Howdy! Your almost two-week absent blogger is finally back to actually complete the post about manatees that I mentioned several times. It's been crazy here at the Kram-A-Lot Inn, so stay tuned for a future post explaining why the D-Team disappeared for a week! For now though, here are the long-awaited pictures and stories of our adventure with the sea cows of the ocean.
So, originally, we were only going to swim with the manatees once at Homosassa River (Florida) on Saturday the 26th. But since the temperatures had been warm for a few days prior to our swim, most of these gentle giants had moved farther out into the deeper water of the Gulf. We did find a few loners and a Momma with her calf still in the warm spring water. We had so much fun experiencing these very large and slow-moving creatures up close in their natural habitat, however, Captains Don and Elisa recommended that if we want to swim with a larger number of them, we might come back again on Tuesday, after a predicted very chilly weekend. They offered a return-customer discount on their already very reasonable pricing. Intrigued by the idea of being surrounded by the manatees, plans were made.
Sidenote: Unless we are wearing coats, I have no idea which pictures/videos were taken on what day, so they are all just thrown in together. Tuesday was the "coat day."
After suiting up, we boarded two pontoon boats and headed up the river to the nearby springs. Captain Don's boat only fit up to 6 passengers, so a friend of their's who used to lead manatee tours kindly agreed to captain another boat so we could all go on one trip together. The excitement started right away on Saturday when a couple of full-grown dolphins and a calf swam alongside our boat and played in the wake of our motor as we left the marina. It was so neat to see these beautiful and graceful creatures up so close! And I managed to catch the moment they swam right by our boat on video!
Prior to this, none of us young people have used snorkel masks before. Talk about having to adjust! All my life, I've been taught to hold my breath underwater, and now all of a sudden, there's a rubber mask covering my nose and I'm supposed to breathe through a tube in my mouth while my face is underwater. I'll be honest and say it took me a long time to gather the courage to let out my breath through the tube and then inhale. It went against every water-survival instinct in me. The issue only compounded when the anxiety caused me to start hyperventilating...which then required me to breathe through the tube all the more. The others also had some trouble adapting, but, eventually, we acclimated to the snorkels and had an absolute blast being able to watch underwater without worrying about running out of air.
As Captain Don liked to say, manatees are about the only wild animal you can play with in their natural habitat without them trying to bite, scratch, poison or otherwise kill you.
One manatee decided it really liked Mom and it became her friend for quite a while. It rolled over for belly rubs, gave her manatee kisses (where they try to gently nibble the snorkel mask) and played with her on the surface. It totally made Mom's day, LOL.
At first, the little boys were a little nervous about being next to such big animals, but they discovered there is no danger from the gentle and graceful giants.
Day two, on Tuesday, was 36 degrees air temperature. We were all very very nervous about getting into a river when we were cold just walking around. It seemed insane to get wet!! In Minnesota, when it's 36 degrees, you bundle up in thick coats and drive carefully because of potentially icy roads... you don't throw on a wetsuit and go swimming. But Captains Don and Elisa assured us we would thank them later. The water would be almost the same temperature as our first time (72 degrees), so we would actually be warmer in the water than on the boat. They were right. Once we were in the water, coming out was terrible, even with hot cocoa and coffee waiting on board the boat. There were so many more manatees this time, however! There was enough around us that all of us could "have our own" to touch, photograph, and swim with. And every time one swam away, another would surface near us. They were all over. It was pretty extraordinary!
This was definitely one of the most unique and incredible experiences we Midwestern suburb-folk have had thus far on our epic road trip. If you are ever in Florida and want to swim with manatees, don't go to the Crystal River tour operators... they charge boocko-bucks and you can't touch the manatees there because of federal regulations. Check out A.T.D. Manatee Tours in Homosassa. Not only are they reasonably priced for a 3 hour trip (wetsuit, hot cocoa, and warm showers included) but the river they are on is much less populated and regulated by the state, which means you can touch the manatees. Don't miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime experience if you are ever in their area!
Until next time, God bless!
Looks like those manatees could use a bath!