Our California trip was absolutely incredible but we were definitely ready to get back to our Dessa girl after the (almost) three weeks. When we got back to Florida we spent a couple more days with Grandma and Fred while we prepared for the next leg of our adventure. Our first stop, Koreshan State Park! Even though it was only 30 minutes from where we were, it was a good starting point. Grandma and Fred found the last two sites in what seemed to be, all of Florida. They loaded up Barefoot, their RV, and we camped together for a couple of days. She not only spoiled us with her delicious cooking but they also ended up giving us their bikes that they didn’t use anymore!!! Jordan and I are SO grateful! Our poor bikes were tired and ready to be donated!
This historic state park was pretty incredible. I’ll share a brief quote to give you a picture of what is was like…
“Throughout its history, Florida has welcomed pioneers of all kinds. Cyrus Reed Teed was probably the most unusual, bringing followers to Estero in 1894 to build the “New Jerusalem” for his new faith, Koreshanity. The colony, known as the Koreshan Unity, believed that the entire universe existed within a giant, hollow sphere. The colony began fading after Teed´s death in 1908, and in 1961 the last four members deeded the land to the state. What remains of their once vibrant community are 11 beautifully maintained historic structures that date from 1882-1920 and landscaped grounds including unique ornamental exotic vegetation from throughout the world.”
So, basically a man created his own religion, convinced people to move to the middle of no where and create a self-sustaining colony. Kind of strange… but the buildings and property that were preserved from all this are still incredible. Houses built in the early 1900’s, old machine shops filled with old tools, an old bakery, and incredible gardens.
On our last evening there I was able to soak in a lot of fun stories from Grandma. I have always wanted to know more about our family history so it was so awesome to hear all about the past. (Thanks Grandma, that was so special for me!)
This was the perfect way to start off the next leg of our adventure. We couldn’t be more grateful for my grandparents and all they did for us. We so enjoyed our time together. Can’t wait to meet up with you on the road.
Cote's on the road 
We’ll have to look up that park–have never heard of it. Looks like a beautiful place to stay. Thanks for sharing. Dawn
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