Lined with a mix of hometown restaurants, diners, art shops, and small motels, you won't find a chain name in sight. Colorful displays of sea turtles, banana trees and hibiscus bushes beautifully accent this coastal main drag.

Flagler Avenue boasts more than 50 unique shops, a late-night seafood cafe, small pool halls, a shuffleboard court park , and drive-on beach access at the end of the street. Become part of the avenue by purchasing yourself or someone else a "Walk of Fame" brick on Flagler Ave. The bricks cost $35 each. For more information contact Gone Bonkers at (386) 427-2256.

Stop in for a bite at the Beacon Diner, just one of the many family friendly restaurants, to get a feel for the local life.  Rent a bike at Nichols Surf Shop and ride by the town's mix of modest beach bungalows and fancy oceanfront estates.

Enjoy the cool shade beneath the low-flung scrub oaks sand pines and palms.
In the evening, a leisurely stroll on Flagler Avenue will find you live music at one of the many bars. Finish off your night with a sunset dinner or drink at Riverview Charlie's while taking in the soothing sites and sounds of this hidden beachside treasure.

The lagoon is a long, narrow waterway that is part of the Indian River Lagoon, the most diverse estuary in the country. The region officially known as the Mosquito Lagoon Management Area stretches 55 miles south from a point north of Ponce Inlet, and includes waters within Canaveral National Seashore.

Fishing and boating are especially popular in the southern region of Mosquito Lagoon, in Volusia and Brevard counties. There are many islands in the waters, and 11 of those islands have campsites that can be rented.

"They can fish, boat, just relax, and enjoy the peace and quiet," Seashore ranger Laura Patterson said. The camping is primitive. Plus one has to own (or know someone who owns) a boat, canoe or kayak because campers have to supply their transportation to the islands.

If the overnight camping is too much of a commitment, Patterson has something new in the works. There are plans for pontoon boat tours of the water trails around the lagoon. The tours will focus on the wildlife, plants and history of the region.

(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, July 25, 2000).

Bulow Plantation was a 4,675-acre site, about half of which was cleared using slave labor, established during the early 1820s by Major Charles Wilhelm Bulow. At Bulow's death in 1823, the plantation was left to his son, John. Under John's ownership, the plantation, which featured 2,200 acres of sugar cane, cotton, indigo, and rice, flourished and became a travel destination for some of the most important people of that era.

In early 1836, the plantation was attacked and burned by Seminole Indians rebelling against white settlers' attempts to force them out of the area. Now, only the walls and chimneys of the sugar mill remain.

While it is possible to drive a loop road, walking the nature trail to the sugar mill provides a leisurely, and generally shady, way to see the historic site. Look for the "catface" pines the pine trees which had been slashed to drain turpentine during the early 20th century. There is also an interpretive center, with many artifacts and exhibits about the plantation.

Campers will find the site especially good for bird watching and the chance to see Florida's white-tailed deer, raccoons, and other smaller wildlife. Primitive camping is available for backpackers, but a permit is needed (available at the park office at Tomoka Basin GeoPark).

(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, August 15, 2000).

"It's the best place in town for fishing," said Deltona

Campbell Park Where: 1315 Briarwood Ave., Deltona. Hours: Sunrise to sunset. Admission: Free. Information: (386) 878-8900 .

Mayor John Masiarczyk. It also has a little bit of everything for everybody, he said.

Apart from fishing, visitors to the park can take advantage of the boat ramp, soccer, basketball, shuffleboard and volleyball fields. Barbecues with a pavilion and restrooms are also available. Many of the facilities were built by the Optimist Club, which had control over the park in the 1970s, Masiarczyk said. In more recent years, the park has been under county supervision. In October, the city of Deltona will take over to provide a higher level of maintenance, he said.

This year, Campbell Park also became home to the Deltona branch of the Boys and Girls Club. Club members are helping clean up the site, said John Buchanan, Deltona's Parks and Recreation coordinator. In the next several weeks, the nature trails also will be rebuilt, with the help of Boy Scouts, he said.

(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, August 1, 2000).

After the native New Englander purchased land in 1914 on the shore of the Halifax River (just south of the present-day Granada Bridge), she set about pursuing that dream one that was far more modest than that of Mr. Disney, yet one that brimmed with childlike charm.

With an adjoining house already constructed, Ames dubbed the land Whim Garden, then set about creating a whimsical park whose playful remnants survive today: a concrete walrus that peeks up from the Halifax by the park's short pier, a concrete alligator whose back is ridged with seashells, a small stone statue of a cherubic boy carrying a turtle on his back, a carved owl, and an Indian head sculpture with the inscription "Indian Well," which is situated beside the park's bubbling artesian well. No doubt Ames knew the history of the Timucuan Indian mound, across Beach Street from the park.

Ames Park also features crisscrossing canals and ponds, a gazebo, flower beds and plenty of shade trees. 

(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, July 18, 2000).

On a good day, bird-watchers may see everything from the area's ubiquitous pelicans to scissor-tails. For those who are truly lucky and observant, there may be an occasional glimpse of the large, beautifully colored pileated woodpeckers which were once seen throughout Florida and are now rare.

The park also features a variety of recreational facilities and programs, including tennis courts, summer children's programs and unusual events such as the annual flashlight Easter-egg hunt.

Newcomers sometimes find the park's layout a bit confusing, thinking that the part of the park that faces A1A is all there is. The road passes through the front parking lot and actually winds far back from beachside to a much larger area, where the tennis courts, meeting hall, restrooms and other facilities can be found.

 
(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, July 4, 2000).

Ocean breezes caress sea oats and dune grasses as children splash in the surf and adults tend fishing rods planted at the shoreline. There's plenty of space to walk, fish and think.

The area's hundreds of acres of coastal scrub habitat are home to endangered Florida scrub jays and other species that can be spotted during early morning bird-watching. Along the park's west side, the Intracoastal Waterway provides more good fishing opportunities.

North Peninsula State Park is currently in the first phase of a twenty-three acre saltmarsh restoration project. The effect on visitors should be minimal, as this project will not restrict access to the recreational portions of the park. For those who cherish this increasingly rare natural stretch of shoreline, it stands on its own merits.

 
(This article was originally published in the Accent section of the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Tuesday, March 28, 2000).