I was headed to the Gulf coast of Florida on this weekend. My friend from high school, Paul, got married earlier in the year and invited me to a party on the beach in the town of Indian Shores west of Tampa. I hadn't seen him in a good many years and decided to make the 500 mile drive.

I value my time behind the wheel and will go to great lengths to enjoy it when the opportunity arises. This means half of the fun of traveling is getting to my destination. Traversing the 500 miles between Athens, GA and Indian Shores, FL was going to take about 8 hours of driving. I planned to do as much of it as I could with the roof down.

My 500 mile journey begins in Athens, GA, heading south on US Route 129. This takes me to Macon, GA and Interstate 75, my route for the next 370 miles. This is what the scenery looks like as seen from the southbound lanes of Interstate 75 in northern Florida near Gainesville. There's not a whole lot here. Some may find this type of traveling boring. But I call it relaxing.

I-75 South outside of Gainesville, FL.

I-75 South outside of Gainesville, FL.

I stopped for a quick break at the Marion County Rest Area along Interstate 75 in Ocala, FL. Some dark clouds were beginning to appear off to the west putting my thoughts of driving with the roof down in jeopardy.

It didn't look as bad in the other direction.

Marion County Rest Area along Interstate 75 in Ocala, Florida.

Now here's something you don't see every day. Seeing a license plate from Alaska anywhere in the Lower 48 is rare to begin with. But to see one in Florida seems especially unusual. Someone is a really, really long way from home.

The traffic on Interstate 75 began to pick up as I got closer to Tampa. Most of the traffic was in the northbound lanes, which makes sense for a Friday afternoon.

My final destination is the town of Indian Shores, FL, which is on the Gulf Coast barrier island of Sand Key to the west of the Tampa metro area. My friend Paul recommended that I avoid downtown Tampa altogether, (a very smart idea at 5 PM on a Friday). He suggested that I exit I-75 north of the city near the town of Wesley Chapel, FL and head west to the Suncoast Parkway. This road is not as heavily traveled and proved to be an enjoyable drive.

This is the interchange for Tampa International Airport.

Tampa International Airport sits north and west of the city proper. Paul was definitely right about the Suncoast Parkway being less crowded.

The interchange ahead is for Interstate 275 which goes north (to downtown Tampa), and south (to the Clearwater/St. Petersburg peninsula and the Gulf Coast). I'll be heading south toward Sand Key and Indian Shores.

Interstate 275 South will take me toward the Clearwater/St. Petersburg peninsula and eventually to my Gulf Coast destination of Indian Shores.

Interstate 275 South on the western side of Tampa crosses Old Tampa Bay via the Howard Frankland Bridge which is around 3 miles long. The town of Pinellas Park sits at the other end of the Frankland Bridge.

I exited I-275 at Gandy Boulevard and headed west toward the coast. In the photo above, I am crossing over Lake Seminole, one of the gazillion or so lakes in the region. Traveling west, this means I am leaving the town of Pinellas Park and heading into Seminole.

I'm crossing over Lake Seminole in Seminole, Florida. The large wooded area on the right of the photo above is the 250 acre Lake Seminole Park.

I haven't seen a drawbridge in a long time ! This is the Park Boulevard Drawbridge that takes me across the Intracoastal Waterway and onto the barrier island of Sand Key and the town of Indian Shores.

Crossing over the Intracoastal Waterway onto the barrier island of Sand Key and the town of Indian Shores.

This is a functioning drawbridge. I haven't seen a drawbridge in years. But there are several in this region.

Welcome to Indian Shores, Florida, USA. At this point, I'm about 1/2 mile from my destination.

The Jag made the 500 mile trip without incident. Having ridden most of the way with the roof down in mid-June, Todd was approaching medium-well by the journey's end.

I would be staying in this one-bedroom condo at the Barefoot Beach Resort for two nights. This was a great place in an ideal location.

One-bedroom condo at the Barefoot Beach Resort in Indian Shores, Florida.

One-bedroom condo at the Barefoot Beach Resort in Indian Shores, Florida.