Close Encounter at Crystal River Manatee Tour

Living in Florida for the past two decades, we’ve always loved seeing the remarkable Florida Manatees in their natural environment.  These amazing animals have lived in this same general vicinity for 45 million years, and although pollution issues have caused a recent drop in their population, they are still frequent visitors to local waters. 

Our hometown of New Smyrna Beach is a popular summer spot for hundreds of these threatened creatures.  We’ve spotted them while we were out boating, kayaking and walking along the Indian River Lagoon.  We’ve even had a few scare the crap out of us as we swam in the ocean.  All of these interactions were awesome, but in none of the cases, were we legally allowed to truly get up close and personal with the manatees.  Then, we heard about the Crystal River manatee tours.

In the Crystal River area, there are a handful of companies offering manatee encounters all-year round.  Cruising the internet, the photos from these tours were amazing – featuring true face-to-face encounters.  JQ did the research and selected an outing with American Pro Diving Center in Crystal River and we headed west. We made this trip with our reliable camping/kayaking buddies, Tim and Margie.

The four of us checked in at the dive shop and attended a quick safety briefing, which included proper manatee viewing protocol. Basically: be chill and relaxed and don’t harass these gentle giants.  The theme was to get in the water nearby, and wait for them to swim towards you.  Seemed pretty simple, but I was skeptical. 

After a short drive to the marina, we climbed aboard their boat.  The trip towards the manatees was a calm and peaceful voyage on the aptly named Crystal River.  The water is spring fed, crystal clear and a chilly 72 degrees year-round.  It is not exactly an old-Florida feel, as the river was crowded with other vessels and lined with homes.  However, we spotted plenty of fish, turtles, aquatic plants and birds during the short trip out.   

As we worked our way into a tight canal, the captain announced that he’d spotted a mother manatee with her calf.  An instant buzz swept through the boat.

Within ten minutes, all of the guests had slipped into the water, thankful for our wetsuits.  Soon after we dipped our masks into the water, we were delighted to see that we had company.  A huge gray shape emerged from the deep and gently swam towards us.  Moments later, we saw the baby following mom a bit more urgently.

Mother and baby gracefully swam by as they nibbled on the eel grass.  Mom was about 10 feet long, likely tipping the scales at a robust 1,500 lbs, but she drifted through the water like a butterfly.  It was captivating watching this huge animal deftly maneuvering through the shallow waters.  A few of us were lucky to see the baby briefly nursing at its mother’s side as they swam along. 

They hung around us for about twenty minutes before heading to greener pastures around the bend.  On the way out, mama actually brushed her ample belly against mine as she cruised past. Belly to belly with an amazing creature is a special treat (and a way to feel better about your own beer belly).

And, just like that, our interaction was over, but we’ll remember those precious minutes forever.

For nature enthusiasts like us, it was pretty damn cool!  Check out our Youtube channel for one of the swim-bys – it’s kind of amazing.

We loved our outing with American Pro Diving Center, but don’t have any comparisons versus their local competition.  Most likely, all of the Crystal River manatee tours offer similar experiences, but we can tell you that the staff on our boat was awesome and we’d go again.  We have heard that the chances of seeing multiple manatees are much stronger during the winter months, so factor that into your plans. 

Bottom line: Highly Recommended.  Check it out!

Bob and Jackie
Sunshine Vagabonds
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One more video just for fun: