Lance Around Orlando

Sebastian Inlet State Park 

For the lucky readers of my blog who are seeking a truly natural Florida beach experience, you will be pleased to discover Sebastian Inlet state park. 

This is a great alternative to the more commercialized beaches, such as Cocoa or Daytona. Here, the crowds are sparse, the beaches serene and the wildlife abundant. Of course, there’s no stores, no pizza parlours and no ice cream shops. 

Instead, the Sebastian Inlet provides one of the best opportunities for surfers.  According to surfguru.com: “Sebastian Inlet is a very consistent surf break! Sand bottom with refraction off the jetty bends the wave to form a powerful wedge effect! Big lippers and air launches! Along with right and left tubing waves! Not a place for beginners! Heavy locals, Big talent, and most of the pro surfers congregate at the 1st peak to show off their talent on a good day.” LanceAround does not understand a word of that report, but it sure sounds like a lot of fun. 

On Sunday, Number One Son, Number One Daughter and Mrs. LanceAround took a well deserved break and drove to Sebastian Inlet. We parked our car right beside the bathroom facilities. Outside, there was also a convenient shower useful for washing off the sand on your way out! 

Natural Wildlife Abounds

A short boardwalk takes you from the bathrooms to the beach. Along the way, the tall grasses were teeming with large, Golden Silk Orb-Weaver Spiders. They created a magnificent array of beautiful webs. 

At the beach there were only a couple dozen bathers and no lifeguards. The sun was shinning, the weather was gorgeous and the surf very mild. (Unfortunately–as LanceAround and Number One Son love to ride large waves!) 

Number One Son and I enjoyed an hour long swim while Number One Daughter joined Mrs. LanceAround in a relaxing nap on the beach blanket. We then used the showers to remove all the gritty sand and drove to Vero Beach to enjoy an Indian meal before heading home for the evening. 

Located between Melbourne and Vero Beach, Sebastian Inlet State Park is only a 90 minute drive from downtown Kissimmee. In addition to pristine beaches, it features the premier saltwater fishing spot on Florida’s east coast. There’s surfing, the McLarty Treasure Museum, the Sebastian Fishing Museum, scuba diving, snorkeling, canoeing, kayaking and nature trails.  Full facility campsites and a boat ramp are also available. 

A serendipitous discovery for the lucky readers of my blog who seek “more than a mouse!”™

This entry was posted on August 5, 2010 at 3:20 pm and is filed under Off-the-Beaten-Path. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.