I found my way to Saratoga county for day 3 of my trip on Florida’s Gulf Coast. I started my day off with a visit to Myakka River State Park.
I became a little obsessed with wooden observation towers in parks after visiting Tree Tops park in Davie, Florida a few weeks before. The observation tower there was so cool that I started searching Florida for other structures like it.
This research brought me to Myakka. This enormous park had so much to explore that, while I went to see the park’s famous canopy walkway, I stayed for its other features.
There are few experiences where you can interact with wild marine animals on their terms. I tried it with humpback whales in Niue without much luck. I tried it with seals in South Africa to no avail. I was determined this time on my trip to Florida’s Gulf Coast to snorkel with manatees—Florida’s gentle, herbivorous, “sea cow.”
I was ready to get in the water with them after kayaking near them on not one, not two, but three occasions,. The city of Crystal River is the only place in the United States that allows people to be in the water with them.
Through self-guided means only and maintaining my ethical animal tourism and COVID-19 standards, I managed to kayak to and snorkel near manatees at Three Sisters Springs. Learn how I did it all on my own in this post, complete with photos and a video of these awesome marine mammals!
I love it when travel activities fall into my lap unexpectedly. By sheer circumstance, I stumbled across Rainbow Springs State Park. This park has some of the most gorgeous crystal clear, aqua blue water I’ve ever seen!
Only a 2 minute drive from my Airbnb, I decided to spend my morning exploring the park. I thought I might check it out by kayak but the chilly air of the morning and a tight schedule led me to hiking the park instead.
I had no idea I’d end up enjoying this park as much as I did. Sometimes the best travel moments happen without prior planning!
The surprise in this blog post is in the title—I got to go diving on my last minute trip to the Gulf Coast! Who knew that an dirty Airbnb and a rainy day would lead to my first dive experience in over a year?
My trip started out a bit uncomfortably. I arrived at my Airbnb to find it only half cleaned in the middle of a global pandemic. I also saw that rain in the weather report for the next day. Both could have put a real damper on my plans and my spirit. But they didn’t!
I managed to turn a piece of coal into a polished gem! It just took demanding what I wanted and not letting circumstances hold me back.
I barely traveled in 2020—to New York, Denver, and then little trips and experiences around Florida. Once January 2021 arrived, I was feeling apprehensive but also hopeful as COVID-19 infection rates were growing and vaccines were about to be rolled out. I thought to myself that I should really plan a trip. But I also wanted to be safe.
I wanted to go on a trip like to my tiny house trip last summer. I wanted it to be far enough and different enough to feel like I was truly away.
After hemming and hawing my way through January, I finally made a decision to take a mini 4-day road trip down the Gulf Coast of Florida. My next few posts are going to be all about this trip. In this post, I talk about what went into planning it! Planning something so last minute came with a few road blocks—but it all turned out great in the end.
