Wekiva River and Blackwater Creek

Last night, I was thinking of going to Blue Spring State Park and doing the Hontoon Loop today, Sunday, August 21, 2011.  But, I saw Luis' post and changed my mind.

Busy at Katie's Landing when I arrived.  Three other people launching.  Two kayaks and two guys in canoe.  The latter was illegal.  Had a motor. Perhaps they can't read.

All three went up River.  Works for me, as I planned to go down.  In the water at 9:10.

 Great blue heron

 Ibis

Limpkin

Green herons

 

 Tri colored heron.

I came to the island where Luis saw a manatee trio yesterday.   I paused, looked, listened, then paddled the left, west side.  Did not see or hear any manatees near the island.   I was past Wekiva Haven when something surfaced twenty-five yards in front of me. Otter?   It surfaced again, the snout unmistakable.  Manatee.   Swam beneath me, heading up the Wekiva.  I turned around, following it for a while, hoping to get a photo.

Unable to get a good photo.  The disturbed water at the top of the above photo is the manatee.  I turned around, thinking I may see the manatee, and maybe more, on the way back.

First person I saw since launching was coming up River in a pedal drive yak.  I told her about the manatee. "Are you Yakdave?"  I admitted I was.  Karen said she follows this blog, and told me she saw several alligators downstream.

 I saw them too. Hope she spotted the manatee.

 Turtle

 Dragonfly

 Damsel flies.  On my paddle.

Four people in two canoes, and a couple anchored, fishing rounded out the people I was between Katie's Landing and Blackwater Creek, which I entered at 11:20.

 Barred owl

I got to my usual break spot on Blackwater Creek at noon.  A tree has fallen across the Creek, but it doesn't look like it would be a problem paddling over.

I landed, took a 10 minute break, then headed back down Blackwater Creek.

Big gators on Blackwater Creek.  Many more on the bank than I saw on the Wekiva.   The narrow Blackwater, is shady, so they don't overheat as they would on the wider Wekiva.  At least that's my theory.

Back in June, I wrote I should take a pic of this gauge every time. It was at 4.20 then.  Didn't take a photo during a July photo.  Today, it was at 4.50.

Another tree is down, near the confluence, but there's a narrow gap, wide enough for a kayak.  I was back on the Wekiva at 12:50.

The same couple were still fishing, another group, sunning on their boat- that's how you become a red neck- no shirt when its 90 out.  Another couple in a jonboat asked it Blackwater Creek was "near the cypress knees"  "A lot of places are near cypress knees"  If they were in a human powered vessel I would have told them where it was.

One more boat before I returned to the launch.  Beached at the nice high spot on the Wekiva.  I say, power boaters can stand in their boat.  Leave the shore to paddlers.  I'm a selfish SOB.

 This is could be the same sand hill crane family I saw in April

Across the River from where the nest was.  They grow up so fast.  The one without the red patch on its head is the baby.

I was about to explore the area across from the launch when a manatee surfaced.

It's barely visible in the above photo. About 10 o'clock from the paddle.   A motorboat was coming down the River.  The guy slowed down, I said thank you for me and the manatee.   I waited for it to surface again, it did, I missed it.  It must have been resting because it took a long time between breaths.  A couple times, I started towards shore, only to have it surface, so I stayed to try and get a picture.  Was not able to do so.

All I got was its wake, near the dock.  I landed at 3:00.  The guys with the canoe with the motor had just landed.  I said if I were them, I'd take the motor off and put it in the car now, never know when a Park worker might show up.  "It's a trolling motor"  Actually, they weren't the guys I saw in the morning.  Same color canoe, green, with an electric motor.  I took the photo of the "Launching of Motorized Vessels is Prohibited" sign on the way out.   I don't see any fine print exempting electric or solar power or rubber band motors.