We encountered this spring many years ago while our children were young. Either by youth group encounter or family vacation, the springs were a fun day with nature (and tubes in eight miles of crystal clear water).
Entering our later “golden years” we now feel it our duty to explore the world via kayak. I’m not sure what happened here, except we eyeballed the little boats and something smelling like an idea popped into our heads. So we gave Kayaking a try with the help of a little mom and pop campground that had rentals and guided tours (if wanted). We opted for the beginner two-hour river paddling alone (I mean who wants a witness?). It was an easy way to explore the possibility of attacking yet another hobby without the outlay of substantial cash. So, we shelled out our $13.00 per person for the 2-hour paddling down river complete with drop off and pick up service! For the total of $26.00, we decided this might actually be a venture we would be interested in pursuing. Shrug... Why not?
I’m rather happy no one had a camera at the moment my substantial frame began the downward descent into the little Kayak. In my head I kept hearing “Ass to Mass Ratio” and looked at the boat with a bit of fear. However, thanking my lucky stars that someone much more knowledgeable than I am assisted me in the placement of my limbs, I continued on. Wonderful! The boat didn’t sink. OK, step one completed.
Of course, I look at my limber “drink of water” husband already in his Kayak and think, “Man, he makes everything look EASY!” He’s already in heaven and I can see it in his face. I sit there and wait for my own eruption of ecstasy.
From the moment my paddle dipped into the cold clear water I knew we’d have to come back here and do this again. I was already making plans in my head for taking this person or that person and how to work it into our busy schedules.
One of the things you miss while tubing is the natural ecosystem of the Itchetucknee Springs River. The barrage of tubers go in the main channel and unfortunately never see the lovely parts of the side water where the fish and birds hide out (while the flux of people go by). It’s not easy to access by tube really, and it’s pretty distasteful to the fanny stuck down in the hole of said tube (with long eelgrass and algae-covered marsh grass scraping at the backside!). I use to avoid these areas completely. However, in the confines of the kayak it’s not nearly so fearsome to maneuver. The little boats skim right over the long grass and take you to the shallow savanna area. I can’t really tell you how much I loved it there. You could find springs belching out the pretty white lime stone sand. We saw, Ibis, Great Egrets, Blue Green Herons, Wood Storks, Kites, Osprey, and several different kinds of hawks. It was like a nature site right out of a book. Fish? Well, ya’ know I just lost count! Let me say however, that it’s a bird’s paradise if they feed on fish. Sigh...Did I tell you there is no fishing allowed? Blast!
Toward the end of the two-hour trek down stream, my boat sunk... I’m not sure which was worse, my laughing so hard I almost drowned or trying to muscle onto land my sunken Kayak. The harder I’d pull it the more it sank. Finally, I resorted to the shove method of moving it through water, instead of trying to lift it up (duh). Since it was in was only in four feet of water, it slid to the shore easily enough. Drowning wasn’t a huge factor for me really, but the amount of water I ingested while laughing with my mouth open bobbing up and down shoving that stupid boat was.
How’d it sink? Lets just say that when you come to a dock, don’t aim at the dock with an idea of coming along the side facing you, with a gush of rushing water coming from behind and pushing you against the dock. Go in the front and dismount from that position. You know, the place where is says, “Get Out Here”. The first idea will usually sink your Kayak!
After that little fiasco, we poured the water out of my boat. My husband cracked up while assuring himself I was all right then managed (giggling like a crazy man) to help me back into the boat. I somehow crawled back inside to continue our journey. We still laugh about it today.
When most people are done with an adventure they just write their memoirs down and forget them… Not us. We refuse to go quietly into retirement- I can see that now. …God help me.
My innocent looking husband with big brown eyes says, “Honey lets go see how much Kayaks are”. “Well babe we can do that online”. “Yes, but I’d like to see what’s available locally”. So, we pile into the truck and he informs me, “There’s a sporting equipment company in town we can go look at first. They have some on sale”. OK, I’m getting the idea now I’ve been Shanghaied. Finally after some “map quest moments” looking for this place, we arrive. It’s a two-story sports-junky paradise. We enter the Kayak area of this massive outlet to be greeted by a sweet (also innocent looking) pre-adult sales clerk who ”Whitewater Kayaks”. He’s a wellspring of knowledge about the sport.
He shows us the Kayaks on-sale and then has me try some on for size. I kept (inaudibly) mumbling to myself, “Oh please don’t embarrass me”, “Oh please don’t embarrass me”. OK, by now I’m past the embarrassed moments and into “Please don’t break me”, not physically and not financially.
We find two nice Kayaks fewer than 250.00 each and my still innocent looking husband says, Well babe, what do you think? I’m like, “huh?” “You know... You think we should get them?” Now I know I’ve been Shanghaied! We leave with two Bright Yellow Kayaks with matching paddles.
Remember we knew we had to go back to the river? Well we did, two days after we bought the Kayaks. Did I tell you we took the whole family with us [insert nerve drugs here please]? We orchestrated a five people Camping/Kayaking adventure that failed miserably, with the help of the oddball owners of campground number two (that we thought we’d try out.) Oh, they supposedly rented kayaks (At least they did when I called). Well, this is somewhat still a distasteful memory so I’ll skip the details. We did save the day with our two newly purchased maiden voyaging Kayaks. We took turns. Two at a time on the river. It had some pitfalls with my oldest daughter paddling herself and her eight-year-old little boy. She had a hard time paddling back against the current. Thankfully they were only out fifteen minutes then turned back. It took her thirty minutes to paddle against the current. The youngest daughter had no trouble at all and was paddling very well. We’ll have to go check out some local rivers with them. I think I see more Kayaks in the future…
Despite the hard time we had at campground number two, I can’t wait to return! I just want to take everyone with me when I do. It’s such a lovely natural place. Florida is losing those.
