This past weekend, on Saturday February 29 in the year 2016, I saw my first manatee. And then my second, and then my third, and then my 100th. There were hundreds in Manatee Park in Fort Myers this cool (for Florida) yet sunny weekend.
I’d never even seen a manatee in captivity and definitely wasn’t sure what to expect from this trip. Friends had talked about the fun experience at Manatee Park, but after two and a half years living in Naples Florida, I’d yet to make the trip. Inspiring myself with this blog (go the extra mile to try the new things, Katy!), as well as a long-awaited-for visit from my mother, I finally did it. I tried the new thing. And it was worth it.
We rented a canoe and off we went! We spent the first 10 minutes or so paddling and chatting obliviously away, until a precocious 8-year-old blonde boy informed us that we had made our way into a current manatee resting spot and it would be best if we backed up and gave them more space. And darn him, he was right! Within the next 10 seconds, 10 to 12 manatees pushed their noses above the water for air, letting out an intense wooshing sound as they did so.
It was a magical experience. One moment we’re pushing through the serene and unbroken waters of the secluded bay (ignoring the child kayaking close to us, of course), and in the next, we’re surrounded by gray noses (noses that I do assume have 10 feet of large animal body mass connected to them, which I could just barely see under the surface of the water). It was a glimpse into nature and into a part of our world I haven’t felt so connected to since I spent time in the Amazon rainforest in Ecuador.
We spent the next two hours getting our paddle on, (I better have gotten some FitBit steps for all that paddling!), stopping every so often to listen for the wooshing of nearby manatees. For those of you in southwest Florida in the winter months, do not miss out on your opportunity to visit Manatee Park. You can watch manatees from land when you visit the park, but I definitely encourage going the extra mile (literally – paddle that extra mile away from the people) to rent a kayak or canoe to get up close and personal. I can’t believe I waited this long!