Kanapaha Botanical Gardens

While near Gainesville Florida, visit Kanapaha Botanical Gardens.  The Kanapaha Botanical Gardens is a 62 acre botanical operated by the North Florida Botanical Society. The name comes from nearby Lake Kanapaha. The gardens were established in 1978 when the society leased 33 acres for a public botanical garden. Another 29 acres were added in 1982. The gardens opened to the public in 1986.  Kanapaha is comprised of 24 major collections visually accessible from a 1 ½ mile paved walkway. The gardens include the following major collections:

• Arboretum
• Azalea/Camellia garden
• Bamboo garden (Florida's largest public display)
• Butterfly garden
• Crinum garden
• Cycad garden
• Fern cobble
• Herb garden
• Hummingbird garden
• Palm hammock
• Rock garde
• Rose garden
• Spring flower garden
• Vinery
• Woodland garden

Also included is the largest herb garden in the Southeast. Some of Kanapaha's gardens are organized taxonomically; others demonstrate principles of ecology or natural selection. Kanapaha Botanical Gardens is also a premier event venue hosting both indoor and outdoor wedding ceremonies, wedding receptions, meetings, retreats, conferences and other social functions. Kanapaha's signature plants include a premier stand of Chinese royal bamboo, and--during the warm months--giant Victoria water lilies and Asian snake arums. It is best to visit in June through September, the months offering the most color. Kanapaha hosts many special events throughout the year including a Bamboo Sale and the Spring Garden Festival. Except during special events, like our Spring Garden Festival and Moonlight Walk, dogs are permitted on leashes. Picnic baskets are welcome and there is a picnic area very close to the entrance building. Kanapaha's walkways are largely wheelchair accessible and benches, gazebos and other rest stations are liberally spaced throughout the facility. An exceptional gift shop offers a varied and unusual array of items including original art and treasures from the natural world. 

 

Gainesville Familiarization Trip

In getting familiar with the Gainesville, Florida area we came across two oddities.  The first was from the Atlas Obscura web site and the second got stumbled upon during Lori’s many internet searches. 
Atlas Obsura led us to the University of Florida bat houses.  The bat houses are the world’s largest occupied bat houses.  They are located on the north side of Museum Road between Village Drive and Radio Road across from Lake Alice, on the campus of the university. Mostly populated by the Brazilian free-tailed bat, the bat house and barn are also home to Southeastern and Evening bats.
The original colony of bats was discovered after a fire destroyed Johnson Hall in 1987. The nearly 5,000 bats who had lived there then took up residence at several campus stadium locations. Though the musky odor of the bats and rain of guano during evening games didn’t please fans, it wasn’t until Governor Bob Martinez complained of the odor while attending an athletic event at Griffin Stadium that university officials decided something had to be done.
The first bat house was constructed in 1991. The stadiums were fitted with bat excluders, which allowed the bats to leave but not to return to roost. At first try, approximately 3,000 bats were caught in cages and relocated to the newly built bat house. Most of the bats left after only a night or two. In 1995, after years of using excluders at various campus locations and a variety of techniques to get the bats to stay at the house and the colony continued to grow. In 2009, the internal structure of the house collapsed from the weight of the bats and additional roosting modules that were added to the original design. The internal structure of the house was rebuilt and the first Bat Barn added in 2010. The second Bat Barn was completed in February 2017 to replace the original Bat House, which has deteriorated beyond repair. UF plans to remove the original Bat House at a future date.
The current population, estimated to be 450,000-500,000 bats (the houses can hold 750,000!!!), consumes more than 2.5 billion insects (more than 2,500 pounds) a night.

 
We decided to view an evening emergence of the bats to go on their feeding frenzy.  The bats normally emerge during a 15- to 20-minute period after sunset, before total darkness on calm, warm evenings when temperatures are above 65 F. Bats may swoop near those observing the emergence to eat insects attracted to the carbon dioxide in human breath; however they will not attack or harm people when left alone. High winds, heavy rain or cold temperatures will keep the bats in the house for the evening. On warm winter evenings, the bats may come out for a drink of water at the lake and exercise; however they can eat only when bugs are flying. The best seasons for observing the emergence are spring through early summer, when days are increasing in length. During this time, the bats emerge sooner after sunset while there is a longer period of twilight. To gain the best perspective of the bats’ emergence, watch the western sky over the pine trees and around the street lights on Museum Road. The shadows from the trees north of the house obscure the view of the bats’ emergence.

Our next stop was an eclectic eatery.  Lori found this in an internet search and was attracted to their outdoor fountain which is in itself a work of art! Satchel's Pizza opened on March 7th, 2003. Their mission is to make great food in a beautiful atmosphere and serve up something for all the senses.  At Satchels you can eat in a van, under a plane, or in a greenhouse. Enjoy Satch made stained glass windows, local art, homemade sodas, and live music. There's even a a playground for the kids to help them work up an appetite.  Satchel (Satch) was born in Gainesville, but grew up mostly in Jacksonville until after high school then he attended UF. He returned to Gainesville after some years of travel. 

 

Being an artist who fell in love with pizza as a teenager working at the local Italian restaurant his life's ambition has always been to have a pizzeria but also to make a living as an artist.   Satchels Pizza is equal parts restaurant and art gallery.  Since it was a Sunday when we went to check it out we could not try the food.  Satchel’s is closed on Sunday and Monday.  The external art work is impressive as is the décor.  From the fountain that attracted us to the 1960(ish) Ford van setup as a dining room Satchels is a place to be enjoyed.  The place is set up with great detail from hand painted pavers on the walks to the hub cap garden.  This is certainly a place for us to return to so we can actually try the food.  If it’s as good as the art it will be terrific.

Waldo Farmers and Flea Market

Can't Miss Sign

The Waldo Farmers and Flea Market came to us in two ways.  It was listed in Atlas-Obscura and was also on the road we took to visit my Brother in Gainesville.  You really can’t miss it with a big chair, a windmill and a horse atop the sign along the side of U.S. 301.  So either way we would have found this gem.  We would have stopped because of the farmer’s market portion but, as we found out, this flea market is HUGE and you can spend a good portion of the day.  There are numerous food vendors with very reasonable prices to prevent you from leaving for a snack or lunch.  The collection of vendors and antiques is a treasure trove among the countless roadside gems lining the stretch of U.S. Route 301 from Gainesville to Jacksonville.

Food Vendors are Plenty

Tons of Booths

 
Featuring everything from authentic vintage signs to fishing tackle, musical instruments to fresh produce, and, if you’re lucky, the opportunity to pose for a photo with a “wolf hybrid” (for the small fee of one dollar), a day spent at the outdoor market (and you will need a whole day) is a ticket to another world, simpler times when life happened at a slower pace. Wait in line for ice cream churned by a John Deere tractor engine (worth it), sit down and enjoy a corn dog and sweet tea or try to choose from the endless flavors of boiled peanuts offered by a handful of vendors. 
The Waldo Flea market was born in 1975 after entrepreneur Al Killian and his wife Anne visited a farmers and flea market. They loved the concept. So after returning from their travels Al, better known as “Big Al”, “Cuz”, “Killer” or “Big Daddy” immediately started putting his plans into action. First he bought a 40 acre piece of land on Highway 301 and started constructing several large pole barns. People laughed at him and said he was going to have to put chickens in the sheds. However, several months later the Waldo Farmers and Flea Market was born. Nearly 40 years later, the market remains in the family, and sees 900 vendors and 40,000 visitors each weekend. An antique village, open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., boasts huge collections of antiques, home furnishings and more to the antique enthusiast or the enthusiastic passerby. The flea market also hosts various local musicians so you may also stumble into a free concert while you are there.  Or better yet, check the schedule on their web site and make it a planned trip.

Camp Blanding

Historical Marker

While in Starke, FL we ended up making a  trip to nearby Camp Blanding since it is a military campground and it was close to our KOA.  We stayed at the KOA because we are still in “wing it mode” and do not make advance reservations.  Most military facilities are not equipped to handle weekend and after-hours arrivals so we have to pick and choose.
Camp Blanding is home to the Camp Blanding Museum and Memorial Park. Open to the public, the facility contains a history museum in one of Camp Blanding's restored World War II buildings, tracing the history of both Camp Blanding and the Florida National Guard. Outdoor exhibits and displays include equipment and Army, Navy and Air Force aircraft from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War and Operation Desert Storm, including captured Soviet-manufactured Iraqi equipment from the latter conflict.


We ended up making the trip to Camp Blanding since it is a military campground and it was close to our KOA in Starke, FL.  We stayed at the KOA because we are still in “wing it mode” and do not make advance reservations.  Most military facilities are not equipped to handle weekend and after-hours arrivals so we have to pick and choose.
 

Camp Blanding is home to the Camp Blanding Museum and Memorial Park. Open to the public, the facility contains a history museum in one of Camp Blanding's restored World War II buildings, tracing the history of both Camp Blanding and the Florida National Guard. Outdoor exhibits and displays include equipment and Army, Navy and Air Force aircraft from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War and Operation Desert Storm, including captured Soviet-manufactured Iraqi equipment from the latter conflict.  
Camp Blanding owes its location on the shore of Kingsley Lake to the United States Navy's desire in the late 1930s to establish a Naval Air Station (NAS) on the banks of the St. Johns River, south of Jacksonville,. The site that would eventually become NAS Jacksonville was already the location of the Florida National Guard's Camp Foster and negotiations were started for a land-swap. In mid-1939, the transaction was accomplished and the state armory board chose as compensation a tract of 30,000 acres in Clay County as a National Guard camp and training site. The new camp was named in honor of Lieutenant General Albert H. Blanding. The War Department agreed and Camp Blanding's history began.
In 1940, Camp Blanding was leased to the United States Army as an active duty training center. The post was originally used by New England and Southern troops preparing for deployment overseas. However, during the course of the war, the camp served as an infantry replacement training center, an induction center, a German prisoner-of-war compound, and a holding center for 343 Japanese, German and Italian immigrant residents of the United States. At the height of the war, the Army leased acreage from local landowners, raising the total to 170,000 acres. From 1940 to 1945, more than 800,000 soldiers received all or part of their training here. At one point during the war, the camp contained the population of the fourth largest city in Florida. There were 10,000 buildings, 125 miles of paved roads, and the largest hospital in the state. It was one of the largest training bases in the country.
After the war, the state's 30,000 acres were returned to the armory board and by 1948, most of the buildings were sold or moved off post. In the early 1950s, the Federal Government deeded additional land to the State of Florida for use as a National Guard training facility, but until 1970, the post saw only limited use by the military.
In the 1970s, an expansion program began upgrading post facilities and in 1981, the Department of Defense designated the camp as a Class A military installation. The designation qualified the post for use by greater numbers of troops with more diversified training.
In 1983, the 105mm artillery firing points were used for the first time since World War II. Tank ranges were upgraded and tank crews can use the range for levels up to preliminary main gun training.
  
  In addition to improved facilities and ranges, a parachute drop zone and an expeditionary airfield consisting of two gravel runways capable of accommodating C-130 Hercules aircraft have expanded Camp Blanding's training capacity. The U.S. Navy also utilizes an aerial bombing and strafing target in the southern portion of the post.