Mark Woods: One thing certain morning after election — it's spring, best season in Florida

It’s always challenging to come up with something to write at the start of an election week, knowing the column will run in the paper after the election. Anything based on actual results runs the risk of being a bit like the infamous “DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN” headline.

So, for this election, I offer something I know will be true Wednesday morning.

It’s spring.

And in Florida, spring defeats every other season.

OK, I know we won’t all agree on the second part of that statement. Some of you will make arguments for other seasons. Fall, winter, maybe even summer.

I once wrote an ode to summer in Florida. That was challenging. Writing an ode to spring in Florida is easy.

Florida: Where springs goes to train

Spring officially started Monday. But here in Florida, we always get a bit of a head start on the season.

In my mind, going back to childhood in places far from Florida, the day the season actually begins is marked by four words from Florida: pitchers and catchers report.

Florida is where spring trains, before heading north.

Yes, spring is a beloved season all over the country. But in a place like northern Wisconsin, the truth is that what makes spring so appealing is largely that it isn’t winter. Spring is the time when snow melts, flowers bloom and birds return. But to get to those days requires sloshing through a season that is wet, slushy, dirty.

If you live in Kentucky, as I did for a couple of years, by the first Saturday in May you might get a warm, sunny day for the Derby. And if you do, it’s heaven. But it’s also a bit like betting on the favorite that rarely wins.

Spring in Northeast Florida includes a couple of events that always feel like a harbinger of the season: the Gate River Run and, except for when it was in May, The Players Championship.

This Saturday you can celebrate the first official weekend of spring at 7 Creeks Fest, an event at one of the prettiest parts of town, the 7 Creeks Recreation Area. It will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with hiking, biking, kayaking, a scavenger hunt, geocache challenge, live music and food trucks. (For more information, go to timucuanparks.org.)

Fall in Florida does have its appeal. Fall has one of the best days of the year, that morning when you walk outside and, for the first time in months, it’s actually cooler than inside. Fall has football weekends, Thanksgiving and more.

It also has hurricanes. And that alone disqualifies fall from being the best season in Florida.

I do love winter in Florida. I love hiking in the woods on a chilly morning. Or going to the beach when it’s deserted. Or being able to sit outside in the sun for lunch. But the days are too short. Changing the clocks in any direction can’t change that. It just shifts the daylight hours.

At the winter solstice, we have 3 hours, 55 minutes less of daylight in Jacksonville than at the summer solstice. When spring arrives, we have more day than night again. And yet the sunlight isn’t yet scorching hot.

The Legislature and Spring Break

Spring in Florida is not perfect. I mean, while summer brings the buzzing of mosquitoes and flies, spring inevitably includes an annual event that lasts 60 days but can cause long-term damage: the Florida legislative session.

I’ve lived in Florida since 1988. So later this year I’ll celebrate 35 years here. And even after all this time, spring is when I sometimes catch myself feeling like I’m on vacation.

I have vivid memories of spring break in college. Not in Florida, mind you. While all my friends headed from Indiana to Fort Lauderdale, I headed to Wisconsin to spend it at home with my parents. We got a freak snowstorm. So while my friends were on a beach, I was shoveling the driveway. Not that I’m still bitter about this.

At this point, I’m old enough that I don’t want to be anywhere near spring break crowds.

Spring in Florida now means it’s an ideal time to go paddleboarding on a quiet creek (although while paddling Durbin Creek last weekend I spotted an alligator and remembered that spring is mating season).

Spring is azaleas, redbud trees and orange blossoms. Or that’s what those who know such things say. Beyond identifying the pollen on my car, I’ve never been good at pinning down what I’m seeing and smelling. But I can tell you that when spring arrives, the air is a little sweeter, the trees behind our house suddenly have leaves again. And when there’s a gentle spring breeze, it’s good to be in Florida.

Some people complain that spring in Florida is erratic, that it’s cold one day, warm the next. This is true. If you want consistency, it’s right around the corner. Summer.

Summer in Florida is nothing if not consistent. Every morning the same temperature. Every afternoon a thunderstorm. Ever day longing for the first hint of fall, followed by winter and then what might be the most fleeting of seasons in Florida.

Spring is here. Enjoy it while it lasts.

mwoods@jacksonville.com

(904) 476-0397

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: From spring break to spring training, it's the best season in Florida