22 February 2017
It was a rain day and instead of bicycling, I visited the Dakotah Winery and Manatee Springs State Park.
The Winery is about halfway between Fanning Springs and Chiefland and I pulled in just at opening time. They were just starting a fire in the fireplace and they wanted to know if I wanted a tasting. I deferred until I had a good look at the place. If you wish some item relating to wine, they have it.
Their first vineyard was planted in 1985 and they specialize, like most Florida vineyards, in muscadine grapes. In talking with the owner, I found out there are some 300 varieties of muscadine grapes – all from the native muscadine I used to eat as a kid – Vitis rotundifolia.
They do have a Chardonnay, a Cabernet and a Merlot but those grapes are flown in from California. Their muscadine wines are a little sweeter and more grapey and I must confess, stir memories of eating muscadines as a kid. Some would grow the grapes at home but mostly, we would find a vine in the woods and pick enough to eat or bring them home for jelly.
As you know, in the south, no one ever takes a drink and would never make wine. However, almost all households would make either muscadine “acid” or elderberry “acid” or Blackberry “acid”. Ah, wine by any other name….
I admit, I preferred the muscadine wines. I bought a couple of bottles and I think they will be great sipping them by the pool on a hot summer day.
They have a nice garden/wildlife sanctuary in the back of the Winery and there are wood duck boxes all over the place. The wood duck is the logo of the Winery. If you’ve ever seen a wood duck house, the hole looks too small for that size bird. The way they enter is flying directly into the hole at what seems like 90 miles per hour and you wonder if the duck survives the impact with the back of the house, but they always seem to do so.
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When you look at the Springs you can see the water bubbling up from the depths.
The springs were visited in 1774 by the famed explorer and botanist, John Bartram and his notes contain a description of the springs. Manatee Springs is described as a first magnitude spring (greatest flow of water) while Fanning Springs is a second magnitude spring.
I got a chance to visit where I would be camping and also walked their board walk to the Suwannee River. Guess what was waiting for me?
I returned to Chiefland and ate at Bar-B-Q Bills, recommended by the Winery. So far all these “Great” places to eat have simply been OK.
I then decided to visit, by auto, the last (or first, depending on where you start) stop on the Nature Coast State Trail, Cross City, Florida. Of the towns along he trail: Cross City, Old Town, Fanning Springs, Trenton, and Chiefland, the only one with any character or charm is Trenton.
I drove back to the cabin, took a nap, and will dine in tonight. Tomorrow I start the homeward journey and depending on how my hip holds up, I’ll either drive straight through or spend the night en route.
By the way, I’ve self-diagnosed as sciatica. Apparently arthritis of the hip gives pain the the front of the thigh and groin area while sciatica is painful in the back of the buttocks and hip. Anyone know any good exercises to allege sciatica?
