Hiking Lake Ashby Park, Wiregrass Prairie Yellow Loop, DeLeon Springs

Lake Ashby Park

Recently, we have decided to take up hiking in various areas around Central Florida. Using floridahikes.com, we are making our way through all the spots listed there. We have already done Smyrna Dunes Park, Sugar Mill Ruins and part of Spruce Creek but here are few more we explored in the past month.

We started with Lake Ashby Park and it is just stunning. The trail is in shade (huge plus in Florida!) and goes past Lake Ashby, a gorgeous hidden gem in Volusia County. Unfortunately, the next stop we decided to make was Wiregrass Prairie Yellow Loop. I wanted to like this place but after hours of wandering around the overgrown trail in the full sun, I hated it with a passion and heat that rivaled the blistering sun that attacked us with fury the entire hike. It does have a lot of beautiful wildflowers and an abundance of blackberries but it does not seem very well cared for and again, no shade. Maybe if we came back in the winter or early morning with a machete, we would have enjoyed it more. After that, we couldn't take anymore heat and made our way back home for the most refreshing shower I've ever had.

Old Spanish Sugar Mill

A few weeks later, we made the 45 minute drive to DeLeon Springs for some pancakes and light hiking around the park. The nature walk showcases a 500 year old cypress tree that used to be part of the boat tour done in the 1950's at DeLeon Springs. They have a more challenging trail but we weren't prepared that day for it, so we hope to come back another day to check it out! The coolest part of DeLeon Springs is that you can make your own pancakes on the special griddle tables they have at the Old Spanish Sugar Mill. You have to make sure to get there early (right when they open is best!) to beat the crowds and the heat.

DeLeon Springs

Cabin in the Woods

Sitting on the back deck at the cabin

Ryan's family has a sweet cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Blairsville, GA. I have only been a few times but Ryan and his family have been going since they built the cabin in the early 90's. We went last summer and this year for Memorial Day and I thought it was about time I posted about this beautiful area!

Blairsville is about an 8.5 hour drive from New Smyrna Beach (closer to 10 from Orlando). With traffic and  a few stops for lunch, gas and potty breaks, it can take longer but if you take the scenic route towards the end, it's a beautiful drive. Whenever we go to Blairsville, the first stop is usually to an Ingles grocery store (pronounced like the ingle in jingle) to stock up on food we can cook at the cabin. Mostly I love Ingles because we pronounce it like the Spanish word for English which makes us giggle but probably makes us look like clueless tourists....which we are.

During our 2014 trip with Ryan's family, we packed a lunch and hit the road to Asheville, NC, about 2 hours away. Ryan's mom and sisters went to the Biltmore and we visited with friends who live right near downtown Asheville. The cool thing about their house is that it backs up to an edible park. There is a path that leads through it to the downtown area and you can nibble on apples, chestnuts and blackberries as you walk by. We went to Wicked Weed Brewing for a few drinks and snacks and we only had a few hours before we had to leave but I think there is another trip to Asheville in our future! The downtown area had a very cool hipster/hippie vibe where I think we fit in quite nicely :) If you have enough time, Asheville is the perfect day trip/overnight trip from Blairsville.

Last year's trip also included a journey to Helen, GA to go tubing (the one with the pink tubes just past the immediate downtown area, this is very important); a trip to High Shoals Falls where we found a secret pool after a harrowing trip up the mountain on an unpaved road in a rental car; a trip to Jumping Goat coffee and the businesses around it (antique store, old mill store, winery); and finally, a relaxing glass of wine at Crane Creek Vineyards, where, if Ryan and I ever get married again, will be the future site of our nuptials.

Crane Creek Vineyards

This year for Memorial Day weekend, Ryan and I went to the cabin by ourselves with our dog Romeo (who, by the way, got car sick on the windy mountain roads...whoops). I had done my crazy person Internet research and I had quite the itinerary planned for us! We went back to Crane Creek Vineyards for live music and tapas on Friday night, hiked Blood Mountain which is the highest peak of the Georgia portion of the Appalachian Trail and then perused an art fair in downtown Blairsville on Saturday, watched a movie at the Swan Drive-In  Theater (highly recommend!!) Saturday night, and wandered around downtown Blue Ridge and picked strawberries at Mercier Orchards on Sunday. So rarely do trips work out the way you want them to but it seems that every trip to this area is filled with fresh mountain air, beautiful weather, and kind people.

Hiking Blood Mountain

Swan Drive-In Theater

Roasted Tomato/Sweet Pepper/Garlic/Broccoli and Orzo

Such gorgeous color makes me happy

I accidentally made an excellent vegan dinner last night and since that hardly ever happens, I felt like I needed to share it with the world...or the 3 people who read this blog :)

Ingredients

1 pint organic cherry tomatoes

7 small organic sweet peppers (you could use one or two big bell peppers, but it's less cute)

1 bulb organic garlic with the bottom chopped off

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 box Barilla Orzo (not promoting them, just didn't measure the orzo)

1 10 oz bag frozen organic broccoli

Roasted sunflower seed kernels

Good olive oil

Thyme

Oregano

Sea Salt

Fresh ground pepper

Cayenne

Instructions

Recreate the beautiful photo above by combining the tomatoes, peppers and garlic in a cast iron pan. I drizzled with a Tuscan Herb infused olive oil, but regular would do. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and place in the oven at 450 degrees until the skin begins to wrinkle, about 20-30 minutes.

While that's in the oven, start cooking your orzo according to the directions on the box. Then, take the bag of frozen broccoli and spread evenly on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt and place in the oven with tomato/pepper/garlic pan. Remove when broccoli is warmed and perhaps slightly browned on the tippy top, usually not long after you remove the tomato/pepper/garlic pan.

Once your orzo is cooked, drain and place in a big mixing bowl. Add a sprinkle of thyme, oregano and cayenne to taste, then set aside. In a small pan, warm 4 cloves of minced garlic with a few tablespoons of your good quality olive oil over medium low heat. Once you remove the cast iron pan, roughly chop the peppers and garlic (if it won't squeeze out of the paper skin) and add them to the olive oil/garlic mixture. Then, add the tomatoes and just squish them with a spoon. Take all of this and mix with the orzo. Serve orzo mixture beneath roasted broccoli, a small handful of sunflower seed kernels and enjoy!