Guest Post By: Margie Miklas

The water is that magnificent shade of turquoise green, the waves are rolling in one after the other, and the wind is so strong it knocked down my beach umbrella twice. I love the beach and today I am at Avalon State Park on North Hutchinson Island, Florida along Florida's Treasure Coast This beautiful place has over a mile of undeveloped natural beach.

The soft light brown sand feels good on my toes and the beach here is wide even at high tide.    A few feet higher than the beach high on a ledge above me, the sea oats are blowing in the wind. Not many people are here today although the temperature is 78 degrees and the sun is shining without a cloud anywhere on the horizon.  A couple of fishermen are here and a few groups of senior citizens who are either retired or on vacation. One is using crutches and another has one of those beach wheelchairs with the large inflatable grey wheels.

I could stay here all day listening to the waves with my eyes closed and feeling totally relaxed. This is the next thing to Paradise and I am fortunate enough to live here, only about a half hour away.

The beach at Avalon State Park is part of Florida's state park system, so there is a fee to park here in one of the forty parking spaces and use the beach. It goes by the honor system according to a posted sign on a metal post. The sign indicates to take a blue envelope from inside this metal "station" and insert $2, then tear off the section designated to hang from the rearview mirror of your car. The envelope then gets deposited into a slot in this station.

Next to the parking lot is a covered pavilion and under it are four picnic tables. Two charcoal grills are also here. Restroom facilities are located at the other end of the parking lot, and although there is no lifeguard here today, a red flag is posted warning of strong surf. Avalon State Park in Fort Pierce is located in St Lucie County Florida on Florida's scenic Highway A1A, four miles north of the north causeway.

How nice this is in the second week of February when I know that the northern part of the country is dealing with snow and cold temperatures. Since I grew up in Ohio I understand only too well about northern winters. I'll take this Florida beach any day of the year.

Guest Post By: Margie Miklas

Follow Margie on her blog at margieinitaly.wordpress.com

Guest Post By: Margie Miklas

If you are looking to spend a few hours at a cool museum, don't miss the Navy Seal Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida. Located at the south end of North Hutchinson Island on A1A, the Navy Seal Museum is a place where you can truly enjoy yourself for several hours. Not only will you be entertained and educated at the same time, but you will leave with a tremendous sense of pride in America.

I have visited the museum twice, and each time I learned so much that I didn't know about the Navy seals. This is one museum that is definitely worth more than the $8 price of admission. Volunteers staff the museum, and many of them are previous military men and women, and some are even former Navy Seals.

What I was so intrigued to see was the actual lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama. This is the lifeboat that was hijacked in 2009 by Somali pirates. Three of the pirates held the captain hostage for four days on this lifeboat until Navy Seals killed all of them and freed the captain. It was chilling to actually see the bullet hole in the side of the lifeboat.

The museum features numerous displays and exhibits, videos and movies. The weapons collection alone is very interesting even to someone like me who knows nothing about guns.  Videos run on various screens giving the visitor an inside look at some of the training involved in becoming a Navy Seal. Various collections of uniforms and equipment from over the years are displayed according to different eras.

The Navy Seal Museum is the only museum in the world which is dedicated exclusively to the preservation of the Navy Seals and their predecessors, the “elite warrior of Naval Special Warfare.”  The ground where the building is located was the original training grounds for the Navy Frogmen during the years 1943-1945. The U.S. Navy's Underwater Demolition Team, formed in 1943, was actually the predecessor to the Seals, which were not formed until 1962.  From 1945 through 2005, about 48,000 men went through UDT and Seal training, but only 8,000 became UDTs and Seals.

Every November in celebration of Veterans Day the Navy Seal Museum has a three day celebration called the Muster, where they feature guest speakers, a 5K run, live music and food, aerial demonstrations, and other fun activities for the entire family.

Hours of the museum are:

Tuesday Saturday 10-4
Sunday 12-4

Guest Post By: Margie Miklas

Follow Margie on her blog at margieinitaly.wordpress.com