Paddle Trip Down The Spectacular Weeki Wachee River

Wildwood Florida (84 degrees, cloudy skies)

Spectacular Weeki Wachee

It's common as a fulltimer to have to deviate your travel plans.  John calls it the jello lifestyle and says you have to have lots of wiggle room.  We planned on staying in Weeki Wachee Florida for a few days to visit this State Park.  However, as we were getting ready to leave we noticed the refrigerator did not appear to be cooling properly. It was registering at 51 degrees, however, the freezer appeared to be doing OK. We quickly put everything in a cooler and called Alliance Coach in Wildwood Florida and begged them to check it out.  We have had service there before and have found them to be reliable. They agreed to work us into a very busy schedule. So, we adjusted our plans a little and have spent three days here in the campground adjacent to the shop.

They found out the light inside the refrigerator did not go off when the door was closed.  The heat from the light may have been elevated the temperature.  I wasn't completely convinced, but we've watched the temperature closely since it's been fixed and it seems to be cooling adequately. Hopefully everything will work properly  Replacing a refrigerator in a motorhome is very expensive.

During the weekend we did make two day trips to some great kayaking rivers.- Weeki Wachee near Brookville and the Rainbow River near Ocala. Both rivers are located in a Florida State Park.

We did not have time to visit the Weeki Wachee mermaid show, however, we did get to paddle down the river.  The mermaids have been performing live in this State Park since 1946.  It just sounded like fun and little piece of Americana. So, I guess that means we will be returning again soon. :)

The Weeki Wachee River was breathtaking and it was our first visit.  We launched at Paddling Adventures outside the main gate of the park. They charge $6/kayak and shuttle one person back to their car at the take out (Robert's Park) for $5.  It's a well run place with convenient wagons to help get your gear and kayak down to the river.  The route is 5 1/2 miles in length and an easy shady paddle. 

Complimentary cart for transport

We'd recommend going during the week if possible.  The weekend crowds are pretty intense and at times you also compete with a lot of boat traffic as you approach the end.  We still enjoyed it immensely and the fresh water (74 degrees) was clear and delightful.  We were in awe of the breathtaking colors and spring fed waters (over 150,000 gallons pour into the river each minute) It's a great place to swim and oftentimes there is a sandy bottom.  

Sightseeing Cruiise

About half way down the river you start to see cottages and homes.  The river slows down at this point and the trees and foliage change. The color of the water is not as intense but still very pretty. We saw two manatees in this area.  One of them had been scarred several times on it's back most likely due to boat propellers.  There were signs on many of the homes asking folks to slow down and to watch out for them.  

Look carefully for the Manatee

I waited at Robert's Park after exiting the river at Robert's Park.  John was shuttled back to our jeep and we were soon back on the road.  What a great day.  The rivers in north central Florida are spectacular.  Check back soon to see our post about one of our favorites - the Rainbow River.