Southern Comforts

The Historic Redland Tropical Trail reminds us that suburban sprawl hasn’t swallowed up all of South Florida. The members of this group of southern destinations include Coral Castle, the Robert Is Here fruit stand, and Monkey Jungle. There’s also a winery, nurseries, alligator farm, restaurants, and quaint places to shop. To celebrate the trail’s first anniversary, visitors are invited to pick up a “passport” at any member location and stamp it at each site along the trail that you visit. When you collect five stamps, you get a souvenir hat and will be entered into a cash prize drawing; first prize is $1,000.

The contest continues until the end of February, but if you are feeling lucky, you could hit five locations in one day: hang out with monkeys or alligators, drink a fresh fruit milkshake, buy an orchid, shop in a historic village, pick up some dinner and then head back to civilization. For maps and links to all the organizations visit www.redlandtrail.com, or call 305-245-9180.
Dec. 21-Feb. 29, 2007