In 1935, Harry I. Heller and two fellow adventurers headed to Florida hoping to discover an idyllic paradise. Instead, they found boggy wastelands, rats and mosquitoes, sticks of dynamite, black panthers, rushing rivers, and skunks.

An explorer at heart, Harry had already spent one summer hitchhiking 12,000 miles across the United States, which he describes in his book titled Thumbs Up. Not to be daunted, he and his friends persisted in exploring their environs until they came upon an abandoned log cabin on a deserted beach. Here they recreated their fantasy of a tropical paradise.

This exciting journey will appeal to fans of Florida history, travel memoirs, and true-life adventure.