Taste of Old Florida at Silver Springs State Park
Smack dab in the middle of the Sunshine State, you’ll find a charming little slice of old Florida, operating much as it did a century ago. A trip to Silver Springs State Park is an escape into pre-Disney Florida. Beautiful springs, abundant wildlife, natural beauty and a couple of unusual special attractions: glass bottom boats, and wild monkeys!
Glass Bottom Boats
The first glass bottom boat tours at Silver Springs took place 150 years ago! Yeah, that’s about as early as you’ll find anything associated with Florida tourism. The boats have changed over the many decades – they are electric now – but the beautiful scenery is likely much as it was all of those years ago.
We boarded the boat with our omnipresent camping companions, Tim and Margie. Sliding onto the bench seats, all of our eyes were immediately drawn to the glass bottomed center section. The captain piloted us from the dock and we enjoyed the beautiful setting around the springs. There are about 30 active springs in the area, constantly pumping out crystal clear water into the run that travels towards the St. Johns River. We saw plenty of fish and plants beneath the glass. Our captain pointed out a handful of replicas from the many Hollywood productions that were filmed in these waters, too. There were also a few cool historical items at the bottom of the river including remnants of a canoe used by the indigenous tribes who predated the European settlers.
When we pried our eyes away from the glass bottom and looked at the area surrounding us, we were treated with views of old wild Florida. It was amazing. Peaceful, beautiful and relaxing. The banks of the river are lined with native plants and animals. We saw alligators, deer, turtles and plenty of birds including a slew of nesting cormorants. My personal highlight was a water snake swimming beneath the boat. Cost was $12 per person for the quick 25 minute ride. It was far from the amazing trip I remembered as a kid, but was still a cool way to experience the spring.
Kayaking
On our second day at the park, we decided to take the kayak trip from the springhead down the scenic Silver River. What a beautiful trip! For three hours, we paddled downstream (with the current) and enjoyed close up views of numerous animals. We had our eyes peeled for wild monkeys that have frequently been spotted in the area, but they were apparently not in an entertaining mood that day. The highlights were a few large gators sunning near the shoreline and a several manatees swimming by, including one that went directly beneath our kayaks. (See our manatee videos below.) Truthfully, just enjoying the dense native vegetation with few signs of humanity was a highlight in a state that has tourists pouring out of every corner. The paddle itself was a fairly easy five mile run, and included pickup and a ride back to the park.
The only regret we had was not taking the small loop to the spring head near the beginning of the trip. That little detour adds an extra mile, but the path looked beautiful and the paddle was much easier than expected. The kayak cost was $55, and we found it well worth the expenditure. Cheaper options were available for shorter trips.
Rhesus Macaque
An unexpected highlight of our trip to Silver Springs was our opportunistic sighting of a small troop of monkeys. The Rhesus Macaques were brought to Silver Springs in the mid-1950’s as a tourist stunt. A dimwitted entrepreneur released them on an island where he planned to lure clueless tourists to observe these monkeys “in the wild.” What he didn’t realize was that these monkeys enjoyed swimming. Shortly after their arrival, they took a dip in the river and relocated into the jungle-like wilds nearby. Descendants from that first contingent still survive today.
We spotted them on our last sojourn of the trip. Before departing, we took a brief hike on the Silver Springs Swamp Trail. It’s a beautiful walk through the forest out to a view of the river. Just as we reached the river, we spotted an adult Rhesus Macaque on a tree. Shortly afterwards we spotted a few more members of the troop including a couple of babies. We did not get too close, but rather enjoyed from a distance, as we try not to harass the wildlife. We may have also been influenced by the fact that they like to throw their feces at humans who come too close! 🙂
Camping
We spent two nights in tents in the parks campground. The sites were large and clean, and included water and electric. The facilities were clean, as well.
Bottom Line: It’s worth an hour or two drive, but make sure the kayaking trip is part of your agenda.
Bob and Jackie
Sunshine Vagabonds
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Related Content: Swimming with Florida Manatees on the Crystal River
Two video snippets from our Silver River kayak trip, where we were visited by two friendly manatees.