From Tallahassee, FL to Orlando, FL
From Tallahassee, FL to Orlando, FL
Ending Mileage: 
Day of Travel
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Distance (in miles)
Distance (in kilometers)
Departure Time
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Today I should have been in Tampa. Tampa was on my schedule in order to visit some friends that expected to be living in Tampa by the time of this trip but do not live there yet. When I had problems getting the reservations for the correct dates in Key West, I shuffled my schedule to accommodate the available dates. I split the ride from Pensacola to Central Florida (Tampa or Orlando) into two parts. This allowed me to have a nice long ride along the panhandle coast of Florida yesterday and added last night's stop in Tallahassee. I moved the Orlando stay from after Key West to before Key West and presto I have more time in Savannah to boot!
I got a late start from Tallahassee. I think I'm still running on the Pacific Time Zone. I am also riding later into the day than I did during my first couple days on the road.
I
left the hotel and headed downtown to see the Florida State Capitol
building. Like Arizona's it is flanked by and to a certain degree
overshadowed by modern buildings. I also rode past the Florida
Supreme Court. The facade of that building became familiar to all of
us as the scene of the endless chad hearings during November 2000. I
didn't know it at the time but the Florida legislature was in the
process of approving measures to greatly modernize the state's voting
equipment and procedures.
My route today will take me out of Tallahassee on Florida Route 27. This turns out to be a nice four lane divided highway that is virtually unused once I get out of the Tallahassee suburbs. The temperature is fairly warm but not overwhelming as there are a lot of clouds.
The countryside around Tallahassee has some rolling hills that came as a surprise to me. I had always thought of Florida as a very flat state (and trust me it is) but it is not absolutely flat from end to end. The road is edged by mixed forest. Through breaks in the trees I can see some evidence of swamps or wetlands and at other times plantation forest (single tree species, planted in rows like wheat).
The road actually makes for fairly monotonous riding. It is arrow straight, slight bends and then arrow straight again. The long straight stretches are further accentuated by the forest that lines the road without gap. It is like riding in a great green trench.
The many small towns that I pass through create some diversion. The first town is Perry. Perry bills itself as a fisherman's paradise. At Cross City, I stop at the Dairy Queen for a rest stop and a blizzard. Since just south of Tallahassee, I have started to notice these beautiful oak trees. They are majestic with a beautiful spreading branch structure. Spanish moss hangs from the limbs of every oak tree in view. At the Dairy Queen in Cross City, there are six of these big trees that provide a wonderful canopy for the building, parking lots and outside eating areas. For me, these trees are emblematic of what the South looks like.
The other tree that I see with some frequency is the Magnolia. The magnolia stands out because of the dark glossy green leaves and the huge white blossoms (hence grandiflora in it's name). I keep trying to find one that presents a blossom that I can get some good pictures. So far I have had no luck.
At Chiefland I fill up the gas tank and turn onto Alt-27 to cross Florida heading east to meet up with Interstate 75. About ten miles east of Chiefland, about twenty-five motorcycle riders (not all Harleys) are heading west. I wonder what they're up to on a workday. Somewhere between Chiefland and Ocala, the predominant land use moves from plantation lumber to horses. There are big beautiful horse ranches.
On Interstate 75, I turn south and try to tear up some mileage. Despite a few raindrops earlier, the sky is clear and the temperature is into the low 80s. The incredible concentration of theme parks in Orlando is made very clear by a parade of billboards extolling their individual virtues. The scale of the Disney enterprise cannot be believed until seen. I am still over an hour outside of Orlando and Disney has its own visitor's center next to I-75.
I take the Florida Turnpike into Orlando. There are still about 50 miles to go before getting to Orlando and I don't have many options other than the turnpike. This will be my first tollbooth experience of this trip (actually of any trip on the motorcycle). The tollbooth doesn't arrive until about twenty miles into my travel on turnpike. I'm prepared with a handful of quarters in my tank bag. The first toll is $2.00. I'm amazed by the amount of crap that drips off cars and trucks at the tollbooth plaza. It is an ugly mix of oil and antifreeze and God knows what else. More importantly to a motorcyclist, the mixture is slick as hell and instantly coats your boot soles.
So I've developed a strategy to remedy this. As I depart the gate, I do so slowly. I drag my feet just enough to provide some scrubbing action. I don't want to need traction at the next stop and have none. Worse yet would be to forget that I don't have any and take a big fall. Now I know some of you are going to say -- but you could hurt yourself (graphic description removed for Mother's protection) doing that. But I think it is better to take this calculated risk than to get in a bad situation for which you are unprepared.
I find my motel and check in. This is my first experience on the trip staying in gay lodging on this trip. The motel in Orlando is fairly notorious and within hours I discover that it's reputation is deserved. I have dinner at the restaurant that is on the premises. The food is decent but the room is empty and feels rather cold. After dinner, I head over to one of the five bars that are part of the hotel. I spend a lot of time talking to an older gentleman that has come over for a couple of days of R&R. He is very talkative and seems to have a couple lifetimes of experiences but I'm not sure how much is reality. Finally it is time for bed.
I'll spend a couple of days here to do some exploring.
When traveling between Midland and Austin Texas, I ran across a marker for the Butterfield Stage. It rang a bell because I believe there is a leg of the Butterfield Stage Road that runs through Anza Borrego Desert State Park. One of my faithful correspondents, Jeanne, was piqued when she ran into Butterfield Stage Road in the Temecula area after reading my ride report. Jeanne did some research and offered this link to the University of Kansas for a description of the Butterfield Stage Route and this story in a recent e-mail. This is a great story.
Depart Tallahassee US Route 27 heading east.
At Capps, turn right southbound onto US Route 19.
Just south of Hardeetown, turn east onto US Route 27A.
At Williston, transition onto US 27 heading east.
At intersection with Interstate 75, enter I-75 heading south.
At intersection (start) with Florida Turnpike, enter Florida Turnpike heading south.
Turn north on Orange Blosson Trail.
Arrive Orlando.
(c) 2001 Thomas N. Engler Revision Date: 04/25/2001 revised
9/19/01
