Fun in the Sun
Lettuce Lake Park
Lettuce Lake Park opened in the early 1980s and offers an array of outdoor activities. There are fitness trails, fishing piers, picnic pavilions. There is a two dollars-daily park admissions fee, but it gives visitors access to all of the hiking trails and free guided nature tours. If you prefer aquatic adventures, canoes and kayaks are available to rent for up to four hours on the water. Traveling through the swamps created by the flood patterns of the Hillsborough River you can see a multitude of native birds, turtles and maybe have a close encounter with a Florida gator! If you’d rather avoid seeing a toothy gator grin up close, they also offer campground rentals at various locations around the park.hillsboroughcounty.org/Facilities/Facility/Details/7937
Lowry Park Zoo
If you feel like getting in touch with your wild side stop by Tampa’s local zoo. Lowry Park has a huge family of animals that are waiting for you to say hello! After its grand re-opening in 1988 Lowry Park Zoo has quickly grown in size, the 56 acre park houses over 1,000 animals that love the humid Florida weather. The zoo has multiple animal feedings when guest can learn more about the animals by speaking to the zoo-keepers that help keep them healthy and active. However, if just watching from the sidelines is too slow for you Lowry Park also offers special VIP tours that get you behind the scenes access to a multitude of animals. These tours come with a higher price, but the opportunity to get up close and personal with African Elephants and Pygmy Hippos is worth it. The zoo also offers regular guests encounters with the Alpaca, various reptilian residence, and occasionally bring out the new serval tiger kittens. http://www.lowryparkzoo.com/index.html
Rainy Days
Color Me Mine
Want to express your creative side or need a new coffee mug? Head over to Color Me Mine, located in the center of Old Hyde Park Village, to get your art on! When you arrive you’ll pay a studio fee for the glazes and stencils you use, and then pick a piece of pottery to decorate. There’s plenty of pre-made ceramics ranging from little cat figurines to change jars to full-blown serving dishes and everything in between. The staff can answer any questions you have about creating designs or how the process of glazing works. Each piece of pottery has its own price, which varies depending on the size. The studio has special discount days on studio fees like date night and holiday specials. colormemine.com
Tampa Theatre
The Tampa Theatre has been open since 1926 and continues to draw hundreds of people to its box office. The theatre only has one screen and was designed to give viewers a real “movie going experience.” The “mighty Wurlitzer” is the original theatre organ that they love to flaunt before every screening. If you want to know more about the theatre and how it functions, there are backstage tours offered monthly; the next one is September 9th at 11:30. Tickets can be purchased in advance online and pricing depends on the movie or event you’ll attend. The theatre shows documentaries, classic series, and live music events. Many of the movies shown are classics like Casablanca, and Dirty Dancing which are rotated out seasonally. There are also silent and independent films screened on specific nights for movie buffs. tampatheatre.org
Weekend Get-Away
River Adventures (Crystal River)
Interested in swimming with manatees? Put on a snorkel and head over to Crystal River, where you can swim for up to four hours with these graceful creatures. When the manatees come up for air, you can see their roly-poly 12-foot long bodies emerge from the crystal clear water. By putting on a wet suit and snorkel, swimmers can get up close and personal with manatees and see their wrinkled, whiskery grey faces. While bobbing down the river you might catch a glimpse of the manatees grazing sea grasses or rolling around in the water. You might even see them greeting fellow manatees by kissing each other! Before suiting up, those wishing to see the manatees are required to watch an educational video on how to approach the manatees and why it is important to protect these gentle creatures. After the short film swimmers board the boat and are led to one of the sites where the manatees are active. For those wishing to fish, a scalloping tour is available near the waters of the Gulf. The best time of the year to go to the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge is from December to March, because of the manatees’ reliance on warm water. http://riverventures.com/contact-river-ventures-manatee-tours.html
John’s Pass and Treasure Island
The “Pass”, as some locals call it, is a fishing village that has been rated as one of Pinellas County’s number one tourist attractions. The area received its name from a pirate, John Levique, who made his first voyage through the pass while trying to search for an entrance to Boca Ciega Bay.
Today, John’s Pass has expanded to include a boardwalk spanning several miles with shops, fishing tours and cruises. Gator’s Parasail offers parasailing, jet ski rentals, and mini speed boat rentals. However, if you would rather take a cruise you can venture onto the pirate ship Royal Conquest. After boarding the two deck pirate ship you can participate in water gun battles, a treasure hunt, limbo, pirate stories, face painting and dancing. The pirate ship’s sister company Dolphin Quest offers a more relaxing cruise with a captain that narrates the wildlife you encounter while taking in the sights of Boca Ciega Bay.
Interested in fishing? Take a ride on The Hub! You can catch a variety of fish, and are allowed to keep one small shovelnose shark if you can catch it! Another option for visitors is to board the Fort De Soto Ferry to Egmont Key where you can swim with smaller fish and enjoy the secluded beach away from tourists. Egmont Key also has a lot of shells that visitors can catch that are free game. http://www.johnspassvillage.net/JPMA/
Want a nice place to have a stay by John’s Pass, but don’t want to pay an arm and a leg? Just a mile from the beach Bayside Inn & Marina offers a double bed efficiency suite for only $87 a night. Each room comes equipped with a full kitchen, wifi, and pool access. Also,Florida residents save 20 percent bringing their total down to $65.25 a night. http://www.thebaysideinnandmarina.com/Package_Reservations.asp
Theresa Stanton can be reached at testanton85@gmail.com
Katherine Lavacca can be reached at katherine.lavacca@theminaretonline.com