Your question is sure to stir controversy. Florida is a state with immense problems caused by rampant overdevelopment, rapid population growth and constant pressure from the "growth industry" to turn natural areas into housing and shopping centers. Since you love forests and nature, as I do, you will be stepping into the center of a firestorm. I grew up in Broward County, once the fastest growing county in the U.S., with a population now nearing 2 million. The county reached build-out in the 1980s and now has almost no buildable land. Within the past five years, the population of many cities in Broward has actually declined, as an exodus of long-time residents spilled out of the region due to high cost-of-living, crime, congestion and degraded quality of life. My hometown, Hollywood, actually experienced the largest decline in population last year of any city in the state. If you love forests, you should restrict your search to the northern reaches of the state and avoid South and Central Florida. But beware, Jacksonville is a huge growth magnet and land that is heavily forested today may be the next housing development next year. In Florida, protected forests are few, most forests are lands awaiting development.

Hello sunshine.
I've included a link to the other post you made on Friday with the same questions. Several good and detailed answers were given there.

I think your location, if you stick with Florida, will get down to one of personal preference. Many cities from the north side of Orlando (Wekiva Forest area) up to the piney woods of Tallahassee have wooded areas, especially if you are OK with living outside of town. Anywhere north of Orlando can freeze each winter and usually does; but it doesn't last.
As PalmCity says, growth is an issue by any of the larger cities and environmental issues are hot topics everywhere. Growth and crowding are issues too.
Coastal areas will be cooler than interior cities. But then you have to be prepared for hurricane damage.
As far as weather goes, "too cold", "too hot", "too humid" are all very subjective and what may be a cool morning for gardening to me (a North Dakota native) may be different from a cool morning to a Miami native. You mention the jungles of Costa Rica and I'm not sure you can get much more humid and warm than that.
You ask "How bad is the weather in the summer?". If you are moving for health reasons because you need warm weather, then it's not bad at all. It's perfect! Yes, it's hot. And if you have to put on a business suit every day and go to work, it's brutal. But if you can put on summery clothes, garden early in the day, then retreat to your computer until evening it's wonderful weather.
If you move anywhere because you have to and not because you want to, then you will surely find reasons to hate it. Many of us came to Florida through job transfers and came to love the place. Many moved here specifically because they wanted to be here and they love it too. There really aren't many places like Florida and certainly nowhere else in the US. Because the state is so long, the weather patterns can vary considerably, from zone 8 to 10.
If you really have to move here, then I hope you learn to love it too.

Kate

Here is a link that might be useful: Other responses to your question

Although your question is a fair one for a gardener looking to relocate to Florida you may find that everyone here LOVES where they live but it might be wrong for you. The link below is a site I used when researching a new place to live.

You can read the good, bad and ugly about Florida locations. I hope you plan on driving around though because things look different in person (some better, some worse).

Do a search by typing in the city name you are interested in and the threads will come up.

Here is a link that might be useful: A place where people discuss where to live in Florida

Hi Sharing nice to meet you.Hmm that is a tough question.One thing I would consider would be access to good doctors and hospital since you are moving down for health reasons.Gainsville does have a teaching hospital atUniversity of Florida and there is Shands hospital.Just something to consider.I've only visited Gainsville in fall and I like it because it was cool unlike where I live in Jupiter south FLorida.I'm near beach. I'm sure that others on this forum will be able to give you more info about the type of area that you are looking for. Good luck and nice to meet you. Lorraine

hello and welcome to florida, almost :)

I'm not here by choice either, but there are some good things about it, one of which being year-round gardening possibilities.

I understand you are looking for forests or wooded places.
And you have concerns about temperature. Let me rattle on for a bit...

Ocala is a great place to start. The national forest is a vast, beautiful expanse of land. It is mostly pine forest, which is what you will find in North Florida and on into Georgia. Once you get into Central Florida, the types of trees that you see changes into a mixture of pine, oak, and others. The further south you go, the more subtropical and less temperate it gets.
Ocala is similar to Gainesville, in that it gets cold in the winter (in the teens) and tends rule out many tropical plants that could grow even an hour southward. It also gets hot in the summer. A special kind of hot. What others have said is true... inland Florida tends to "bake". Places like Gainesville, Ocala, and Lakeland don't get much in the way of seabreeze. In Tampa (where I am), Sarasota-Bradenton, Fort Myers on the West Coast or over in Daytona, Jacksonville, or Miami on the East Coast, there is enough breeze from the ocean to keep temperatures from getting too oppressive (most of the time). Generally, any place that is within 20 miles of the coast will get decent seabreeze. The further inland you go, the hotter it gets. For instance, it will be in the high 80's here, but may be in the low to mid 90's inland. It can make a big difference.

Mornings and evenings are "cool" (below 90 degrees) for an hour or two after sunrise and before sundown. I personally like to work in the garden at night, since that circumvents the problem completely.

If I can make a recommendation on a place to live, check out the Brooksville area. It is about 45 minutes north of Tampa. It is situated among ridges and hills and the various sections of the Withlacoochee State Forest. It is not far from the "Nature Coast" which is the mostly rural area the stretches along Florida's west coast, from north of Tampa all the way up to the Big Bend where it meets the Panhandle. It doesn't get as cold or as hot as Gainesville or Ocala, and it has tons of really beautiful wooded land. Might be just what you're looking for.

Good luck on your search!

Sad to say, I have to agree with palmcityfl. Florida has been my home state for nearly 55 years and I could sit down and cry sometimes when I see what's been done to the wild places I knew as a teen.
And I agree that Jacksonville - where I now live - is the city we are planning to exit from. We have purchased acerage in Baker county - which is becoming another "bedroom community ", but have been fortunate enough to be on the edge of federally protected land.
Trees and forests abound, the weather is different in the middle of the state from the coasts. It is both hotter, more humid and colder, depending on the season. Baker county is in the path of west to east weather fronts. Watch the national weather maps and note the FL/GA border.
I would ask every person who buys a piece of land of any size in Florida to PLEASE BUILD AS "GREEN" AS POSSIBLE AND BE AS GENTLE WITH THE EARTH AND ITS RESOURCES AS POSSIBLE. The University of Florida in Gainsville has a wealth of information covering forests, agriculture, "green" building, etc. and they will gladly answer your questions. It would be most advantageous to begin your research at their web site. Best of luck to you. cora

but the winters are wonderful here in Central Florida. NO getting around it, summers are nasty, but then again it is hot in other parts of the country,too.

You know, I have created my own forest in my backyard: bamboo,trees and lots of plants and in one year I have bamboo that has tripled in height. I am not kidding, I bought this bamboo, I got it in my car(about 6' tall at the time) and now it is much taller than our house!

I can't do anything about what others do, but you can do wonders in your own little space. I use the mulch program with the city and use the recycled stuff and do the best I can to bring back some trees and get rid of cement.

teeka

"Growth" vs natural habitats is an issue everywhere with sprawl affecting so much of our country. Too bad developers aren't willing to use sustainable practices in their plans ... but that time is on the horizon as more and more are doing it. We can't live without green space - at least not with mental health. :-)

Sure am glad solstice guided me to the other post since I thought I'd get email, but must not have checked it off.

Kate, I'm sure I'll learn to love it since I fall in love with my garden and that's been my focus on this move -- ability to grow different "friends" and more bloom time. But I also want to be able to be outside to enjoy it, so the amt. of heat does matter. I'm not a hot weather person, although my body is not now liking the cold weather either. I was born in PA. If I get a bit of cool and forest and blooms each day I'm happy .. but even if it's a bit hot, it's better than dreary cold with all the green gone for 6 mo. here in VA.

Thanks for city-data link. I put a post there also. Good place to check a ton of stuff out for cities to consider.

Hospitals, doctors, aren't a concern. We use alternative except for an annual blood test for thyroid, so Gainesville wasn't chosen for that. I love nature preserves and forests and it seemed to have the most for the north area of FL (60% canopy covering), but then, I haven't spent any time at all around Ocala.

The Musicman mentioned the "nature coast" and the sound of that is so enticing. I have never been to that side of FL but the springs looks like a very dense area and possibly because of protection of the water in the various springs? I will check out Brooksville in detail this evening.

Working garden at night sounds like a good idea and I'm an early riser so can be in the garden at 5 to get some cooler gardening time.

Cora! Your "green heart" is a kindred spirit to ours. We would build a green house if we bought land. We've into environmental stuff for many years and began recycling in 1982. We garden for wildlife so our heart is native plants and protection of habitats.

Teeka, where do you live? You mentioned a mulch program the city has. That's one HUGE thing I liked about Gainesville. the focus on sustainability and the involvement UF has on green building. We looked at the community of Madera but the lots were not wide enough for a one-level home without most of your windows being along the side looking at houses instead of forest. It was VERY exciting to talk with people that live there and to see the focus of such a community.

It would be a dream to live in a green community, but I assume we'll probably live where we wouldn't be "preaching to the choir." However, to have neighbors of like mind would be a treasure for sure.

Visiting is a must for you. The forests you see on the map are not heavily forested and they are not dense at all, not like they are in other parts of the country. If you can't be in the sun, you will have to search long and hard for your ideal site. As noted above, you can alter your environment and create your own forest very successfully.

I'm on Daytona's barrier island, a block from the beach and yes, it is somewhat cool here in the morning, if you consider 79 degrees with 85% humidity to be cool. I get out at 7:30 and can usually last until maybe 9:30 when it reaches mid-80's. In the late afternoon I'll get out if it has rained and cooled off, but if I stay out beyond about 6:30 the bugs get nasty and force me inside. I'm seriously looking forward to October when the weather actually starts cooling.

I'm thinking spending a winter down there would be the way to know where to be since that would be my most challenging time so I need to be gone from here anyway ... could check out several areas, although finding places don't seem to be that easy unless you want to pay high vacation rental prices. I had thought I'd find the place to spend the winter and get a 6-mo. lease on a furnished apt. Doesn't seem to be going that way :-)

I know there are different images of what forest is for sure. I've fallen so in love with forests that I could live without a lot as long as I had that around my home.

There will always be a way to garden where ever I'm at :-) We can't keep our hands outa the dirt, can we!

Hon, Ocala and Gainesville are only 30 miles away from each other. There's no real appreciable difference in their temperatures, summer OR winter.

I am not certain what kind of preconceptions you have about winter in Florida, but Florida is NOT a frost free state until you get down to Miami area, and even once in a great great while, that area has had temps to the 20's and 30's as well.

The only true frost free place in Florida is Key West.

You will get warmer and warmer at night in winter the farther south you go, and the Atlantic side is generally a bit warmer on the coast farther north than the Gulf side, (or is that the other way around?) but as far south as the Palm beaches there can be 30 degree weather more than a few times each winter.

If you want trees, the Gainesville area (including Alachua, Newberry, Brooker, Micanopy, High Springs, etc) is your best bet. There are still rural areas here and still places where you can get something like a 5, 7, 10, 20 acre or even larger land parcel, with a single family dwelling either already on it, or you can build one.

But don't come anywhere in Florida expecting it to not be hot most of the year. You will be disappointed, no matter where you decide to live if that is your main criteria.

I cannot imagine anyone actually moving to Florida FOR "health" reasons. There are a lot of respiratory triggers here in areas that have the woods you crave, like molds, spores, fungus, and major tree pollen to contend with. My allergies start kicking up in February and don't stop until June. I know many people who say they never had allergies, sinus problems or other illnesses UNTIL they moved here.

If your husband's health issues go as far as to make certain that he's indoors most of the night and day with the AC, several different antihistimines and a hepafilter, then I guess you may be okay. But if you plan to be outdoors at all, it isn't the everyday environment for someone in fragile health.

I live in Pinellas county in the Tampa Bay area. If you want forests don't come here. It is more of a beachy tourist area. I also want to warn you that a "forest" here is not the same as a northern forest. I am from a rural SE Ohio orginally. We had lush thick forests in Ohio.

The forests in Florida are pine scrubs, live oaks, etc... and not as lush as up north. They are beautiful in their own way for sure, but not what you may expect. I also haven't seen much in the way of tropical rain forests.

It is hot all day and night in the summer. Usually the coasts are a couple of degrees cooler than the interior, but there aren't many forests on the coasts.

Now the good news. The winters are great! You can grown plants in February!

Sorry, but for everything you are trying to find, Florida isn't the answer in my opinion.
You hate heat and humidity? Well you don't want to be anywhere in Florida in August and September.
You say you have rheumatoid issues? Well, it rains almost every afternoon in the summer as well.
You don't like the sun? Well it's more intense here and gets stronger as you go south, than anywhere in the U.S.
You wouldn't mind tropical fruit trees? Well they don't grow in the northern part of the state.

Why not California or Washington State or Oregon? You can find temperate areas that are cool year round and areas that don't get too much frost, much less humidity and less intense sun.

What really would sound perfect for you is a motorhome. You can certainly train the cat to it. Park it in different areas for a few months and container garden. If you need supplies for your business you could even tow a small trailer behind it. - Or, sell your house and use the money for 2 smaller condos, 1 down here for the winter and 1 up there for the summer.

Hummm...there's no easy way to say this. Where I live, gardening in the dark is impossible. The mosquitoes and flying teeth will make my life miserable. Here on the beach, 7:30 a.m. is my limit because the sun is on its way up and the bugs are sorta scattering. It is hard to explain to someone who hasn't lived in the near tropics. We can get outside as long as the bugs let us out. I know it looks funny, but I wear long lightweight cotton pants all summer just to keep the mosquitoes off me. The more rain, the more bugs. Its a fact of FL life! When it goes dark, the bugs rule!!

The time to visit Florida to get the feel of it is NOW !
Waiting until it is cooler will give you a false sense of what our normal weather usually can be .
I too have lived in Alabama .
Florida is quite intense compared to anywhere else .
I have a feeling you will be mighty disappointed with our forests .
Keep us posted and let us know about your impressions .

Thanks to all. I think I'm more confused than ever [grin]. The health issues aren't my dear hubby's - they're mine and I didn't even mention allergies so that's a new 'bump' in the picture. Guess with a state that has longer gardening season ... you get more pollen, eh ;-)

Not liking heat is one thing ... but at least it is tolerable and you can get inside with A/C to cool off - even in the car. But with cold, espec. in VA where they use heat pumps that blow cold air (since they really shouldn't be used this far north where there are freezing temps), there's no way to get away from the cold. And my hubby is very cold-natured, so he's not enjoyed that at all for 5 mo. of serious heating time.

I don't seem to be bothered as much from molds and fungus ... mostly the pollen but chemical allergies are worse for me which eliminates modular homes and motorhomes since there are so many materials that gas off even more than in a standard home.

I used to have asthma back in AL but don't have the problem here. As long as the trees are tall and forested, rather than park like, they grow on me. I just like the variety of them and the tallness of them -- reminding me that there are higher things above one's health issues :-)

Thanks to minibim for the practical side of it. Puts a brush on the real picture. I have a friend in Oregon but her weather is more extreme than here and the continual fires they have there have painted pictures of horror from her experiences with them. CA is too high-priced for our budget. Considered two homes keeping this one ... but the practicality of it with a business is not easy - continual change of address and phone numbers for mail orders, corporate taxes, home-business deductions, etc. - makes it a nightmare .. besides liking to have what we own where we live.

The community where I live has a lot of folks who become snowbirds with modular homes in FL and I've heard a lot on the down side of it. But for the health issues - yes! you're right would be the best way without considering all the little details.

Beachlily paints a picture of the bug life. We lived in Albany, GA and had gnats that were absolutely awful. I know what you mean about them letting you outside. Even on TV news, you'd see people talking and blowing air upwards from their mouth to get the gnats off their face. It was just part of Albany, GA -- so I see what you mean about FL.

I guess I pictured the "old Florida" (as the tourism booklets call north central) a bit like Costa Rica rainforests but it's obviously a lot different. I only spent 9 weeks in CR last winter, so I don't know what it would be like all year round, but that's their summer time or dryer season - the wet season may bring more bugs there also.

Thanks gatormom on the visit now idea. I'm sure it would be good and hot, but it is the cold I'm concerned about so better to see in the winter. Besides, I'm thrilled with the wonderful weather here in VA this time of year and don't want to wander far from my garden that I love each day. Today's high hasn't gotten to 80. It's been gorgeous! Have worked on the front porch all day with the hummingbirds flying around me fighting for the feeder behind me. With red hair clips in they checked out my head as a possibility too. I love living outdoors. A screen house in S. CA is what I need, eh?

It would sure be nice not to have this decision to make ... I am hoping spending this winter in various places down there will provide a clue to a place we will have more that we love about it .. than the heat and bugs :-) I know seeing the green will make a big difference since we have 6 mo. of no leaves on anything up here.

You folks are very kind and gracious! Thank you so much! In one day I've gotten so much information and can "see" more of the considerations and downsides also.

I have to agree that if you have any kind of health condition that is affected by heat, humidity, or mold, don't come to Florida. I came here because I have a type of asthma that is affected badly by cold. The heat and humidity I thought I would be used to, coming from the south. I wasn't. Here in Florida, it's like walking around in a steam bath in the summer sometimes. You open your door to go out in the middle of the day and the heat hits you like a forest fire!

Still, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. We get through our summers like people up north get through the winters...stay inside as much as possible.

Sharingsunshine,
I'm not really sure how to say this either. I'm not being mean and I don't want to discourage you. But I do want you to see Florida for what it is, not for what you want it to be.

I think everyone is trying to be encouraging but all the things you've said make it sound like Florida may not be your place. We could be wrong but just in case we're right, I think Beachlily's suggestion to spend a winter or a year before you purchase a place is a great idea. You're familiar with Alabama but Florida isn't really The South; at least not south of I-10.

You can grow lots of fruit trees, but most of them (all of them?) require several hours of direct sun each day - and you want to live in a forest.

It's hot, it's humid, it freezes, it broils, it's a drought, it's a flood, it's relentlessly sunny except when it's storming (and it storms alot), the bugs are voracious and huge. It's almost always extremely something! It's Florida! People love it because of the beaches, the sun, the creatures in the swamps, the easy access to golfing/gardening/surfing. They mostly love it in spite of the weather and you seem to be focused on the weather as a reason to live here. You can see why we question that reasoning! I'm not trying to be contrary; I just want you to understand what you are getting in to!

If you do decide to come down, please let us know. I've got an email link on my member page and would be happy to have you come visit my garden. I'm sure others here would make the same offer.

Kate

Based on your Fl forest request my suggestion would be in the Ocala area, Not in the city but more east. The Ocala National Forest is the most like a northern forest in Florida. Even so it is mostly Pine and Oak.

My weather here in Citrus county is the same as Ocala. We do get a few cold days in the winter. November starts getting cool nights 50's and warm days 80's. Coldest is late Dec on into March. We get a couple of freezes into the teens and a few more frosts. Winter if you can call it that to me is tolerable as it is usually in the 70's daytime I don't like temps under 70.

Now I love the summer 90's suits me. Yes I get sweaty and am glad to be able to come into the AC, but my house is always 85 in the day and 78 at night.(thats for hubby).

Kate pretty much has it 'nailed'...there is just nothing CLOSE to a PA forest in Florida....I grew up in Vermont and I do know what you mean by The Woods! (they are non-existent in Florida...the Ocala 'forest' is beautiful in it's own rite, but nothing close to a northern hardwood forest!) I'm on the East Coast - my sister is in the Ocala area...both for well over thirty years, now. Ocala has the HOT and the COLD of it all..I cannot remember a year that they haven't had a freeze, and not one that one did not need the heat on in the winter. Freezing is freezing, no matter where you live. One thing I find is that the houses here don't have the insulation from either the heat or the cold...something to consider when buying. Allergies? oh boy. you have a choice of molds, grass pollen, citrus pollen, pine pollen...oh..did I mention cypress swamp pollen?? My hubby is literally ILL from about mid February (when the citrus blooms start...until mid April)...but then I take over the 'sicky' room when the rains start and the mold pops up. However...all that gloom to say that I'd not move from here by choice. If I'd give you any advice, I'd recommend that you rent for a year before you even consider buying. Where? Hmmm....I'm clueless with your wishes or requirements. Hawaii?? (I've never been there!) Best wishes in your search...what a tough decision!

Love your humor, beth7happy! I stayed at a home stay in Costa Rica and they had orange and lemon trees with blossoms. They didn't bother me at all. It was a nice discovery but then pollen will be everywhere so hard to make that a consideration.

I would never take anything you said as "mean" and I'm an up front person, so don't like anybody sugar-coating anyway :-)

You've given us a lot to think about and ponder. I just came back from having dinner with my hubby and he mentioned, "I wonder if you'll be missing all the fun in the sun that you have gotten used to not having since it will be all around you and "in your face" with people talking about it."

Well ... that kinda goes with what you said, Kate! People come for all the reasons I'm not interested in, other than the longer gardening season ... which probably will not be enough to make it all work.

May be better to head back down to AL - at least we know we could handle that and maybe just vacation for a month or two in the dead of winter.

Y'all are a real treat today. Thanks for sharing so much. It's incredible the wonders of the internet and the great human spirit of folks -- at least those in Florida :-) [grin]

We live in the Florida Panhandle, Pensacola to be exact. We are far different from the peninsula of Florida. Our winters occasionally go down to freezing and summers are generally in the 90's with humidity. However, we have many pine and oaks of different sorts in the panhandle. We are right next to the Alabama line, about 15 miles inland from beaches. East of here there is much more forested land and you may like that area, say Walton or Bay counties. If I can tell you anything more, please don't hesitate to ask. We've been here for 27 years and really like this area. Friendliest folks around!

Hi Sunshine, If your husband is overly sensitive to cold then I am guessing that he has Raynaud's Phenomenon. I have it and I find some winter days to be difficult. I just keep gloves in all my jacket pockets. I live half way between Daytona Beach and Orlando and I would never move any more north than here. If I had this condition before I moved to Florida I would have moved a little further south. Ocala has nice countryside but much too cold for me to handle in the winter. Becoming a Snowbird would be the best of both worlds.

As a FL native and one who has lived all over the state at one time or another, I've really enjoyed reading all the previous posts! To me, the most beautiful tree canopies were found in Gainesville and Tallahassee. Tallahassee is very hilly and has real "seasons", which I loved. Summers are hot anywhere in FL, but seem worse the further inland one goes. Tallahassee and Gainesville have more frequent freezes than further south, but those extra "chill hours" result in absolutely beautiful springs!

I loved my camellias, dogwoods, daffodils, japanese magnolias, taiwan cherrys, etc., etc., but am now just as happy with my orchids, bromeliads, palms and other tropical foliage here on the barrier island in Vero Beach, where we have an unusually large live oak canopy that you don't find on most beaches!!

Margie

Hi
What did you find objectionable about Costa Rica?? If I had my way I'd be living there right now lol. 12 climate zones 13 rainfall zones ,everything from permanent frost to permanent lowland tropics .Both oceans on the same day lol.
I find it amusing that my wife's main objection was the language barrier. Where we live in Florida we only, still have two english speaking neighbors lol How could there be less??lol Of course there's a few things earthquakes volcanoes, landslides,mudslides. lol Good luck with your search but I suspect "paradise" may not be on this earth . I'm sure not in Florida gary

I mentioned allergies (I know you hadn't) because that is by and far the NUMBER ONE complaint of people who either have lived here for a number of years or who have just moved here. If they did a survey of antihistimine and steroid usage for the treatment of allergies in the USA, I am certain FL would rank #1 easily. And it seems to go on forever, every year, as things bloom, blossom and blow around in waves. When one thing finishes (pine pollen) another starts (oak pollen) and then the rains start (mold, etc) and other trees start throwing pollen out. Its not jincapacitating AFFLICTION for many folks here. My daughter and I are both affected, my husband is not.

Let me see if I can put this in some sort of "realtime" perspective for you. Some of you may be able to relate to this, some probably won't.

I am a distance runner for laffs grins and exercise. I have been for years, I started when we lived in California in the 1980's. My husband is a marathoner, he's originally from Dallas which is way hotter than Florida in summer. California had almost perfect outdoor exercise weather, warm not hot, dry dry dry. Until now my top distance has been the half marathon (13.1 miles).

I am training for my first marathon, at the age of 48, which will be the Outer Banks in NC in early November.

I am running 35-45 miles a week, outdoors (no treadmill training).

On August 3rd I went out for a 16 mile training run. It was in the mid-70's when I started my run at 7:30 AM. My pre-run weight was 127 pounds. I was foolish and only took 8 oz of water with me to start because I was in a rush to beat the heat. I also forgot my Powergel. I had to stop at the grocery store at mile 13 and refill my water bottle. This was at about 9:15 AM

At mile 13 1/2 I developed the early signs of heat prostration (visual disturbances, paresthesias (needles and pins, crawly sensation) in my arms and legs, buzzing fingers and hands, nausea, shortness of breath, sweat cessation followed by uncontrollable sweating). I didn't have my phone (stupid me). I was 2 1/2 miles from home and I started to walk.

At about 3/4-1/2 mile from my house I couldn't walk anymore. I knew I was going to pass out. So I sat down by the side of the road and hoped someone would happen by to aid me. I was in luck and a member of the Florida Cycle Club who had been out on a 50 mile ride came by and saw I was in distress. He had an extra Sport Gel and a phone. He tried to call my husband but we couldn't get him so he called his wife. She came in an SUV with 24 oz of water and took me home.

After cooling down in a cool tub and rehydration with over 64 oz of fluids, a banana, and a bagel, my weight was still only 122 lbs. Still a full FIVE POUNDS down from my pre-run weight. Which means I was probably somewhere around 115-116 lbs at the height of my distress from sweat loss, and had not had a molecule of salt left in my body.

I felt terrible all that day and half the next.

You may say, "Wow what a story!" but my point is...you don't have to be out running 16 miles in FL to have the same thing happen to you at any time in summer. People who work outdoors are ALWAYS in danger of heat prostration or heat stroke here...the phone guys, cable installers, roofers and other construction workers, lawn crews....the freaking Florida Gator football team at practise...those people have to work out in the heat and its dangerous.

THAT'S how serious the heat issue can be here. We do have heat pumps, since our house is a little over 4000 sq ft we have 2, one for each end of the house. My electric bill for cooling is only under $200 a month in early Spring...February and March. From April through November-December it can be anywhere from $250-550 a month.

Like I said, this is not the climate for someone who is looking to relocate for ANY kind of health issue unless you are planning to sit inside most of the time.

I wish you luck though...if I had been lucky enough to actually get to Costa Rica, I would have NEVER in a million years come back to the US.

I live with Claritin D in the summer. Have to get the real stuff and hand over my driver's license like I'm some kind of criminal..... yes it's a pet peeve.

Scary story Bihai, and it is a serious issue. The woman from Coral Springs in her 40's took the silver in her swimming event, so you can do it too.

Thanks for the comments on Tallahassee, Margie! When we lived in Albany, GA, for two years, we visited that town a couple of towns, but I don't remember much about it. We went to a natural foods co-op and didn't do much else. You've created an interest for me to check out. Would the humidity and bugs be the same issue there or different since that area of the state seems to have it's own climate entirely?

Yes, what a story, bihai! I was exhausted just reading [grin]. I know I would move to Costa Rica if it weren't for our kitty. We love her so much. She was a lone feral when we found her in our woods in AL and she came to be fed or rest on our porch for almost two years before I could touch her. We had trapped her to have her spayed during that time. When we decided to move here, we caged her and brought her along. She's done really well on our screened porch and when it gets cold she likes to snuggle with us at night. She almost died over two years ago (story here: http://www.thenatureinus.com/2006/03/our-squeek-diagnosed-with-fiv.html) so I guess we're pretty attached to her. She's been a unique cat in so many ways.

Those electric bills are astronomical for sure! Our monthly bill in our all electric home (avg. annually) is $98. But then we have 1600 sf. The allergies don't concern me so much since I use an herbal formula that works for me. I never could take the OTC or prescription stuff. Knocked me out. I used to sleep through most of my school day as a teenager and the teachers usually didn't believe it was the medication. We got into herbs and natural remedies because of allergies back in the 70's and my hubby's migraines. Neither of us were getting any help when we stumbled on an herb book. Funny how life takes its twists and turns.

Gary, I didn't find anything objectionable about Costa Rica -- except having to stay in the city during the course of the language school. I love the Spanish language so I can easily imagine living in Costa Rica and I love jungle. We wouldn't have to work too hard to garden for wildlife down there, eh? LOL Maybe after we move down there, some of you will come visit and stay, like bihai! :-)

Hi Happy Gardener! I'm familiar with Raynaud's. I don't remember what our doc friend said it was with Randal, but it's got to do with micro-circulation. When he exercises he's fine and it's not just hands/feet/extremeties. He's just cold all over. He layers up for his morning walks in winter using a coat with -10 degrees rating. Looks like a walking whale, but he likes getting his two miles in every morning year round besides tennis twice a week.

In response to your questions about Tallahassee, I think you might find a little bit lower humidity and definitely fewer mosquitoes and "no-see-ums" than further south. The heat & bug season is shorter too.

There are some lovely "canopy roads" in town and also out in the surrounding countryside that would definitely be worth checking out. The locals are serious about protecting them and have prevented tree destruction for road widening on many occasions.

Margie

I think that the previous poster had a good idea. Be a snowbird. Then you can enjoy your summer in the forests up north and the winter in the warm sunshine. Those Canadians who come down here in the winter really have it made. This idea only works if you are retired. I know if I was retired I would do it.