Manatees Blue Spring State Park

Man­a­tees win­ter refuge Blue Spring State Park

Photo by Eileen Ludwig

Blue Spring State Park is reserved for Manatees during the Winter months as a refuge from the Cold 68 degree or below water temperatures. January 13, 2010 the cold weather had hung around for several weeks. The Blue Spring Run has a spring at the head with a 72 degree steady temperature. Visiting the Park during this time allows the visitor to explore and watch the Manatee in a natural habitat.

The spring discharges 104 million gallons of water daily into the St. John River. The clear spring allows visibility of the Manatees and other fish. There are other endangered or threaten species that use the park for a refuge.

When a Manatee comes from another area because of rescue from colder waters, they might be tagged with a device to track their migration or movement to see where they travel. Having been moved from their own habitat in another part of the state, it is nice to see how they adapt or where they go. The rangers were available along the boardwalk to answer questions and educate those of us visiting. It was a nice treat!

Photo by Eileen Ludwig

The summer months there are kayaks, canoes, and swimming. Campgrounds and cabins allow the visitor the access to nature with bicycle and walking trails. There is a company offering river cruises to view the tranquility of the river.

Photo by Eileen Ludwig

The boardwalk allows visitors to easily travel along the edge of Blue Spring run to the head where the spring is located. The walk and view of the trees, berries, and moss is a nice escape into nature which is good for the soothing of jangled lives.

Photo by Eileen Ludwig

Peaceful.

Remember not to swim with the Manatees. Nor feed them. Nor touch them. Nor chase them. Let them have a nice peaceful day too. It is nice to see that nature supplied them such a great refuge with the 72 degree water.

Resources

State Park Information http://www.floridastateparks.org/bluespring/default.cfm

Manatee Festival http://www.themanateefestival.com

Direc­tions

Blue Spring is located west of Orange City. Take U.S. 17/92 to Orange City, go west two miles on French Avenue to the entrance.

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Eileen Lud­wig of Free­lance Tourist brings to the world insights about places to travel, dis­counts, Stay­ca­tions, Restau­rant Reviews, movie reviews, and fas­ci­nat­ing tibits. She is owner of three other sites: Pho­tog­ra­phy, Web Design School, and Social Media School Each are in dif­fer­ent stages of devel­op­ment and evolution.

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