After more than a month in the 80-degree warmth of south Florida and the Keys, we are now in north-central Florida. I guess the storms that are ripping through the northeast are finding their way down here too. We woke up this morning and it was...wait for it... 30 DEGREES! Really a shock to the system! Looks like we will be going back to long pants and sweaters, if not coats, for a while anyway.
Cold weather aside, yesterday we went to an absolutely beautiful place called Manatee Springs State Park. It is a warm water spring that pumps 100 million gallons a day of 72-degree spring water into the historic Suwanee River via a 300-yard-long river. In winter when the Gulf of Mexico water cools down, Manatees take refuge in the warmth of this bucolic river.
It really was a beautiful place. The water was almost eerily clear, and the whole area was under a canopy of moss-laden cypress trees. We didn't see any Manatees or gators, but plenty of tropical birds, turtles and other wildlife.
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| Manatee Spring. Those "stumps" sticking up are called Cypress Knees, and are actually part of the Cypress Tree root system. |
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| This is the spring origin. The ultra clear water is over 25 feet deep. |
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| You can actually swim in the spring during the months when Manatees are NOT here. But...would YOU? |
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