This is a catch-up post. I’m going to make all the next few posts thematic rather than in chronological order. I hope it will all make sense.

We got lucky and were able to get a spot at Fort De Soto County Park in St. Petersburg Beach instead of dry camping/boondocking after Riverside RV Resort. The only disadvantage of staying here is the lack of a built-in sewage hookup. But, the pluses far outweigh this for sure: kayaking right in the park, surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico and the finest beaches to be found anywhere, plus mature trees and lots of site privacy. Here’s the map of our “kayak trail” at the park:

Below is an aerial view of the area for paddling.

Here is a photo of our campsite:
 It was a nice warm day for paddling and the trail was well protected. It was fairly busy with other kayakers since there was an outfitter renting kayaks right there.

And, most folks come to this park for its beaches. As you can see, the Gulf has more turquoise water than the Atlantic.

 

Next kayak location was in Bradenton. We stayed a week at Winter Quarters Manatee and Jen joined us for the tail end of the stay and the move to the Chassahowitzka well north of the greater Tampa area. We did a lot of paddling with Jen; she brought her SUP down with her. In Bradenton, we paddled at Robinson Nature Preserve, which is a county run protected area. The day we went was extremely windy so we stayed within the protection of the preserve rather than venture out into Anna Maria Island. Here is the map of the winding waterway area we covered in our trip:

The scenery is varied in this area and is a welcome change from all the red mangroves of previous paddles.

We left Bradenton a day early because the weather forecast was not going to be good for the one day that Jen would have paddling on the Chassahowitzka before leaving for home, plus the campsite was pretty noisy being right adjacent to I75. Luckily the campground (Chassahowitzka River Campground) had our site open for the early arrival. We were heading to Florida’s “Nature Coast” and the “Chaz” is supposed to be one of the best spots for kayakers in the entire state. It is one of the few remaining pristine waterways in Florida. Here is our gorgeous site with nice privacy and a fire pit!
The campground has a large launching area on the river and is only a few hundred yards from the Seven Sisters Springs and a short distance to Manatee Cove. Here’s Jen and Ken getting the kayaks ready for launch:

The campground has several buildings on the riverfront. They also have a kayak kondo where Jen was able to store her kayak overnight while staying inflated.
Our first destination was downstream to Manatee Cove. We all were determined to see manatees in the wild. Sure enough, we could tell from a distance that we would be in luck as there were several kayakers all circling in the cove.

We carefully paddled over to the area and counted off at least 10 manatees! Many surfaced for air right next to our kayak, within inches! It was so exciting to see these huge mammals.

We continued downstream and took a nice detour through a tributary. What’s amazing about this river is that the water is so very clear. Here’s a YouTube link of a video of us Kayes in our kayaks as we paddle in this paradise. Ken and Jen are discussing the mullet fish in the water. They’re everywhere! They also love to jump clear out of the water, too! By the way, they’re delicious smoked.

We finished the paddling day at the Seven Sisters Spring, where there are 7, yes, 7 springs close together in a small creek off the Chaz. There are caves way down below. Jen got out of her kayak and took Ken’s phone and put it underwater for some video which is here. It is said that there are folks who disappeared in these underwater caves while snorkeling. Here is a photo of that one from the surface:
This spring is the one where Jen got out of her kayak and grabbed Ken’s phone (in a protective clear drybag) and placed it into the hole! You can see the aquarium view in YouTube.

After Jen left, Ken did a solo paddle on a small tributary off of the Suwannee in Otter Springs. He may do his own version of kayak posts. My next post will be on “Art”.