We left Manatee State Park and made our way a short distance north to Campers Holiday Park in Brookville. This is a nice Passport America Park where the fees are 17.50 per night and we settled in on a nice paved 50 amp site with full hook ups. We had planned to stay two nights but added two more since a cold snap was heading into Florida and we wanted to avoid any potential freezing temperatures.
The first day we simply walked around the park. It was windy and pretty chilly but not so bad we couldn’t get out and stretch our legs. The park has a nice little lake adjacent to it with a dock. It made for some peaceful gandering across the pond. A couple of Sandhill Cranes were feeding along its edge. We have now gone far enough north past Tampa that the vegetation appears more winter like even though there is an occasional palm tree.
Our second day we drove over to Brooksville to do some grocery shopping and just get the heck out the area we were in. There was more people and traffic in this area than I expected. Before heading back home we wanted to stop and try out some craft beers at Marker 48 Brewing. We had a really good Awesome Sandhill Nut Brown and one of the better IPA’s I have had in Florida, the Pine Island IPA. We got home in time to watch the Superbowl and were glad to see the Bronco’s get a victory from a great defensive effort. Congrats to Superbowl MVP Von Miller who hails from my alma mater Texas A&M University.
Our last day in Brooksville we headed northwest for a road trip to Hermosassa Florida. Our objective was to check out a few spots we had heard about. Our first quest was to find the Monkey Bar. We parked near where we thought it was only to find MacRaes Tiki Bar. Then I noticed a familiar island I had seen on the Monkey Bar’s web page. The island is where the bar has a monkey web cam so you an watch the monkeys that live on the island. We were going to have an adult beverage there but the waiter never waited on us and the energy was not good. If it had been warmer we would have gone back to the tiki bar. We did watch the monkeys from the docks before leaving though.
Our last quest was to find a place called The Freezer tiki bar It has its own Seafood Market but sadly it was closed on Monday. However the bar/restaurant was slammed packed full of people. It seems everyone was looking for an inside activity with all the colder weather in the area. We luckily got a couple of bar seats and ordered some beverages along with 1.25 lbs. of steamed shrimp ($10.60 with tax). We really enjoyed the energy this place had and the beer and shrimp were fantastic. This place is a cash only spot but you won't need a whole lot because the food and beer there are very reasonable! This was a true road treat…
That wraps up our stay in Brooksville as we head up to Old Town Florida on Tuesday…
Like reasonable beer and food, sounds like a great spot.
ReplyDeleteSo you found the Freezer? We read about it when we were in Crystal River and "kinda" looked for it but didn't find it. We've discovered a few "cash spots" in local diners too. I think they need big signs on the door.
ReplyDeleteSounds delicious, and a good way to spend a cool afternoon.
ReplyDeleteThis is our "home" area when in Florida for the winter, but its "Homosassa" :-). The Wildlife Park is definitely worth a visit if you swing back through here. The Freezer is very popular.
ReplyDeletewow I wonder where that mispelling came from, I did correct it - Thanks!
Delete