Crystal River

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Snorkeling with Manatees

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Seaotter71
Seaotter71
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5 out of 5
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2
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Experience with Respect

  • July 2, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by naturegirl05 from savannah, Georgia
Experience with Respect

I had an amazing time snorkelling with the Manatees in Crystal River. We used Nature Connections, with Captain Hank. He was very knowlegable, curteous, and professional. Our tour was of just two of us plus Captain Hank so it was great to be in a small group. We saw other tour boats with 12+ people and thought how unenjoyable that would be, plus very overwhelming for the manatees. We had several encounters with the manatees and made sure we used our "manatee manners" that we were taught. We did see a baby who was veryyy curious of us and we were able to play with him for a long time. Another boat came over with a bunch of people and it was kind of crowded...I thought it was a little unfair for the manatee.
I enjoyed just floating and observing them about as much as actually getting to touch them. Might be the biologist in me but it was great to watch them eating and swimming and such. The calls to each other were pretty amazing too.
I hope that when others go they will try to limit their group size and if they can't, then they take turns in the water.
Otherwise, it was definitely the experience of a lifetime and I will absolutely treasure that day!!
Editor Pick

Snorkeling with Manatees

  • March 13, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Seaotter71 from Monterey, California
Snorkeling with Manatees

Manatees are aquatic mammals that inhabit shallow, marshy coastal areas. An average adult male is 10 feet long and weighs 1,000 pounds. They are strict vegetarians, and are quite gentle. The West Indian Mantee, the type endemic to Florida, is an endangered species. They face the threat of diminishing suitable habitats and injury from boat propellers.

The Crystal River area is riddled with underground springs that spout fresh, 72ºF water year round, making it an ideal place for the largest North American congregation of manatees during the winter. Manatees have a very narrow range of water temperature in which they can survive, and these warm waters make it an ideal spot for manatees from all over Florida to “winter.”

My first trip was in November 2002, and I had many awesome encounters with manatees. Some were very friendly, I had some serious face time with them. Manatees love being scratched, especially if you have nails and can get some of the algae off. Not having nails, I was apparently not doing a good enough scratching job for one of the manatees, so it pinned my hand underneath its fin in an effort to get me to scratch harder and where it was itchiest.

We also ran into one mother and her calf. They were not in a playful mood, and consciously stayed in the protected area. There’s that intelligence thing again. As far as animal encounters, this ranks up there for me. In comparisson, my March 2006 trip was disappointing. The warmer weather caused the manatees to spread out, and at one point there were two outfits (five boats total) anchored within feet of each other. Despite the best efforts of the guides, tourists crowded around the couple of manatees, and forgot the “manatee manners” required by law. Please don’t be an ugly nature tourist and respect the animals. Since I am on a soapbox, dive equipment is NOT necessary and is actually quite obnoxious considering most of the time you are in waist deep water.

Both times I hooked up with Bird’s Underwater, a Crystal River outfit. It cost $29 for the tour and $20 for gear—wetsuit, mask, snorkel, and fins. I recommend them. The staff is courteous and professional. They also start before the other tours, so your group can have some alone time with the manatees. They will also tape the whole experience, and you can buy a video of DVD afterwards.

Don’t let my last experience deter you, if you have the opportunity, it is definitely something you should do. You’ll be glad you did.

From journal Crystal River: A Quaint Drinking Village with a Manatee Problem

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