A Visit to Ocala

While it is true that a trip to the Ocala area isn't Northwest Florida, it still earns a place in the adventure category. This weekend our brave band of adventurers tackled the Ocala National Forest area which included kayak trips on both Alexander Creek and Silver River.

We arrived at Alexander Creek shortly after lunch for an easy paddle upstream to the head springs and state park. Along the way we saw numerous turtles, birds, fish, 4 alligators and even a raccoon. Upon reaching the head springs a sign states that kayakers must pay a $5.50 landing fee if they intend to stop and swim in the springs. Being a Saturday in August the park and swimming area were extremely crowded, but we managed to squeeze in for a short break.

Turtle and Alligator basking on Alexander Creek

Alexander Springs 

We paddled back to our put-in location and loaded up the truck for the drive to our hotel. Out of convenience we staged our base camp out of the Day's Inn Silver Springs, however, I wouldn't recommend that hotel again due to the heavy mold smell that permeated our room. The hotel was booked to capacity and we were unable to move to another room.

We unloaded our gear, showered, grabbed a quick bite at the Outback Steakhouse and managed to make it to our next destination, Ocala Ghost Walks, with 5 minutes to spare. The Ocala Ghost Walk tour is entertaining if nothing else. Having been on legitimate ghost hunts in the past, this one fell far short of expectations. This was mainly a historic walking tour (light on the history) and any attempt at a real investigation is easily contaminated by road & pedestrian sounds, lights, and smells. The tour finally wrapped up and we headed back to the hotel and turned in for the night.

Spanish moss in the eerie glow of the moon

Morning came far too early for some of us. Breakfast was at 7 and we were at Silver River by 8:30. We started early because we still had a six hour drive home ahead of us and we wanted to allow plenty of time for exploring.

Silver River is beautiful. The water is relatively deep and clear, becoming increasingly clearer the closer you get to the head springs. The current is moderate and steady for the entire four mile upstream paddle and can present a challenge for some. We wound up leaving one of our group at Silver River State Park about halfway to the spring while we continued upstream. We could've started at the park for a shorter trip, but it comes with .07 mile portage from the parking lot to the kayak launch.

Silver River

We paddled into the Silver Springs attraction and watched the glass bottom boats glide by as their tour operators pointed out the sights to their fascinated riders. The springs are absolutely beautiful and we spent several minutes exploring and enjoying their beauty. As I was getting ready to paddle out a tourist from the boardwalk told me about a 12' alligator that was hovering near the docked boats. I followed his pointing finger and paddled over to the “monster.” It turned out to be a 4' alligator. Apparently one multiplies the length of the alligator by the number of people who saw it to come up with an “accurate” length. ;)

"12 footer" Alligator - Actually 4' feet

Silver Springs Attraction

After snapping a few photos we headed back downstream to collect our straggler from Silver River State Park. Boat traffic was picking up by this time and we passed several motor boats and an air boat. I'd never seen one in “the wild” before and made sure to snap a few photos. And now that there were more people on the river another new fact revealed itself; there were lots of people swimming in the alligator infested waters!! All I can think is that people like this are the reason we have the 6-O'clock news.

Cormorant

Finally we arrived back at the Ray Wayside Landing where we put in and started loading up the kayaks. August in Florida is not kind and a couple of us got a touch of heat sickness while helping to load the boats and had to retreat to the air conditioned truck. It's important to recognize the signs and take action as soon as they start. We recovered after a bit and were soon on our way home.

Although brief, our trip to the Ocala area was remarkable. We plan to head back when we can spare a couple of extra days to explore the area's other springs and rivers. I'll be posting a more detailed article in the near future so be sure to check back.