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by Clare Johns
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Clare Johns with her granddaughters, Tori deCamp, 15, and Linny deCamp, 12, wearing their wetsuits and ready to swim with the manatees.
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Well Tropical Breeze got to go on a
backyard vacation. With gas prices being on the minds of many
people this year, I thought this story might inspire grandparents
to take their grandkids away. This is the fourth year I've taken
my two grandkids from Williamsburg, VA (Tori deCamp, 15, and Linny
deCamp, 12) on a trip. It all started with a small ad to swim with
the manatees in Homosassa with Capt. Mike. After calling him to
book, I asked for a nice place to stay. He recommended The
Riverside Resort, which I called and promptly booked also. They
suggested calling Capt. Stu to take the girls on an airboat on the
river... All of a sudden a trip was planned.
Staying at this low key resort on the
river was just great and it had a kitchen to boot. The airboat ride
was amazing and we saw lots of dolphins and such beautiful scenery.
Skimming along the narrow paths was fun and exciting. The girls
were really pumped and ready for their swim with the manatees early
the next morning.
We had to be at the marina at 6:30 a.m. to
catch the boat for our three-hour trip. After we donned full wet
suits and got out on the river, it started to thunder and we had
lots of lightning -- scary! Needless to say we had to stay low in a
cove and wait until the storm passed. This enabled us to chat with
the other seven people on our swim with the manatee trip. Two of
the gals were school teachers from Texas, a couple were from
Alabama and there was a family from North Carolina.
Finally after an hour we were ready to
find manatees and go for a swim. The water was not crystal clear as
I expected -- instead it was murky. We looked and looked until we
finally spotted a manatee. The girls got into the water quickly and
swam right up to the manatee. I gingerly slipped into the water and
started towards them. "Over here, Grandma," they shouted... all of
a sudden there I was on top of the manatee and he was rising and
moving! Yee gads, I couldn't get off! Between his skin and my wet
suit, I was stuck on him. I was terrified and all the girls could
do was laugh. Finally I was able to suck in my gut and float off
him. It was just minutes but it seemed like hours. The manatee
rolled on his back and the girls patted his stomach. What an
incredible experience!.
The captain recommended a great place to
eat called Bear Paws Cafe and we had the best food ever in this
small place -- and reasonable prices, too. We ended up going back
the next morning for breakfast. They told us about Homosassa State
Park up the road and we spent four fun hours there. That part of
the river was crystal clear. We saw the manatees at play and it was
awesome.
The next day on our way back to Clearwater
we spent the afternoon at Weekie Wachee and that was fun, too.
On our last day together we rented kayaks
in Dunedin and went to Caladesi Island and enjoyed ourselves on the
best beach, soooo close to home! When they got on the plane the
next day they said it was the best vacation ever. Who would have
thought that you could have such a great time so close to home on
less than a tankful of gas.
Clare Johns is a Clearwater resident
photo for Tropical Breeze courtesy of Clare Johns
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