Cutting across central Florida from Sanford to Saint Augustine, I made a pit stop at Blue Spring State Park to check out the “Winter Home to the Manatee”.
While there can be up to several hundred manatees in the waters at a time, there were still supposedly more than 100 manatees during my visit.
What surprised me most is the size of manatees. They average 8-10 feet in length and 800-1200 pounds in weight. Even at that size, it was tough to get photos of the manatees with the reflections coming off the water.
The 1 mile round trip Spring Walk trail takes you along a boardwalk path around the lake. It’s a cool, easy walk and the trees and vegetation along the way I think make it interesting.
Despite visiting on a gray day, the vibrant blue green water here is beautiful. The steady 72 degree temperature of the water is the reason manatees flock here in the winter.
There is also the “Gift Locker,” which is gift shop and the “Blue Spring Canteen,” which is a snack bar along this trail.
Beyond the popular lake trail, I also checked out a portion of the much more secluded Pine Island trail. Besides having a really cool name, this trails cuts through the backwoods of the park which evolves through a few different interesting ecosystems.
