Three More Days at Silver Springs

The cool mornings here quickly turn into perfect walking weather by late morning. On Thursday we did a nice four and a half mile walk through the park. I am really going to miss these beautiful shade trees as we move West. I know we wouldn't want to be here in summer, but we really understand why so many Snowbirds flock to this state every winter.  We will be back!

Sue, of MoHo Travels, commented "Don't miss Micanopy!!"
So of course we had to look it up and found out it was a very small town about thirty miles north. We are always looking for new things to see, so it became our Saturday adventure.

It felt like a step backwards in time. Wonderful huge old oaks and interesting historic houses. This one was for sale. It has five bedrooms, more than 4000 square feet, four fireplaces, a large landscaped lot, and many renovations the were done in keeping with landmark requirements. Price? $450K. All I could think was about how much work it would be to keep it up. Not something we would want to do again!

We walked around town and wandered into some antique shops. I am not a collector, but sometimes it is interesting to just look. There are a lot of really pretty antiques. I saw a few that reminded me of my grandmother's things. 

This Coca-Cola sign is perfectly preserved on the side of the old warehouse building that housed the Micanopy museum. I like the way the small towns of America have preserved bits and pieces of their past. We often stop at them if for no other reason than to support the histororic societies and remember how people made a good life with far less stuff than we have in our time.

We wanted to go canoeing on Sunday, but when we went over to the canoe rental area at noon, all of the canoes were out. It was a beautiful day to be on the river. I looked at the two-man kayaks, but decided I did not want to stress my back by sitting with my legs out. We could have gone back again later, but instead decided to take a look at the museum over in our section of the park. It was a pretty good one.  Then we just relaxed at the coach for the rest of the afternoon, and watched the Superbowl when it came on.

Monday we drive about sixty miles to our last planned Florida state park, Manatee Springs. Our stay there will only be four nights. We will try to make the most of it, and get in one more day canoeing if it doesn't rain. 

We also want to go  to WeekiWachee Springs to see the mermaid show.  It is another of those old roadside attractions that were part of the Florida experience years ago. Actually it looks like fun in a hokie sort of way.

Has anyone been there?

Glass Bottom Boat Ride

On Thursday afternoon, the weather warmed up considerably from the morning chill. After running some errands we decided to explore a bit.

Silver Springs State Park has two sections. One is the older Silver River Park with the usual natural trails and campgrounds. It is adjacent to what was, up until 2013, an older, commercial theme park that no longer has all of its roadside attractions such as wild animal shows, reptile and snake shows, and swimming beach.

Silver Springs first opened in the 1870s and is said to be the original location for glass-bottom-boat rides. Over the years it had its ups and downs, and was finally overshadowed as a tourist destination by the Disney parks. Many of the older commercial buildings are in good shape but closed off. I wonder what the state park system will do with them. For now there still is a restaurant, a concert venue, attractive grounds, and the glass bottom boat trips.

Have you ever wondered what is below the surface of the water?

The center section of this flat bottomed boat is plate glass and you can look down into the water from the comfort of your seat. It's better than snorkeling because you don't have to get cold and wet!

Its electric motor is very quiet and the captain answers any questions you may have.

When we were at the dock we were over shallow water and could see lots of water plants. While waiting for the rest of the passengers we saw turtles and fish. 

The water was very clear and still except for where the many springs roiled the water with their output.

We passed over and stopped to examine several of the springs. 

Each was a deep area with a large deeper crack or hole from which the waters gush out.  550 million gallons per day flows out of them, and the water is very pure and crystal clear. The river they head is clear for nine miles downstream.

We saw lots of fish. Most were in groups of three or four, but this was a larger gathering. Our Captain told us that when it was a commercial attraction they would feed the fish and more of them would come to the boats. As a state park, no wild animals or fish are fed so fewer fish are seen.

The glass bottom boat ride only lasted a half hour, but the $10 fare was well worth it. Our Captain has worked at the Springs for 41 years and had a pleasant, well-informed patter. 

As our afternoon wound down we took a walk around the grounds. We noticed something swimming in the springs. It was not a turtle, not a gator, not a child. It was in fact a river otter. Just one of many critters that call this park home.

On Friday, we plan on walking the trail that boarders the back edge of our site. On the map it looks like an easy loop. I'll write about it next time.

[From Craig] Silver Springs SP is a little sad because it's such a beautiful place, and the water flow is so amazing, but the tourist flow they once got, now goes to Disney World.  I want a time-machine RV so we can visit Silver Springs in 1965!