle ranchers were the "first intentional conservationists" in Florida? Annie Muscato does. She wrote her doctoral dissertation on it, and this week she joins the podcast to talk — passionately! — about research into how some Florida cattle ranchers are working to protect wild Florida, why Florida cattle ranching isn't nearly as cruel as it is in the rest of the country, and how ranchers work with the Florida Wildlife Corridor. Links We Mentioned From Cattle to Conservation [https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UFE0061470/00001/pdf] (the ecological humility of cattle ranching) The Omnivore's Dilemma [https://amzn.to/44jnsP6] Food, Inc. [https://archive.org/details/food-inc.-2008] Florida Wildlife Corridor [https://floridawildlifecorridor.org/]  Adena Farms [https://adenafarms.com/]  Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/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 [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Andrea Conover of Azalea City Brewing and Palatka Mayor Robbie Correa join us this week to help roadtrippers find Palatka's best-kept secrets. Links We Mentioned Palatka Coffee Company [https://www.palatkacoffeeco.com/] Angel's Diner [https://www.facebook.com/angelspalatkafl] Palatka's historic riverfront [https://boathouseriverfront.com/] Velchoff's Corner [https://www.velchoffscorner.com/] Ravine Gardens State Park [https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/ravine-gardens-state-park] Magnolia Cafe [https://www.themagnoliapalatka.com/] Azalea City Brewing [https://www.azaleacitybrewing.com/] Lemon Street Market [https://www.facebook.com/lemonstmandm/] Kayak tours [https://www.earthkinship.us/]  North Star Charters [https://explorethestjohns.com/location/north-star-charters/]  Amara Zee [http://www.caravanstage.org/amara-zee-history/]  Bronson Mulholland House [https://palatka-fl.gov/239/Bronson-Mulholland-House] (and Rick's post [https://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/2014/10/built-by-pioneers-maintained-by-faith.html] about it — and this one [https://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/2014/10/sunny-point-on-st-johns.html]) Camping in Palatka [https://campgrounds.rvlife.com/regions/florida/palatka] 25 Taps for the St. Johns [https://stjohnsriverkeeper.org/25-taps-for-the-st-johns/] Festivals Azalea Festival [https://palatkaazaleafest.com/] (last weekend in February) Bartram Frolic [https://bartramtrailsociety.com/annual-bartram-frolic/] (April) Palatka Blue Crab Festival [https://www.palatkabluecrabfestival.com/] (Memorial Day weekend) Palatka Craft Beer Festival [https://www.facebook.com/cbfestivalpalatka] (November) Palatka Porch Fest [https://palatkaporchfest.com/] (first Saturday of December) Historic Home Tours [https://visitpalatka.com/eventon-events/] (second Saturday in December) Mayhem Datil Pepper Festival [https://boathouseriverfront.com/the-mayhem-datil-pepper-festival/] (November) Photo by Rick Kilby Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/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 [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Rick serves on the board of the Winter Park History Museum, and Cathy lived there for a time in the '90s (and loves to go back). That's why the book written by this episode's guest, Kim Michalak, was so appealing to both of them. Kim shares how she selected her 100 things for her book 100 Things To Do in Winter Park Before You Die. Links We Mentioned 100 Things To Do in Winter Park Before You Die [https://amzn.to/3HBWzOq] Winter Park History Museum [https://wphistory.org/] Barnie's Coffee [https://www.barniescoffee.com/] The Imperial [https://www.imperialwinebar.com/winter-park] Ten Thousand Villages [https://www.tenthousandvillages.com/] Tyler Gillespie [https://www.tylergillespie.com/] "Because This is Florida" by Campbell McGrath [https://www.theparisreview.org/poetry/441/because-this-is-florida-campbell-mcgrath] Umi Japanese [https://www.umijapaneserestaurant.com/] Park Plaza [https://parkplazahotel.com/] Ancient Artifacts and Treasures [https://mcintosh55.com/] The Hurston Museum in Eatonville [https://preserveeatonville.org/the-hurston-museum/] The Enzian [https://enzian.org/] Prometheus Esoterica [https://www.prometheusesoterica.com/] Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/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 [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Dan Reiter joins the podcast to talk about his career surfing Florida and writing about the same. The trio talks about everything from the best place to surf in Florida to why surfers shouldn't be scared of sharks. Check out Dan's book about surfing (link below). Links We Mentioned On a Rising Swell: Surf Stories From Florida's Space Coast [https://floridapress.blog/2025/04/29/on-a-rising-swell/] (and a link to buy the book [https://amzn.to/4jl0xZ2]) Ron Jon Surf Shop [https://www.ronjonsurfshop.com/store/cocoa-beach] Kelly Slater [https://www.surfer.com/news/retirements-great-age-defiant-kelly-slater-steals-the-show-at-pipeline] Surfing Upham in Pinellas County [https://www.surfline.com/surf-report/upham-beach-park/5842041f4e65fad6a7708b28] Beach renourishment and why it's bad for surfing [https://www.surfer.com/news/fl-bch-erosion] (and so many other things) Florida Surf Festival Film Festival [https://www.floridasurffilmfestival.com/] June 13-14, 2025  Siam Orchid Thai food [https://siam-orchid.com/] in Cocoa Beach Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/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 [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!