Send us your Florida questions!

Buckle in for a wild ride... this episode starts in Bithlo, detours through Orlando Speed World, gets chased by a cobra, and then goes on an adventure through the springs.

Links We Mentioned

Bithlo

Bithlo real estate

Orlando Speed World

Swampy

St. Cloud Serpentarium

Barberville Yard Art Emporium

DeLeon Springs State Park

Queenie the Waterskiing Elephant

Ginger Ale Springs

Green Springs

Sam Stoltz houses

Orlando Shine

Giant inflatable pigeons in Orlando

Photo of Orlando inflatable pigeons by Rick Kilby.

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Rick and Cathy talk about gentrification, the difficult relationship white people have with Black history, its place in Florida's history, and how Florida's Black history impacts modern-day Florida.

Links We Mentioned

Lincolnville

Fort Mose

Axe Handle Saturday

The Zorg

Eatonville's Zora Neale Hurston Museum

Kingsley Plantation

Carter Woodson Museum

Lincolnville Museum

Historic Hampton House

American Beach

A.L. Lewis Museum

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Eliot Kleinberg, a journalist whose career spans five decades, has turned his talents to fiction. His first book, Hypocrite's Row, is due out February 26.

From Eliot:

Hypocrite’s Row, the first book of my “Adventures of Nate Moran” novels about the Roaring 20s Miami police detective, comes out next month. The setting is the real battle between gangsters and law enforcement during the mostly failed effort to enforce Prohibition in South Florida.

Florida native Eliot Kleinberg, creator of the Civil War historical novel "Peace River," the"Adventures of Nate Moran" novels, and the original "Weird Florida" books, spent nearly a half-century reporting on local news and writing about Florida and Florida history. He produced two history columns and wrote fourteen books -- and co-wrote or contributed to several more -- all of them about Florida. Son of longtime journalist Howard Kleinberg, he lectures regularly on Florida topics and runs a blog on better writing called "Something Went Horribly Wrong."

Links We Mentioned

Eliot's website

Eliot's newsletter

Level Best books

Planner or Pantser?

Hypocrite's Row

Bookshop.org

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Ann McCutchan's book, The Life She Wished To Live: A Biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Author of The Yearling, focuses on Rawling's life. Ann, Cathy, and Rick talk about Rawlings' life, how she learned not to be a racist, her struggles with alcohol, and why The Yearling is not the best of her works.

Links We Mentioned

Ann McCutchan's website

Here is Home: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Cross Creek

The Life She Wished To Live: A Biography of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Author of The Yearling

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Society annual conference

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Author Holly Sprinkle joins the podcast to talk about her book, Florida Natural Springs: A History. The trio talks about — among other things — Naked Ed, the historic marker at Manatee Springs, and why fat mermaids are the best mermaids.

Links We Mentioned

The William Bartram plaque at Manatee Springs

Buy Holly's book!

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

While working as a journalist, Pete Gallagher investigated Florida stories that made a difference. He joins the podcast this week to talk about two of those stories, people buried under Tropicana Field, and his book (in progress) about his life in journalism.

Links We Mentioned

James Richardson

Emateloye Estenletkvte: Polly Parker Got Away

Florida Folk Show

radiostpete.com

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Florida has a significant history with enslaved people escaping their oppressors in the United States. If you want to see history, these are places you can visit to learn the real history of Florida's underground railroad.

Links We Mentioned

Fort Mose

Bill Baggs State Park

Gulf Islands National Seashore in Pensacola

Podcast episode about Prospect Bluff

Fernandina Plaza Historic State Park

Kingsley Plantation

Fitzpatrick Plantation Ruins

Angola Settlement (more about Angola)

The Fort at Prospect Bluff by Dale Cox

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!

Send us your Florida questions!

Nichole Delafield-Bromme and Lief Bromme talk about their book, Little Wekiva Memories: Kayaking & Other Adventures.

Links We Mentioned

Little Wekiva Memories: Kayaking & Other Adventures

NicholeDelafield.com

Maffrey's at Ivanhoe Village

Brick and Mortar Places Selling Little Wekiva

Sunshine Book Co.

647 Lake Ave., Clermont, FL 34711

Maffrey’s (see link above)

Barnes and Noble

B&N Sand Lake, 7900 W. Sand Lake Road, Orlando

B&N Colonial Plaza Market Center, 2418 E. Colonial Dr., Orlando

B&N Altamonte Mall, Altamonte Springs

B&N 331 N. Alafaya Trail, Orlando

Support the show

Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com.

Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter, and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com and get his books at rickkilby.com.

Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy and everywhere else as @CathySalustri; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth, Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social), and IG (@ricklebee).

NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link!