Today's update:
We left Emerald Island shortly after 8:30 am to get to DeLeon State Park. It took us a little longer than we thought and it was almost 10 am by the time we had parked up.
It was a lot busier than we expected with lots of locals who had brought picnics, barbecues etc. There were lots of large Spanish-speaking family groups. We found the old Spanish Sugar Mill restaurant but there was already a wait of 30-40 mins for a table.
While we waited, we had a look at the swimming lake and booked for the 1:00 pm 'Fountain of Youth' boat trip. The lake was full of kids having fun - not particularly peaceful!
Our name was called out over the tannoy and we were quickly seated at a table with a large griddle in the centre. The house speciality is self-cooked pancakes, which we opted to try. The waitress then brings you jugs of pancake batter (white and mixed grain) and gives you instructions on how to cook them. You can pay extra for fruit, nuts etc, but syrup, honey and molasses are provided in the price. The waitress will bring more batter if you want more. You can also cook eggs on the griddle, while the kitchen will cook bacon, ham etc.
We managed to make some good blueberry pancakes after a liitle practice, but it was hot work sitting by the griddle.
The boat trip at 1:00 pm was really enjoyable - the 'crew' were a couple of old-timers with lots of knowledge of the local area and its flora and fauna. The pointed out gators, turtles, ospreys etc etc. It was a really peaceful trip - in stark contrast to the boistrous atmosphere of the swimming lake.
We left the park at around 3 and it was raining heavily when we got back. We lazed by the clubhouse pool for a while when we got back to Emerald Island.
We ate at the Orlando Ale House which has recently opened on the W 192. DH had fish and chips and I had chicken fajitas. DH enjoyed his, but I'd have preferred mine to be spicier. Service wasn't great. Purely for the sake of research, I had to try a margarita, which was pretty good but not as good as those at Manny's.
Tomorrow's plans are not definite yet - we have tickets for NASCAR ridealongs at Richard Petty's and we want to try Captain Turbo's power boats, but we haven't checked availability for tomorrow yet.
Will let you know how it goes.
We left Emerald Island shortly after 8:30 am to get to DeLeon State Park. It took us a little longer than we thought and it was almost 10 am by the time we had parked up.
It was a lot busier than we expected with lots of locals who had brought picnics, barbecues etc. There were lots of large Spanish-speaking family groups. We found the old Spanish Sugar Mill restaurant but there was already a wait of 30-40 mins for a table.
While we waited, we had a look at the swimming lake and booked for the 1:00 pm 'Fountain of Youth' boat trip. The lake was full of kids having fun - not particularly peaceful!
Our name was called out over the tannoy and we were quickly seated at a table with a large griddle in the centre. The house speciality is self-cooked pancakes, which we opted to try. The waitress then brings you jugs of pancake batter (white and mixed grain) and gives you instructions on how to cook them. You can pay extra for fruit, nuts etc, but syrup, honey and molasses are provided in the price. The waitress will bring more batter if you want more. You can also cook eggs on the griddle, while the kitchen will cook bacon, ham etc.
We managed to make some good blueberry pancakes after a liitle practice, but it was hot work sitting by the griddle.
The boat trip at 1:00 pm was really enjoyable - the 'crew' were a couple of old-timers with lots of knowledge of the local area and its flora and fauna. The pointed out gators, turtles, ospreys etc etc. It was a really peaceful trip - in stark contrast to the boistrous atmosphere of the swimming lake.
We left the park at around 3 and it was raining heavily when we got back. We lazed by the clubhouse pool for a while when we got back to Emerald Island.
We ate at the Orlando Ale House which has recently opened on the W 192. DH had fish and chips and I had chicken fajitas. DH enjoyed his, but I'd have preferred mine to be spicier. Service wasn't great. Purely for the sake of research, I had to try a margarita, which was pretty good but not as good as those at Manny's.
Tomorrow's plans are not definite yet - we have tickets for NASCAR ridealongs at Richard Petty's and we want to try Captain Turbo's power boats, but we haven't checked availability for tomorrow yet.
Will let you know how it goes.
