We left bright and early, refreshed and ready to get back on the road, excited to be heading north and west towards home.
Backtracking through swamp land we headed back up I-75 through Ft. Myers. As we passed by Venice, we caught the smell of sulfur coming from the hot springs there. It is rumored that this is the area that Ponce de Leon located the "fountain of youth." The springs here have a sink hole that goes down 230 feet deep and the brackish water is 87 degrees. The springs were said to cure such age-related conditions as arthritis. The spring is now part of a "healing and wellness swimming park."
Consulting my Roadside Geology of Florida book, I discovered that Florida is also rumored to be the location of the Garden of Eden. This theory was discounted until geologists discovered that Florida had a different geology from the rest of North America. In fact they found fossils in Florida that are found commonly in Africa and the Middle East. Turns out that Florida was once part of a giant continent called Gowana. Along with what is now South America, Africa, the Middle East, Australia, and Antarctica. Somewhere along the line Gowana was broken up. Continents separated and moved. The isthmus of Panama formed and connected South America to North America. Somehow during this process, Florida connected to North America. Maybe that explains it's strange shape.
We made a left turn onto I-10 and headed west. We passed over the Suwanee River. The sign had the musical score below the name of the river -- so we wouldn't miss the significance.
Backtracking through swamp land we headed back up I-75 through Ft. Myers. As we passed by Venice, we caught the smell of sulfur coming from the hot springs there. It is rumored that this is the area that Ponce de Leon located the "fountain of youth." The springs here have a sink hole that goes down 230 feet deep and the brackish water is 87 degrees. The springs were said to cure such age-related conditions as arthritis. The spring is now part of a "healing and wellness swimming park."
Consulting my Roadside Geology of Florida book, I discovered that Florida is also rumored to be the location of the Garden of Eden. This theory was discounted until geologists discovered that Florida had a different geology from the rest of North America. In fact they found fossils in Florida that are found commonly in Africa and the Middle East. Turns out that Florida was once part of a giant continent called Gowana. Along with what is now South America, Africa, the Middle East, Australia, and Antarctica. Somewhere along the line Gowana was broken up. Continents separated and moved. The isthmus of Panama formed and connected South America to North America. Somehow during this process, Florida connected to North America. Maybe that explains it's strange shape.
We made a left turn onto I-10 and headed west. We passed over the Suwanee River. The sign had the musical score below the name of the river -- so we wouldn't miss the significance.
At one of the rest stops we encountered and Egret who was kind enough to let me snap a photo. There are a lot of these birds here, but they usually don't stick around for photo opportunities.We passed through Tallahassee the capital of Florida. ( population 150,000). Florida was originally owned by Spain and sold to the US in the early 1800's. Although it was not one of the original 13 colonies, it definitely was part of the Confederacy. It was here, in 1861, that Florida declared itself an independent nation and a member of the Confederate States. Confederate soldiers defended Tallahassee and it was the only uncaptured Confederate capital east of the Mississippi River.
We stopped just to the west of Tallahassee, in Midway. We had dinner at Lindy's Chicken -- a small local fast food place. Jim got a pork chop sandwich and I got a chicken tender dinner We skipped the various varieties of hot sauce on the table. Food was really good.
The land here is less swampy and less humid. We are out of the swamp (elevation 216 feet). We are headed across the Florida panhandle tomorrow and on west towards Texas.
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