Can I Have One?

Guess what I did yesterday?

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You'll never guess.

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I went swimming with manatees! It was ah-mazing. We scored a great deal through Groupon about a month ago and immediately made plans to head down to Crystal River, FL as soon as possible. And I am so glad we did. I have always had an affinity for manatees - they are like big, dolphin teddy bears. They're also known as sea cows, which just makes me giggle for some reason.

We had to be there at 8:15am, so my mom graciously offered to watch Haeden Sunday night and all day Monday. We left around 7pm Sunday night and arrived roughly three hours and forty-five minutes later. It should have taken a bit less time, however, our Garmin had a bit of a hiccup and had us doing circles before we even left town. And then we had to be extra careful driving windy little roads through itty bitty towns known for their speed traps.  Seriously they actually have billboards announcing this fact... they are obviously very proud. The speed limit goes from 65 down to 35 rather quickly. A little research tells me that this actually used to happen within 500 feet, but has since been changed. Either way, one must pay some serious attention driving those roads.

Seeing as we had to be up pretty early in the morning, it would have been smart to go to bed shortly after arriving at the hotel. We're not smart though... we stayed up to watch the end of the MVA's. I really don't know why considering the fact that between the three of us, we still had no idea who half of the "artists" were. Does that mean I'm getting old?

 We got up Monday morning, threw on our bathing suits and cover ups, grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel and jumped in the car ready for our little adventure.  We could hardly contain our excitement, though Steph was dreading the wet suit and I was worried about how cold the water was going to be. See, I knew I couldn't be a total wuss in front of the guide and other tourists. I usually hem, hah and, okay, whine over getting into my grandmother's pool every weekend and I know it has to be warmer than 72 degrees!

After donning our gear and watching an instructional/educational video we hopped in the car and drove over to the nearest boat dock. That would probably be my one complaint about the company we booked with. There were a few hidden charges and "oh, by the way's". We had to drive ourselves, pay to park, and then bring all of the wet gear back in our own cars rather than leaving them with the boat (oh and don't forget the twenty dollar "recommended" tip!). This would have upset me more if I'd actually paid full price.

Once we were out on the water the captain hit us with a bit of a reality check. He mentioned that it could take 5 minutes to spot a manatee, or it could take an hour. You never know.  I had been expecting that spiel because a co-worker had that happen to them once, but you can't help but feel a little anxious about it. Thankfully, we didn't have to wait more than 10 minutes before getting the opportunity to have a little meet and greet with our first manatee. Plus, the water wasn't nearly as bad as I was anticipating thanks to the handy, dandy we suits we were sporting. And despite the fact that we only got to see three manatees and we had to share the experience with six other people, it was worth every second and every penny.

Tour company. Would definitely use them again!

BABY!

More munching.

They're all full of scars. Breaks your heart!

Snout.

 Huge Tail! I had no idea they had so much stuff growing on them!

Gettin' my snorkel on.

Dan's unintentional impression of a frog.

Peace, love and manatees.

Stephanie!

Cuttin' up.

Afterwards.  We really smelled!

Enjoying lunch.

A couple of my favorite people.

Me and the hubs. Like his shirt? Check out the cause here.

They said peak season is around January and February. While the water gets cold everywhere else, the springs are always hovering around 72 degrees. The protected area around Crystal Springs draws a lot of manatees and I can imagine the bay we snorkeled around gets a pretty good amount of them in the winter months. I'd love to go again during that time!  Anyone want to join me?!