Gribblenation

The 1928 Lake Okeechobee Hurricane was the second most deadly in U.S. history behind the 1900 Galviston Hurricane.  The Category 5 Hurricane first hit Puerto Rico before moving to Florida with winds sustained at 160 MPH.  The path of the hurricane took it directly over Lake Okeechobee which is the largest lake in Florida and headwaters of the Everglades.  The Lake Okeechobee Hurricane raised the water level by at least 20 feet and wiped out many of the surrounding communities. In total it is estimated that there was at least 2,500 fatalities related to the Lake Okeechobee Hurricane in Florida.   A general list of the communities destroyed by the Lake Okeechobee Hurricane include; Port Mayaca, Sand Cut, Canal Point, Pahokee, Belle Glade, South Bay, Okeelanta, Bean City, Ritta Island, Lake Harbor, Chosen, and Kreamer Island.  Some communities like Belle Glade eventually were rebuilt but others became ghost towns largely wiped clean.  In response to the La...

Back in early 2016 I was slated to make a move back to the West Coast from the Orlando Area.  My move fell during the early months of 2016 which meant a winter drive across the country.  Back in early 2013 I had taken mostly I-10 from Phoenix when I moved to Florida which meant I largely sought to avoid the corridor.  In total I had eight days to drive approximately 2,800 miles across; Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and much of Southern California. My route on the first day started out northbound on Florida State Road 436/Semoran Boulevard at Orlando International Airport. I jumped on the FL 408 Toll Road westbound towards downtown Orlando. I followed FL 408 to it's western terminus and took Florida's Turnpike Northbound. I took Florida's Turnpike past Clermont to FL 19 southbound since I was out during the evening rush hour.  I typically found that FL 50 moves extremely slow through Clermont during...