Florida
Miami , Florida
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Jungle Island August
2009 |
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Space Transit Planetarium 3280
S Miami Ave This was a truly enjoyable science museum. It was easy to find and the exhibits were great. Their temporary exhibit “Crime Scene Insects” was gross enough to enthrall preteens and deep enough to hook the twenty-somethings. Yes, this is the place where Jack Horkheimer, the Star Hustler is from. August 2009 |
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Gator Park An airboat ride is a good way to see what the everglades
swamp it really like. There are
several proprietors along the highway West of Miami. This one had a reasonably good ride into
the park, though we understand that those that don’t enter Everglades
National Park can do more to entice the gators and turtles to show themselves
(marshmallows and such).. After the airboat ride, August 2009 |
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Everglades , Florida
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40001
State Road 9336 The everglades are not all swamp, there is a road and boardwalks to see the wildlife. There are plenty of gators to see, but you really need to protect yourself from the mosquitoes. They seem to be worst at the visitor center, where you can buy repellant. August
2009 |
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Key West , Florida
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Key West Shipwreck Historeum Museum (305) 292-8990 http://www.shipwreckhistoreum.com/ August
2009 |
This is probably the most entertaining way to learn the
history of |
Key Largo , Florida
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Key
Largo, FL 33037 This is a for-profit organization with a strong environmental message. They let you swim with dolphins both in a structured way, with the trainers instructing the dolphins to pull you around or jump around you, and also in an unstructured swim, where you swim around the lagoon with the dolphins. Both are nice, but we preferred the unstructured swim, where you swim in the lagoon and the dolphins swim with you. One issue: the lagoon is rather murky. You only see the dolphins when they are within a couple feet of you. August
2009 |
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Tampa , Florida
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813.920.4130 Big Cat Rescue is an educational sanctuary and a home for more than 100 big cats. The city has grown around it, so now they are at the end of the dirt road between the expressway and the shopping mall. They give tours, but their mission is to care for these cats rather than entertain with them. Some of the animals are quiet elegant. It is difficult to observe them, knowing they are housed here for the rest of their lives. The are wild animals that cannot live in the wild. August
2009 |
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Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) Tampa,
Florida 33617 We arrived on a big day for school kids. There were booths and kids everywhere. We liked the simulators of various natural disasters: hurricane, earthquake, tornado, wild fire. A special treat was the lightning box: put your hand in a metal mesh glove and watch it get hit by an electric arc. We also liked the animation room, which contained equipment to make your own animation, from stop-action to Matrix. Our only negative was the butterfly garden was closed when we went there. August
2009 |
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10165
N McKinley Dr http://www.buschgardens.com/BGT2/ August
2009 |
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St. Peterburg , Florida
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119
2nd St N http://www.ghosttour.net/stpetersburg.html 727.894.4678 August
2009 |
The tour has no real address, you meet at the café at dusk
and a sincere-sounding woman relates bits of history of |
Cape Canaveral , Florida
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321-783-7111 August
2009 |
This is the park just across the inlet from the launch
facility at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
The pier is the best place to watch the unmanned launches. They have camping there, too, so you can
get a spot for those |
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Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex SR 405 Kennedy
Space Center, FL 32899 (866) 737-5235 http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/ http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy This is the launch site for Apollo and the Space Shuttle, and soon the Orion as well. The center provides a lengthy tour of the facility with three major stops to see the launch sites, the Apollo-era control room and hardware and the assembly building for space station and Orion components. He center also has a simulator so you can feel a launch (though not as rough as the real thing) and an enormous collection of space hardware, from 1960s rockets in the “rocket garden” to checklists from moon landings. Truly inspirational. August 2009 |
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United States Astronaut Hall of Fame (321) 269-6100 http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/astronaut-hall-of-fame Included in your August 2009 |
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Orlando , Florida
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777
E Princeton St Most people head straight to Disney World and miss a great
science museum in August
2009 |
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1-888-800-5447 http://www.aquaticabyseaworld.com/ August
2009 |
Aquatica is operated by Seaworld and is located adjacent to Seaworld. It is advertised as a water park with a waterslide that takes your through their dolphin tank. Unfortunately, you are moving too fast to see the dolphins, so just enjoy the slide. A fun place for preteen to adult, there are none of the animal shows or ecology messages of the animal parks. |
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9067
International Drive (407)351-8800 http://www.wonderworksonline.com/ They’ve taken some of the best science-oriented hand-on displays and put them here. Attractions include bed-of-nails, baseball pitch, earthquake room, full-motion flight simulators, virtual games and an estimate of your lifestyle-adjusted age. The most unusual was a game where you use brainwaves to move a ball in competition with a friend. The difficulty is that a more relaxed mental state works better. Some attractions have explanations of the science behind them. Most leave the curious to wonder. August 2009 |
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B-52 Memorial Park Orlando, FL https://duckduckgo.com/?q=b+52+memorial+park+orlando+fl&ia=web&iaxm=places 2023-02 Able to touch the B-52 Bomber! Located at the Orlando airport, so it is a great stop if you are early or for arrival or departure. A quick stop. It is affiliated with a local museum. The park looks like a city park. Just with a B-52 bomber in it. I would like better signage to help find it. |
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Jensen Beach , Florida
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St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant and Energy Encounter 6501
South Ocean Drive http://www.fpl.com/community/learning/energy_encounter_overview.shtml The Energy Encounter is located on the site of the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant. It is a small museum targeted to middle-school-age kids. Movies and displays explain electricity generation and use. All of Florida Power and Light’s generation mechanism are represented. There is also a treasure hunt and Q/A booths to check your knowledge. We really liked the movie of the mousetraps to explain chain reactions. Our teenagers loved the puzzle room. August
2009 |
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West Palm Beach , Florida
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4801
Dreher Trail N August
2009 |
We were able to see only a small part of the museum due to time constraints. The aquarium was great as was the ball-rolling slide. The unique feature we saw was the computerized-aging booth. If you are brave, see what you will look like in 20 years. |
North Central Florida
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Devil’s Millhopper Geological State Park, Gainesville, FL. Devil’s Millhopper is a large, 120 ft. deep
bowl-shaped sinkhole. This is one of
the most unique sinkholes in Florida because 1) it has more than 100 feet of
exposed rock layers and 2) it is a unique example of how fauna and flora
ecosystems develop in response to geological features. Because of the latter, the base of the
sinkhole resembles a miniature rain forest with small streams trickling down
its slopes and lush vegetation thriving on the walls. Fossil shark teeth, marine shells and
the fossilized remains of extinct land animals have been found in the
sinkhole which has allowed researchers to learn a great deal about Florida's
natural history. This park also has educational interpretive displays
for visitors. |
O’Leno State Park, High Springs, FL. This park is located along the banks of the Santa Fe River, a tributary of the Suwannee River. As the river runs through the park, it disappears underground and reemerges over three miles away in River Rise Preserve State Park. The unusual appearance of the sinkholes and the beautiful surrounding area make it a must see when in Florida. |
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Sweetwater Wetlands Park, Gainesville,
FL Sweetwater Wetlands Park is a man-made wetland habitat of more than 125 acres and was designed to improve water quality by filtering out pollutions and nutrients. The park has several miles of hiking trails with an abundance of various plants and animals. |
Historic Town of Micanopy, Micanopy, FL Founded in 1821, Micanopy is believed to be the oldest inland town in Florida and is named for Chief Micanopy of the Seminole Nation. There are thirty-nine sites in Micanopy listed on the National Registrar of Historic Places, some of which are: the Micanopy Historical Society Museum and Archive, Thrasher Warehouse, Daily Building, Mountain Garage, Mott-May Building, Pole Barn, and J.E. Thrasher General Store. |
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University of Florida Museum & Butterfly Museum. Gainesville, FL University of Florida has a rather large museum with historical and educational information. Exhibits include interesting crystals and geology as well as local history (ancient and modern). The butterfly park has hundreds of free-flying butterflies and birds from all around the world. The museum takes special precautions to ensure the exotic species do no escape into Florida. The Butterfly Museum also includes an assortment of other animals including turtles. |
University of Florida Bat Houses, Gainesville, FL On warm evenings visitors can observe thousands of bats emerging at dusk from the universities two bat barns and bat house. These bat houses are considered to be the largest occupied bat houses in the world! The houses are home to three different species of bat; Brazilian free tailed bat, Southeastern bat and Evening bat. |
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Manatee Springs State Park, Chiefland, FL This spring releases an amazing 100 million gallons of water daily. Tourists can enjoy a walk on the park’s 800-foot boardwalk that runs through the cypress forest, overlooking the beautiful springs. During the cooler months, numerous manatees and fish can be seen swimming in the waters, in addition to birds and mammals. The park has about 8.5 miles of nature trails. |
Marion County Historical Society and Museum, Ocala, FL We stopped in this small museum along our drive. An earnest docent gave us a personal tour which included some interesting historical books, artifacts and Florida pamphlets. Outstanding place. |
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Florida Gulf Coast
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Cedar Keys Museum and Whitman House, Cedar Keys, FL. This museum offers the opportunity to learn about the history of
Cedar Keys through documents, photographs and dioramas spanning from
prehistoric times to the early 1900’s.
The museum also includes St. Clair Whitman’s shells and Native American
artifacts collections. St. Clair Whitman's
restored family home is also at the park, showcasing what life was
like in the 1920’s. |
Cedar Keys Historical Society and
Museum, Cedar Keys, FL Located in downtown Cedar Keys, this small, two building museum opened in 1979. It covers the history of the Cedar Keys from prehistoric times to our modern era. The museum includes, artifacts, documents, photos, and antiques. The museum has displays in both the Lutterloh Building and the Andrews House. |