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The 25 absolute weirdest things you can do only in Florida

By Orlando Weekly Staff on Fri, Feb 26, 2016 at 11:48 pm

What we're talking about here are the absolute most Florida things you can possibly do in Florida. So, with that in mind, what you have here are a few truly unique activities that you can only do in The Sunshine State.

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See the world’s largest collection of sea sponges
Spongeorama’s Sponge Factory l 510 Dodecanese Blvd, Tarpon Springs l (727) 943-2164
For those of you whose entire knowledge of sea sponges comes entirely from the Spongebob Squarepants cartoon, check out the Spongeorama Sponge Factory, which prides itself in offering guests a complete education in all things porous. There’s a free museum and educational movie to catch up on all your spongey knowledge and afterwards you can browse the stacks of products to find the perfect sea sponge bath set to take home.

Photo via chadsmark

Tour Solomon’s Castle
Solomon’s Castle l 4533 Solomon Rd, Ona l 1- (863) 494-6077
Designed and built by the sculptor Howard Solomon, this medieval-looking, hand-built castle is entirely covered with aluminum printing plates. Bring a pair of sunglasses and face the glare with a guided pun-filled tour around the gardens and interior, where more of Solomon’s humorous artwork is available for viewing.

Photo via therightwaytorunaway

Drive up Spook Hill
Lake Wales Ridge l 5th Street, Lake Wales
Have you ever wanted to defy gravity? Now’s your chance. Take a trip over to Spook Hill, where you can put your car in neutral and watch as your vehicle crawls up the road without a single press of the gas pedal. The road is actually located on a gravity hill, in which the surrounding landscape cause an optical illusion making a slight downhill slope look like an uphill one, but it’s much more fun to think that spirits are behind your car’s creepy crawl.

Photo via potterican/Instagram

Hang out with wild wolves
Seacrest Wolf Preserve l 3449 Bonnett Pond Rd., Chipley l (850) 773-2897
You really become a member of the pack when you take a tour at the Seacrest Wolf Preserve. Enter the natural habitat of these elusive predators and greet the park’s wolf ambassadors with hands-on interaction. Then get your singing voice ready as you join the pack in a great wolf howl. Plus, after petting these pups, you can continue the cuddle session with skunks, arctic foxes and racoons after your tour.

Photo via Ryan M./Yelp

Become a gator trainer for a day
Gatorland l 14501 S. Orange Blossom Trail l (407) 855-5496
Get a glimpse of what it’s like to work with dangerous wild animals by becoming a Gatorland trainer for the day. Your experience starts with holding baby gators then leads into backstage tour that puts your face to face with these toothy reptiles. The grand finale of the event has you and one of these Godzilla look-alikes together in the Gator Wrestling Arena. But don’t worry, a certified trainer is always there to make sure none of these scaly beasts takes too big a chunk out of you.
Photo via nikki_1606