The Ponce de Leon lighthouse is the largest in Florida

KRISTA OLSON-LEHMAN Staff Writer

With spring break coming up, people think of warmer locales. For many students who venture to Florida, thoughts of places like theme parks and Daytona Beach probably come to mind. Recently I visited Florida and decided to visit a piece of Florida history, the Ponce de Leon Lighthouse.

Constructed over a period of four years in 1883, the towering lighthouse stands 176 feet tall, the tallest in the entire state. It has been meticulously restored, and you can climb the lighthouse staircase. Views from the observation deck on the lighthouse are breathtaking. You can see the ocean, the inlet and much of the surrounding town and landscape.

The lighthouse grounds and property are a working museum, with original buildings preserved and displays covering all aspects of lighthouse operations, from 1883 until the light was ordered extinguished by the Coast Guard on Jan. 1, 1970.

The lighthouse started as a kerosene wick system with chandelier-style lights to an electrified 1000-watt bulb system in its first working career. The lighthouse was put back into service in 1982, as high-rise buildings were affecting the view of the Coast Guard’s other light on the opposite side of the inlet. It became a National Historic Landmark in 1998.

For additional historical value, many older style lighthouse lamps, lenses and other equipment are on display with signs explaining much of the purpose and history of each. The museum goes into detail about how each different lighting element and lens was a technological feat for the time, and how it affected lighthouse operations. There is also lots of information about Coast Guard lighting and what colors are designated for the smaller shoreline and waterway lights.

The newer building designated for the various lights and lenses gives you an up close view of the inner workings of many different types of lamps that have helped keep ships safe for centuries. The grounds offer a nice walk and view as well as the neighboring Ponce de Leon Park.

The surrounding city of Ponce Inlet offers the usual tourist amenities like local restaurants and souvenir shops. With so many nearby attractions as well as New Smyrna Beach a short drive around the inlet, the area offers more ways to fill your day.

The lighthouse and grounds were salvaged from vandals and disrepair by the efforts of the Lighthouse Preservation Association that formed in 1972 and still cares for and preserves the land.

If you find yourself on Florida’s East Coast during break, check out this historical treasure! Ponce Inlet isn’t too far from Daytona Beach and right next door to New Smyrna Beach.

Scavenger hunts, secret passageways and adventure found at Wizard Quest

BAILEY HANSON Staff Writer

If you’re like most people, you probably have gone to Wisconsin Dells at least once in your life. Like most tourist areas there are plenty of T-shirt shops, arcades, waterparks, large hotels and other attractions. However, one of these attractions sticks out to me because of how unique it is compared to everything else. This attraction is known as Wizard Quest! Located on the 400 block of Broadway, WQ takes up the entire block and is a three-story building that is part scavenger hunt and part escape room.

When you first enter, you are greeted by a tavern-like lobby that plays a video explaining how to play the game. After the cashier explains further directions, you are given a tablet and a magic torch (a UV flashlight). Taking your important items, you go through a door that looks like something out of “The Hobbit,” entering what is called the Crossroads. Another video explains further your mission: find Quest Givers (characters with tablets in front of them) and aid them with their plight. The sixteen characters are spread throughout the four realms of Air, Fire, Earth and Water. As a player you can decide what realm to enter and what character to start with.

Each realm is themed to its element very nicely. There are clouds in Air, plastic bubbles suspended from the ceiling in Water, flickering lights in Fire and winding trees in Earth. You can easily tell which realm you, the player, are a part of. The building is so full of immersive art, you might forget to play! Each realm also has at least four or five Quest Givers to choose from in the two-hour play time. All the characters range in difficulty, time, distance and challenges you may face along the way as well.

If this doesn’t catch your eye just yet, let me tell you about the secrets within the game. The UV flashlight reveals clues for six of the quests and they are hidden all over the building. Wizard Quest also has several secret passages (of course I won’t tell you where they are, otherwise, it wouldn’t be much of a secret) spread throughout.

After your adventure, you turn in the tablet and flashlight before arriving in the gift shop that looks like a Village Market. They offer a variety of costumes, props, fairy statues, dragon statues and other fantasy themed items. If you like the Village, try the shops in the courtyard. There’s a sock shop, a boutique, an up-and-coming bagel shop as well as an ice cream store.

I find Wizard Quest very fun. It’s a place that you can keep coming back to, especially since they keep expanding. They also offer a combo ticket with Ripley’s Believe It or Not, if that is sort of your thing. So, the next time you visit the Dells, you should give Wizard Quest a