Caesars Head State Park - South Carolina

Caesars Head State Park is located in Cleveland, South Carolina. The Park gets its name from a rock outcropping on top of the Blue Ridge cliff.

We visited this park towards the end of a long trip through the mountains of North Carolina. We were so glad to find a place with amazing views that didn’t require a 3 mile hike up steep terrain! :)

To get to the Caesars Head overlook does not require any hiking. It is only a few hundred feet from the parking area.

The overlook provides a great view of Table Rock Lake.

If you are up for a hike, the Raven Cliff Falls trail leads to 420-foot waterfall. A suspension bridge allows access to two overlooks to the falls. The trail is about 4 miles round trip. Maybe next time we will be up for the hike.

This park is a great place to visit, especially in the Fall. The views and fall foliage are beautiful! 

Happy Travels! 

The Dallas Arboretum (Pumpkin Houses) - Dallas, Texas

The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden is a 66-acre botanical garden located on the shores of White Rock Lake in Dallas, Texas.

The Nationally Acclaimed Pumpkin Village is the biggest autumn attraction at the Arboretum. It is one-acre filled with 90,000 pumpkins, gourds, squash, bales of hay and cornstalks skillfully arranged into houses, walkways, and other fun structures.

The village has been featured in magazines such as SouthernLiving and House Beautiful.

The Village was very cute and the Gardens are beautiful, but there were two things that I didn’t like.

We went at 9am on a Sunday morning thinking that it would be the least crowded time. This was defiantly not the case. There were so many people that it was hard to even walk without getting bumped in to!  I asked the lady at the information desk if there would be a better time to come back that it would not be so crowded. She informed me that it was like that all the time and that there was not a good time. She said that they even have to close the parking lot at times. So, keep that in mind!

The other thing that I didn’t like was that in addition to paying $15 a person to get in, you have to pay $15 to park. That probably would not have bothered me so much if we would not have had such a long walk from the parking lot to the entry and if it would not have been so crowded.

The majority of the crowding was around the pumpkin village, so the other areas of the garden were more relaxing.

Location:

8617 Garland Road

 Dallas, Texas 75218

Admission Fees:

Adult general garden admission (13-64): $15

Seniors general garden admission (65 & over): $12

Children general garden admission (3-12): $10

Children general garden admission (2 & under): Free

On-site self parking or parking garage: $15

The gardens are beautiful and the Pumpkin Village was fun. Hopefully your visit will be less crowded and relaxing!   

Happy Travels! 

Mysterious Lighthouse - Biloxi, Mississippi

Isn’t it amazing how finding out the story behind a place makes you look at it totally differently! I have been to this lighthouse several times over the years and have just thought of it as a rundown area and nothing else. I’ve always been fascinated with the lighthouse, but the area around it had a lot to be desired. After my most recent trip, I started to wonder why it was there. I found out that it was part of the President Casino Broadwater Resort. The resort was opened in 1939 as the Broadwater Beach Hotel and closed shortly before it was destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. Now I can see it as a beautiful piece of history! :)

The sunsets from there are beautiful!

It's also a great place to visit with some of the locals. We meet a family that were catching blue crabs. They showed us how the traps worked and  invited us to their crab boil. That just goes to show how friendly the people are in the Biloxi area.

Address:

2110 Beach Blvd

Biloxi, Mississippi 39531



Happy Travels! 

Largest Butterfly Park in the World (Butterfly World) Coconut Creek, Florida

Butterfly World, located in southern Florida, resulted out of a man’s love for butterflies. It is the world’s largest butterfly park and the first of its kind in the Western Hemisphere.

Over 20,000 butterflies from around the world from up to fifty species can be seen in the aviary. Be prepared to be bombarded by butterflies when entering! The will land on you! 

Hand feed the small colorful birds in the Lorikeet Encounter!

Butterfly World is located at Tradewinds Park in Coconut Creek. It is about 40 Miles south of Miami and around a 100 miles north of the Florida Keys. It is also less than a 2 hour drive from Naples, if you are interested in a day trip from there.

Address: 

3600 W Sample Rd, Coconut Creek, FL 33073


Hours: Open 7 days a week
9am -5pm Monday - Saturday
11am - 5pm Sunday



Happy Travels! 

Pier 60 Sunset Celebration - Clearwater Beach, Florida

Every time I go to Florida, I find myself in Clearwater Beach to watch the sunset. There is just something about the feel of the place that makes me happy!

On my last visit, I decided to pay attention and try to figure out why this place keeps drawing me back. What I noticed was:

An extremely wide beach with sugary white sand! It feels amazing to walk on! So soft!

The water is a beautiful turquoise blue.

The people are all so friendly. I love to meet new people and this place always has the best!

There are places to eat, shop, and stay all up and down the beach walk. So everything is within walking distance. Even though there are lots of buildings and people, it never seems crowded for some reason.

The gulf side and the bay side of the island are only about two blocks apart and both are beautiful!  And guess what I discovered on the bay side….. A beautiful sunrise! 😊

Pier 60 holds a nightly sunset celebration.

It is similar to the one in Key West with artisans, crafters,

and street performers.

Good times!

And of course the sunsets are amazing!!!!

So go enjoy Clearwater  Beach and let me know what you think.

I know you will love it! 😊



Happy Travels! 

Discovering the Hidden Gem of Florida: Caladesi Island State Park

With 3 miles of untouched white sandy beaches, it’s easy to see why Caladesi Island consistently ranks as one of America’s top beaches.  It’s a great place for shelling, hiking the trails, swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, or just lying on the beach.

The island is accessible by only by private boat, ferry, or a mile long walk from Clearwater beach.

The Caladesi Island Ferry is located within the Honeymoon Island State park. You will pay an entry fee for the park and then another fee for the ferry.

The ferry will dock on the bay side and then you will take about a 10 minute walk to the beach.

We took the ferry, but I have been told that you can walk from Clearwater Beach. It is about a mile north of Pier 60.

The Bay side

Tips for the trip:

1. Take a bag for all of your beach treasures. You can find a variety of shells, starfish, sea urchins, sand dollars, coral, and sponges.
2. Go early in the morning to get the best shells.
3. There is a store on the island to get food, drinks, and other things you may need, but it is quite a walk from the beach area. I would suggest carrying your own food and drink or purchase something from the store before heading to the beach.

Happy Travels!