Kayaking the Crystal Clear Rainbow River - Dunnellon, Florida

(Dunnellon, FL) 82 degrees, clear blue skies

It was a glorious day today as we kayaked  the spectacular Rainbow River.  The weather was perfect and so was this river.  This crystal clear river forms itself from numerous springs that gush about 400,000 gallons of water a day.  The springs come from several vents along the first mile of trip (head springs ).  The water  is a constant 72 degrees and the clarity is spectacular. 

There are several ways you can kayak this river.  We decided to use a livery today so we would not have to paddle upstream very much.  We are still recovering from the Silver River a couple of days ago. :)   We stopped at Rainbow River Canoe and Kayak and inflated our kayak.   We were then transported  by van to K.P. Hole County Park.  You pay a $3 fee to launch your kayak or canoe from there.  Our livery fee was $15.  We will end our trip today at the office  where our car is parked.  Nice!

We  slowly went upstream about one mile to the head waters and Rainbow River State Park.  It was so beautiful. 

We saw lots of scuba divers.  There are caves and springs that can be viewed for the adventurous and several of the divers told us they  were really enjoying their dive.   



Scuba Divers



For some reason the owner of the kayak livery thought we would not be able to go very far in our inflatable kayak  to the head springs.  We thought it was really easy.  Must have been all our experience and new muscles from the Silver River.  

We are enjoying our SeaEagle more and more each time and are certainly feeling more comfortable in it.  Our paddling is much more coordinated.  Lots of people asked us about the kayak.  We probably could have sold several. 

There are a lot of houses along the shore. We heard it is very expensive real estate. There are not many places where you could jump off your peer and be in water like this.

If you look carefully you can see one of the caves or vents

Vent

At the top of the head springs is the Rainbow River State Park.  There are some nice trails and camping at this park.  You can also launch your boat or rent them from here. Below is a picture of the swimming beach. 



Rainbow River State Park - Swimming Area

After you reach the State Park you just have to turn around and basically float the rest of the way down the river.  It is about a 7.5 mile paddle.  We saw some wildlife and birds but certainly not as much as we saw on the Silver River.  This is most likely due to all the houses.  We did not miss the alligators although they still are present!  For the next three hours we  just took our lazy time floating down the river and feeling very grateful.  All our hard work getting ready to full time really has paid off.  Life is good.



Turtle and Blue Heron



Family Fun

 

We noticed that some of the trees are starting to flower and leaf out.  Spring is in the air.  Eventually the Rainbow River combines with the Withlacoochee River. At that point the color of the water dramatically changes and becomes the color of tea.  Can you tell the difference?



Withlacoochee River.

 We traveled about 1/4 mile down this river to the dock.  It was a delightful paddle and one we will always remember. 

Tomorrow we leave this area and travel to Eustis. Our NOMADS project starts on Monday and will last for three weeks.  This is our first project and we are really looking forward to it.  Check back and see how well I can do with a hammer and some power tools. :)   

Visiting Ocala National Forest And Information About Obtaining A Golden Access Pass

(Silver Springs, FL) 77 degrees, blue skies with a few clouds

A person who volunteers for the Veterans Administration told us about a great program with camping discounts for disabled veterans.    John has a 10% service related disability.  The Federal Government has a recreation pass program called Interagency Access Pass.  It is a lifetime pass for citizens or permanent residents of the U.S who have a permanent disability, regardless of age.  We had heard about the Senior Pass for those over 62 but we won't reach that age for awhile.  This pass  usually gives you free admission to any National Park, National Forest, BLM, or  Fish and Wildlife area.  Plus, they give you 50% off of most camping fees.  This was great news .

The pass can only be obtained when visiting one of the these areas with proper documentation.  Near our campground was the Ocala National Forest so a few days ago we set off to obtain a pass. After a few stops we finally found the correct office and five minutes later John came out with a big smile on his face and a plastic card.  This will be forever known as our Golden Ticket! (do you remember the movie)  John's injuries have certainly caused him some difficulties and several surgeries but this pass is a really great benefit.

Willy Wonka and the Golden Ticket

We decided to take a look around the Ocala National Forest while in the area.  We asked for campground information and found out there are 13 campgrounds.  This is a big place - 383,000 acres and over 600 lakes.  We were only able to cover a small portion of the area. 

Juniper Springs Campsite

Our first stop was the Juniper Springs campground.  This is great area for kayaking.  The campground sites were very nice with lots of privacy and a good size.  However, all sites are without any type of service except water.  Rates are $21 per night ($10 with access or senior pass).  We will definitely come back here after we have more experience kayaking.  It is known to be a very challenging river.



Salt Springs Campground



Our next stop was the Salt Springs Campground.  This is a beautiful campground and unlike most place allows up to stay of 180 days.  (most have a limit of 14 days).  This picture does not really do it justice.  The sites are long and have good spacing between each one.  It was a really pretty place.  Sites are $26 per night ($16 with access or senior pass).  They offer full hook up including cable.  This is run by the American Land and Leisurea concessionaire. 

The real bonus is the lovely Salt Springs Recreation Area next door.  We walked down to the springs and found them to be almost magical. Can you tell we really liked this place?  There is a popular swimming area in the summer.  We heard the water is 72 degrees year round due to the springs.  Nice!


Swimming Area - Salt Springs





Immature Tri-Colored Heron



Reluctantly we left the area and traveled to the  Fore Lake canpground.  No pictures of the area since it was getting too dark.  It's a rustic campground without hook ups except for water.  I was not too crazy about it. 

We really only touched the surface of the forest and plan to go back when John's sister is here for a visit.  We plan to stay at the Alexander Springs campground and do some kayaking.  We have heard some really great things about this creek. The water is very clear due to it being spring feed and many people swim and snorkel this area too.  The access to the river is right at the campground.  That will be very convenient. 

One campground that we have not liked is the one we are currently staying in.  Due to the race and peak season most of the campgrounds in the area were sold out.  We found a spot available at The Springs RV Resort.  Whether or not you like a campground is really a very personal choice.  Obviously there are 400 other campers staying  here that are very happy.  It's just not our style.  Probably about 95% of the folks  are here for the winter season.  There are lots of park models, activities, and everything is very neat and tidy.  Our main issue was driving into our site.  It is not big rig friendly.  In fact, our escort and one other person had to hang from a very poorly placed street sign so that our rig could pass and not have the rear side ripped off.  I was frozen is fear watching this all unfold.  It didn't help our mood any when one of the campers said that management was well aware of the problems with their street signs and refused to move them.  There is also no "it" factor, TV reception of any kind, or picnic table.  I'm sure we were the entertainment for the afternoon when we first arrived. 

On a lighter note it was time, actually way past time, for me to get a haircut.  One of my few worries about full timing was getting my hair done.  I could no longer procrastinate.  Checking my Droid navigation for hair salons brought me to Sheer Drama Salon.  It was a cute name and the outside looked really nice.  I took a deep breath and walked in.  Everyone was so friendly and before long Lee had my hair cut and looking so much better.  He even gave me a recommendation for a great river to kayak (we are going there tomorrow).  It seemed like serendipity to me that our paths would cross.  So, what do you think?  It's a lot shorter and should be easy to "maintain". 

Well, I'll finish this rather long post today with a joke my brother sent to me yesterday  Happy Trails!