Crystal River Manatee Encounter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On this tour we take a 3 - 3.5 hour paddle around King's Bay, stopping along the way at some of the 30+ springs which are the manatees favorite hang-outs. The cost for this one is $39 per person ($50 for non- "wanna go" members) or $25 if you bring your own boat ($35 for non-members).

Calendar of Tour dates: www.adventureoutpost.net

 

 

Description

 

Kings Bay, the headwaters of Crystal river, is the winter home of over 500 manatees, making it one of the most important refuges for these amazing, endangered mammals. But there's more here than just manatees!  This is a fun area to explore, with about 30 artesian springs and lots of wildlife - especially water birds.

 

Many Indian sites are found along the edge of King's Bay and Crystal River, including an amazing complex of temple mounds (Crystal River State Archaeological Site) overlooking the north side of the bay. This site was continually occupied for nearly 1600 years!  The natives abandoned this site sometime around the early 1400's - a relatively short time before Europeans arrived. This is probably the longest occupied site in Florida. NOTE - the Crystal River Archaeological Site is several miles downstream from the area's we explore on this tour. If you were to paddle down that way, you could see a couple of the mounds from the river, but you're not allowed to enter the park from the river. So, if you'd like to see these mounds, it's best to drive to the Crystal River State Archaeological Site after our paddle. It's well worth the $3 per vehicle entry fee.

 

 

Discovery!

Highlights

 

Paddling among manatees is an experience that every animal lover should have. It's hard to believe that such large, wild animals could be so gentle and tolerant of humans. Sometimes they'll even roll over and rub their belly on the bottom of your boat.

 

As we make our way between several of the manatees favorite spring hang-outs, we're treated to the company of hundreds of water birds - pelicans, cormorants, herons (frequently night-herons) gulls, bald eagles and such. We occasionally see Canada geese and, on about half of our trips, we see white pelicans. The only downside to this trip is that civilization is pressing hard against the shoreline around much of the bay - especially in the areas most frequented by the manatees.

 

Please note - We don't swim with manatees on our trips. Even though some manatees seem to enjoy human guests in their water, many of them definitely don't. Some are shy of humans and quickly move away to avoid us. Since we know the manatees come here to survive the winter (they freeze to death if they can't find warm water such as flows from these springs) it would be selfish of us to jump in and scare the shy ones away from their warm water refuge. Even away from the spring vents, making manatees move around any more than necessary makes them use valuable energy. There are many other concerns as well, including their need for rest (they sleep day and night) and their need to conserve valuable energy by not having to move around more than necessary. (I'm not prone to preach, so I won't do so here. Please ask if you'd like more details). Thank you for supporting our position by staying out of the water when manatees are present (whether it's on our trips or any other time). I am truly grateful - and so (I believe) are the manatees!

 

 

Difficulty

 

This is an easy paddle but, on windy days, paddling on the open bay can be challenging.


Questions or reservations: e-mail - riverguide2000@yahoo.com , or call   (386) 454-0611