If you’re like me, you’ve heard of Tampa, Florida and different West Coast seaside cities like Clearwater and St. Pete, however Safety Harbor hasn’t made your radar.
I stumbled onto it after I went to Florida on trade just lately, close to Tampa, and were given invited to lunch on Main Street on this lovable, tiny the town of 17,000 other folks, about 20 mins from Tampa.
With the entire antique and so colourful 100 12 months outdated + properties at the sidestreets, a a laugh downtown with American flags proudly waving and funky retail outlets, cafes and eating places, and a waterfront pier to die for, neatly, now you realize why I fell in love.
I additionally frolicked in within sight Clearwater whilst in Florida, and the distinction couldn’t were extra pronounced. Clearwater is a large the town with heaps of site visitors, parking problems and hordes of visitors. (Plus one implausible seaside price trying out!)
Safety Harbor is quiet, much less trafficked, captivating, a type of nice reveals on a highway shuttle.
So let me inform you all about it.
Ellie the red elephant in Safety Harbor, Florida. By Jefferson Graham for the PhotowalksTV collection
The the town used to be firstly inhabited by way of the Tocobaga Native American tribe, who relied at the within sight herbal springs for freshwater and used the bay for fishing and transportation. The house used to be in large part undeveloped till the past due nineteenth century and within the early 1900s, Safety Harbor used to be formally included, and it grew to transform a well-liked snowbird wintry weather forestall.
I met two of them, visiting for a month from the Boston house, and on a heat day within the 70s, they had been so satisfied to not be house.
I will simply say that the picture spotlight for me all the way through my Florida shuttle used to be attending to Safety Harbor at 6:30 a.m. one morning to observe the solar upward thrust over Tampa Bay from the SH pier. Where I reside right here within the South Bay, we don’t get to observe the solar upward thrust over any frame of water, because the solar is typically at the back of us, we simply see the sunsets. So this used to be particular. It used to be quiet, the birds had been chirping like loopy, the pier makes a lovely foreground and the elements used to be heat. What’s to not like?
Let me stroll you via an afternoon’s talk over with to Safety Harbor.
This house used to be inbuilt 1908 in Safety Harbor. By Jefferson Graham for the PhotowalksTV collection
Then move the road, approx. 2 blocks, flip left and get started heading up Main Street. There are 7 blocks of retail outlets, cafes and eating places, however a lot of the motion is at the decrease facet, the primary 4 blocks. You’ll need to forestall and notice the Baranoff Oak Tree, some 500 years outdated. This is one large tree, which might weigh 800 heaps in the event you had the power to tug it out of the roots. There’s additionally a pleasing gazebo.
From right here, nod to the gazebo, at 401 Main Street, flip proper and get started heading down the road, the place you’ll start to see many cool ancient properties.
One of the primary you’ll see, at 136 4th Street, used to be inbuilt 1908 and has been described as a “classic Victorian style sporting traditional gingerbread” constructed by way of the person who changed into the primary mayor of town. With the flag waving out of doors, and the muted gray and pink colours, it’s the cutest on the town. Keep on strolling and also you’ll uncover Florida yellow, blue, inexperienced and different colourful properties, till you find yourself on the maximum colourful of all of them.
You can’t omit the Safety Harbor Art Center, (706 2d Street) which has an enormous red elephant named Ellie out of doors, a model dolled up in a New Orleans masks and hues of each and every stripe in every single place the development.
Take a excellent go searching after which head again to Main for lunch, optimistically on the Sandwich on Main, (308 Main) a down house, Main Street type of position with sandwiches, soups and the like.
I received’t recommend you return for sundown, because the solar will probably be at the back of you, but when you’ll swing it to go back for dawn, you received’t be upset. The colours are wonderful, and so is the birds soundtrack.
Brian Fiest, the Main Street barber in Safety Harbor, Florida, by way of Jefferson Graham for the PhotowalksTV collection.