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The lure of the outdoors has always drawn visitors to North Central Florida, where vast forests, world-class springs and famous waterways encourage diving, fishing, canoeing, biking, trekking and, increasingly, birdwatching.
The region is home to the largest concentration of bald eagles east of the Mississippi River and the threatened red cockaded woodpecker is still found in portions of the Osceola National Forest. At the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge near Tallahassee, more than 300 bird species have been recorded. And the 20,000-acre Paynes Prairie State Preserve is an important resting point for migratory birds. The preserve is also home to 20 distinct biological communities, and terrestrial animals such as Spanish horses and American buffalo. On the western border of the region, the Apalachicola National Forest is a primarily wet lowland environment with cypress, magnolias and azaleas, as well as black bears and alligators.
History is important here, and off-beat museums and festivals thrive in a region whose inhabitants don't place a premium on blending in with the go-go lifestyles of Jacksonville, Orlando, or Miami. The Forest Capital State Museum in Perry honors Florida's logging industry and early cracker homesteaders, and Live Oak's Suwannee County Historical Museum is housed in the old Atlantic Coast Line Freight Railroad Station. Outside Micanopy is Cross Creek, the home and farm of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Yearling and numerous books on Floridian ecology. Tallahassee, the state capital, represents the Florida of yesterday and today. In front of the new, high-rise Capitol building stands the Old Capitol. At the confluence of the St. Marks and Wakulla Rivers, the remains of the Spanish Fort San Marcos de Apalache, built in the late 1600s, is marked by a museum and boardwalk at the water’s edge. This region is also home to the tranquil fishing villages of Steinhatchee and Cedar Key.
When North Florida farmers discovered the advantages of growing tobacco in shade in the early 1900s, the area around Gadsden County flourished, and magnificent houses sprang up in towns like Quincy, Gretna and Havana. Many of the homes these fortunes built have survived, and walking tours of Quincy include 51 historic homes, churches and other buildings. The demise of the local tobacco industry in the 1960s devastated the area, but Gadsden County, like the phoenix, has emerged from the ashes to remake itself as a center for the arts. In 1984, merchants set up shop in downtown Havana’s warehouses, as the area became a thriving marketplace for antiques, country novelties, collectibles, and home décor items. A growing community of artisans in Havana and the surrounding towns led to the development of the North Florida Arts Trail. Starting in Havana, the self-guided trail runs to Chattahoochee, following scenic roadways. Picturesque old towns in the region include High Springs and Micanopy.
In 1864, Union and Confederate troops squared off outside Lake City for a five hour contest that would become Florida’s only major Civil War battle. The Olustee Battlefield State Historic Site is marked by a trail and signs along the battle lines. The Historical Museum in downtown Lake City includes special exhibits related to the battle. A re-enactment held at the site every February attracts over two thousand participants. |
