Hey all you Floridians

[kingpin008]

Especially those of ya'll who are residents of/familiar with Gainesville and surrounding areas - got some questions for you fine folk.

My fiancee and I will be visiting my mom in Gainesville from the 14th to the 28th of January, and we're looking for things to do.

One of the things I thought of was shooting. We won't have much money to spend while we're down here, so cheap or free is the name of the game.

Are there any places to shoot near the Gainesville area that won't break the bank? If so, I'd be bringing my MK III with us and using that, rather than renting since it'd probably cost too much anyway.

And failing that, anyone able to recommend some good all-night diners or decent vegetarian restaurants?

Thanks ya'll!

 

[qajaq59]

I know there is a rifle range in the Ocala National Forest, which is roughly 45 miles SE from Gainesville. I'm not sure where it is but you could maybe do a Google and find out.

 

[Cannonball888]

The range in the Ocala National Forest is lame. I highly recommend going 45 minutes north to Lake City's Lewis D. Whitaker Osceola Shooting Range . The range is 3 times bigger than Ocala and way better maintained. It is free and unsupervised. Just find the Moose Lodge and take the road left of it. Here's a map to the Lodge.

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?1c=Gai...0.193252&2g=-82.603379&2v=ADDRESS&2id=4018631

 

[Mannlicher]

none of the 'vegan' restaurants are very good. However, many regular restaurants feature vegan items, and some of them are very good indeed.
Satchel's Pizza, Maude's, Buddah Belly, Original Pizza Palace, Mildred's, Harvest Thyme and Steamers are among these.
Try some of the Tempeh dishes made with locally produced Organic Tempeh, at Buddha Belly or Satchel's. You will be very impressed.
If you like to hike, look into a walk through the San Felasco State Park out on Millhopper road. The trails are beautiful and yet challenging.
A day trip over to Cedar Key is worth the effort, and of course, there is a lot to do on the University of Florida campus.

 

[Hoplophile]

If you like any Indian food, you usually can't go wrong with their vegetarian meals.

 

[LWGN]

If you are ever in a hurry while you are there, and looking for quick, good, inexpensive vegetarian food, add El Indio and Maui Teriyaki to the above lists. El Indio has great black bean tacos and a fabulous veggie burrito, and they are CHEAP. I lived on El Indio all through college .They have two Gainseville locations. Maui Teriyaki has a killer grilled tofu, and a very nice steamed veggie platter, and has locations in Gainesville and Alachua. You can also usually pick up very good vegetarian spanokpita or lentil pies in the bakery section at Ward's Supermarket or Mother Earth Market, and if you are a lacto-ovo vegetarian, and you are in the Millhopper area (43rd st. and 23rd Ave.) on a Tuesday morning, make it a point to stop in at The Uppercrust bakery and get either the Olive and Swiss roll or the Artichoke and Swiss Roll - whole-grain heaven that will very likely serve you as an entire meal.

Bahn Thai is also a vegetarian-friendly restaurant worth checking out.

A list of Florida ranges (not just G.ville area, sorry) with contact info is here:

http://www.muck-boy.com/Shooting Ranges/Muckboy Florida Shooting Range Page.htm

When we want to go shooting near Gainesville, we just use our friend's private range out near Williston - unfortunately, not an option, as I know he will be gone when you are there, or I'd see if we could bring you along.

Check out the Florida Museum of Natural History while you are in town, and, if it is still open, the Fred Bear Museum.

The Hoggetowne Medieval Faire will be going on at the Alachua County Fairgrounds Jan 24-25.