It was a rainy Saturday morning, the kind of day you just want to sleep in or crawl under a blanket and binge watch Netflix. But Hubby had different plans. He strolled into my office showing me his attire for the day. “Guess where we are going,” he said as he proudly pointed to his camouflage pants and safari hat. Without giving me a chance to reply, he continued, “We are going on a safari!” I hated bursting his bubble, but someone had to point out the obvious weather conditions. “It’s raining!” I said, gesturing to the window. “Ah ha … that is why we are going to WILD FLORIDA. It is a DRIVE-THRU Safari. We can stay DRY in our car.” He was so excited that I dared not to mention the fact that most likely the animals would be trying to stay dry themselves and not be out and about. Besides, with all the social distancing we have been doing, just getting out and driving in the car was a nice change. He posed for a picture between the leaves of one of our backyard trees (because why wouldn’t he?), and then we were off for what I was told would be “a wild adventure of a date!”
On the 40-minute drive to Kenansville, I read up on Wild Florida. We would be driving down a two-mile gravel road, where we would hopefully get to be “up close and personal” with wild animals like giraffes, zebra, eland antelope, scimitar oryx, American bison, and mouflon sheep that all live with other animal friends on the 85 acres of untouched landscape. I ignored the rain hitting our windshield as I went down the Internet hole trying to figure out exactly what a mouflon sheep was. I scrolled through picture after picture struggling to comprehend what the difference was between a mouflon sheep and a regular ram. Just as I was about to find the answer, Hubby’s little “oh, no” comment interrupted me. That was when I saw the sign …
Wild Florida Drive-Thru Safari is CLOSED for Private Party.
My little adventurer was so disappointed. I felt so bad for him. “It’s okay. We can come back another day. Let’s just go home and watch a movie together. You can pick,” I said trying to cheer him up. “START GOOGLING, WOMAN,” he barked as he found a place for us to turn around. “See what else is around here. I promised you an adventure, and well, we are going to have one.”
And that is how we found the hidden gem known as Mick Farms. It might not have been the WILD SAFARI date we set out for, but it certainly was an unexpected adventure and made for an incredibly fun and SWEET date.
Just south of Lake Nona, a short 25-minute drive will take you to the 32 acres in St. Cloud that Mick Farms calls home. Literally HOME for this family. This is a first-generation, small, family-run farm that, when I asked, said, “We are raising our kids along with our crops!” How cute is that. The family who runs the farm has one mission: providing fresh food from the farm to your table. And that is exactly what they are doing. Many local restaurants, such as Canvas, buy their fruits and veggies locally from this farm. How we have lived here so long and not known about this quaint place is beyond me.
Mick Farms is also the place I had seen so many people take beautiful sunflower pictures last fall! While the sunflowers still have a few months to bloom (the owners said September is the best time), the farm is filled to the brim with an amazing selection of home-grown seasonal produce, homemade pickles (they had garlic ones when we went), and assorted canned goods (jalapeno green tomatoes, anyone?). They also do u-pick pumpkins and u-pick strawberries. (We had just missed strawberry season but will mark our calendar to go back next year.)
Oh, and their homemade breads! They had zucchini and pumpkin when we were there and only a few loaves left! We grabbed a basket and filled it with a bottle of homemade honey, peaches, green beans, and a loaf of pumpkin bread that was still warm. I couldn’t wait to get home, out of the rain, and get warmed up with a hot cup of coffee and a slice from the loaf. And that is exactly what we did. And let me tell you … it was sooo good! This may have been our first outing to Mick Farms, but I guarantee you, it will not be our last!
Mick Farms is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sundays from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. They are located at 4261 Canoe Creek Rd., Saint Cloud, FL 34772. For more information, check out their website: https://www.mickfarmsmarket.com/.
