Spring Training | Jupiter and West Palm Beach, FL

We have returned this week from our annual Spring Training trip to go see the St. Louis Cardinals in action in Jupiter, Florida. We once again had another amazing trip and words cannot express how much we LOVE the West Palm Beach area, every time we go down there we feel at home and just fall in love with hit more. I’m a little disappointed in myself for my lack of photo taking. When I’m on vacation, for me, although I see so many beautiful opportunities I have this “I’m on a week off” mentality, grab my iPhone and that is essentially all I use for photo taking on vacation. For this trip, I did bring along the D4 and the long lens for some sports shots but for the rest of the trip I specifically shot with my iPhone with a few shots being from the FUJI X100s. We came home with over 45 autographs on baseballs (that was fun to take through the TSA line) and a slight sunburn. We wanted to give a few reviews on some of our favorite places as we know some of our friends are headed down that way for the same purpose!

City Place, West Palm Beach: I literally am in love with this place. We stay near this awesome area and its just so easy and wonderful to walk out your door and have so many shops, places to eat, and entertainment right at your feet. While we were there they had outdoor music and events and the weather in the evening was just perfect to stroll around and shop and see the nightlife. With free trolley transportation between it and Clematis street its a perfect fit for anyone who wants to have a great evening out. The grounds are immaculate as well and its only a couple of blocks from the marina and the beach just a bit further. Palm Beach is lined with million dollar homes and the beaches so pristine you never want to leave. This is one of our favorite cities we have ever been to and we keep coming back for more.

Backyard Bar, Hibiscus Street, West Palm Beach (Near City Place): We LOVED this place. We had passed it several times on trolley and had always promised that we would stop and we finally did. This quaint bar offers daily happy hour and the occasional live music in the most intimate and beautiful settings South Florida has to offer. We felt instantly welcomed as we enjoyed the live Jazz Music in almost perfect weather. With stellar drinks and excellent service we immediately got information on their B&B services and will be looking into a stay with them in the future. We chatted with the owner who was just wonderful and were treated like gold by his staff. We will definitely be returning to this gem!

Clematis Street, West Palm Beach: Just a block or two over from City Place is the action packed Clematis Street. Lined with shops, restaurants, and entertainment Clematis Street literally has it all. Some of our favorite places are: Grease (Burgers, Beer, and More), Tin Fish (seafood and legendary fish sandwiches), Sloan’s (Ice cream and chocolate goodies), and Roxy’s Irish Pub. There is also a camera store on Clematis Street so this makes it almost the perfect spot for me 🙂 Towards the end of the street you will find Palm Beach Marina which is full of million dollar yachts and beautiful scenery.

Society for Four Arts, West Palm Beach: We discovered this hidden gem for the first time on this most recent trip. Nestled near the Kennedy Mansion in West Palm Beach this hidden garden is free and open to the public and contains beautiful sculptures and immaculate grounds that are both inviting and relaxing. Just a few blocks is beautiful Palm Beach. We walked the gardens towards closing time and enjoyed the quiet break from baseball madness. You can see some of our photos of the grounds below. Photos just don’t do it justice, its a must see.

Key Biscayne/South Beach, Miami: We ventured South for a bit of a beach day and ended up at Key Biscayne (about 1.5 hours south of WPB). These beaches have calmer waves and beautiful turquoise waters. The public parks made parking easy and with bathrooms and showers the Crandon Beach Park area was really just the most ideal setup. We spent the day hanging out and swimming before we headed to South Beach to do the same. We highly recommend these spots for beaches as the WPB area can have higher waves and more windy conditions.

Rodger Dean Stadium, Jupiter: Home for Spring Training for the St. Louis Cardinals (and the Marlins) was our main goal for the trip. We attended four games and were lucky enough to score berm and first/second row tickets for every game. This put us in prime territory to score autographs (and we did) from players such as Yadier Molina, Matt Carpenter, Wille McGee, Matt Adams, Lance Lynn, and countless others. Doug was pretty happy to come home with such a collection! The stadium really does not have a bad seat and attending morning practices gets you much closer to the players. It was a really enjoyable experience this year. We even met some people from Effingham while we were there!

Endless Summer Winery, Fort Pierce: We were fortunate enough to get to spend time with my aunt, uncle, cousins and their family while in Florida this year. They were staying in Fort Pierce and found this awesome winery where the girls could do a little wine tasting and the boys could play a little disc golf. I’m not sure why Effingham or the surrounding areas haven’t caught on to this idea of a “disc golf course in a winery” but its basically genius. This was a beautiful place with some great wine to offer and I can imagine this is the best place to be on a summer evening just enjoying live music and great quality wine. The guys had a great time playing disc golf and it was so nice just to spend time with family.

Juno Beach, Juno Beach: Hands down my all time favorite beach next to Palm Beach. This place is a must see even if it is just for a quick stroll. There is something about the waves and the pier that makes it so beautiful, its hard to describe. Add this to your list if you can, you won’t be sorry.

Again, I feel like I really slacked in the picture taking department more so than normal as most of my iPhone photos will never be posted but hopefully you find these select few enjoyable. I have been thankful for a little time off from photography so I can prepare for this upcoming wedding season and this trip was the ticket. Enjoy!

-Kate and Doug