Originally posted by FSUTribe76:
The three best "Florida" (as one is barely in Georgia just one exit from the border) vacation spots for outdoors aka hiking, beaches and fishing are 1A) Cumberland Island off of St. Mary's Georgia, one of the most secluded and beautiful beaches in the country if you hike a mile north of the main "tourist loop". It's a primitive camping paradise with freshwater lakes, backbay marshes and beachlines to fish. The beaches are pretty interesting, to the south it's got the whitest sand on the Atlantic coast (so...nowhere near as pure as Grayton and Pensacola, but infinitely better than Miami or Daytona) and in the middle it is a reddish pink with gold flecks (really mica) that get churned up in the waves giving the water extra sparkle. Oh yeah...and lots of wild horses. 1B) The Ft. Pickens area of Gulf Islands National Seashore just outside of Pensacola Beach. Even when the campground is full, there are miles of relatively secluded pure white sand and tons of old Civil War, Spanish-American and even WW2 forts to explore. 1C) Grayton Beach which is the best beach in the state imo with unique freshwater dune lakes that only exist in that area of the panhandle and Africa.
After those, there are a lot of really great areas around the state. Enough that I could easily write a book. Amongst my other favorites I'd probably say in no order Ft. Desoto, Caladesi Island, Ichetucknee Springs (best tube float in the state possibly country especially if you do the "wild portion" that is only open from Memorial day to Labor Day), Blackwater River State Park (not quite as good of a float, but relatively unique white sand freshwater beaches along the way), Barefoot Beach State Preserve, Siesta Key, Washington Oaks Gardens (one of the few if not only beaches in Florida with rocky formations from exposed coquina sedimentary rock, takes absolutely great pics), Anastasia State Park, Weeki Wachee Springs (especially if you camp and kayak or canoe the crystal clear rivers and dive the lesser springs), Cedar Key has some of the best seafood (esp Tony's) and fantastic kayaking and fishing, Key Large with John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park and of course Key West. And for me it's not really a vacation, but a typical weekend. But if you don't live in the area it's tough to beat eating in Apalachicola and then going to the beach at St. George.
