Silver River Day #2–Monkeys

February 14-26, 2023                                                  Most Recent Posts
Silver Springs State Park Site 48           Silver Springs: First Day on the River
Silver Spring, Florida                                         The Koreshan Unity

For those of you who have read, and commented I hope, on my previous post, I’ll try not to repeat too much in this one.  Days on the river are always different but the inhabitants often stay the same.  I’m lucky to see some every day and others not so often.   This first shot is my very first of the day from the foot of the ramp as I push off into the river early in the morning.  That’s the end of the hand rail on the right.  It is blissfully quiet and serene.

Both this Little blue Heron and the Pied Billed Grebe were on the left as I pushed off into the river.   They paid me no mind.

Directly across from the dock on the other side of the river was this heron preening.

Again today I turned up river toward the spring.  About a half mile upstream is the only other spot on the river accessible from the state park.  It is a boardwalk through the swamp ending in a dock for the educational school boat run by the museum here in the park.

It is on a curve in the river and today I paddled close to the shore there making a wide arc.

And then I saw them on the dock and pulled over as best I could so that I could watch the monkeys grooming and playing.   Careful not to get too close.  They seem to love fences and docks. 

I spent I don’t know how much time trying to keep the kayak from going down stream with the flow so I could watch, get pictures and videos.   They had their backs to me a lot of the time.  Here they are grooming an older rhesus macaque.

Is he getting a good talking to??

Self grooming.

They were not often sitting still.   .

I had dozens more pictures of them jumping climbing playing and grooming.  A LOT of blurry pictures, some of them jumping out of the picture with just a tail on the edge. 

These videos, even though taken from my rocking kayak, give a better idea of what fun they are to watch. Video #1 28 seconds shows them grooming.  The second video, 30 seconds, shows them playing.   A videographer I am not.  The boat just will not stop moving.

Still I must say, the monkeys are not native to this area obviously.  There are now 5 bands of them along the river.  They are over breeding and causing problems one of which I experienced later in my stay.

On another note, when you let me know in your comments what your favorites are, I try to include them so here’s another “look mom no hands” turtle for Pam VanDerbeek.

   Another beautiful day.  Look at that water.

The white of an egret so focused stands out amidst the trees and water.

Further up river I ran into other boaters.  I look at my watch and am not surprised to see that it is just after 10am.

But I also saw the first manatee of the day heading down stream to cooler waters and perhaps more eel grass.  He was alone but possibly others are following him.

As you can see he is very close and very big.  That’s the tip of my paddle on the lower left.  It’s up out of the water as protocol requests.

This close, he looks as big as a whale.

It’s a line up.  As does “no hands”, this always makes me laugh.

I was nearing the head spring when I saw the first  Glass Bottom Boat.  It brought back such wonderful memories of my trips here as a child which  I mentioned in my previous post.  There are several signs telling boats to give way to the Glass Bottom Boats.  They don’t have the same maneuverability and may bump you if you don’t.

Glass Bottom Boats were actually invented and launched here in the 1870’s. The original boat was a piece of glass fixed to the bottom of a row boat.

In the 1920’s they became gas powered boats.  Florida’s first tourist attraction was begun with them here.  It was called Silver Springs. After over nearly 100 years,  in 2013 the Florida State Park Service took control of the attraction which had been declining since the 1970’s due to all the new attractions in Orlando.  They merged the head spring park  with the nearby Silver River State Park creating the 4000 acre Silver Springs State Park encompassing the springs and Silver River.    

Notice everyone’s back is to the windows.  They are looking down at the bottom of the river.

I’ll bet their guide told them to look up and see this fellow lazily sunning along the river edge.

I have been surprised that this is the only Great Blue Heron I have seen in my two trips on the river.  He’s a study in patience.

Look at that stunning blue on his face.

A baby gator shares a sun spot with the turtles.

I love the juvenile coloring.  He’s apparently trying to cool himself down with his open mouth breathing.  Why doesn’t he just take a dip in the lovely 72 degree water?

When I got to the head spring the boat stations where you board were so familiar.  If you want to paddle over the headspring itself you can and I did but I couldn’t tell where it was.

Having paddled up the river, I decided to go back via the Fort King Trail.  So I paddled to it behind the folks going to return their boats.  By now it’s 11:15 in the morning and there are lots of folks getting on and off the river.

The bridge over the water is part of the Ross Allan boardwalk dedicated to the herpetologist who did snake handling and alligator wrestling at the attraction until 1975.  He combined education with entertainment.

Allen founded the Reptile Institute at the tourist attraction in 1929, where he conducted research and created different kinds of snake anti-venoms. In addition to gators, he also wrestled anacondas for entertainment. He worked at Silver Springs until 1975, having enthralled audiences for 46 years. He died in 1981 at the age of 73.

I go under and while most other folks go straight to drop of their water craft, I go left to start the Fort King Trail.

The Fort King Water Trail flows parallel to the river and reenters it 3/4 of mile down stream.  It is much narrower than the river and was once part of the jungle cruise attraction at the commercial Silver River. 

It’s a really lovely paddle with the trail sides being much closer than on the river.

The remnants of the replica Fort King and a village are becoming over grown and are falling down.  Nothing  appears to be being maintained.  That’s a shame I think since it is always fun to see them and they are an historical part of this attraction.

You can hardly see the village any more.  This is quite a change from even 4 or 5 years ago.

Back on the river I continue to be thrilled to see such an increase in the number of wood ducks on the river.

What an amazing design in feathers.

This guy with his dog was only one of several boats and paddle boards going up and down the river with dogs in them.  I don’t recall this in times past.  Pretty well trained not to jump in the water.  But definitely potential food for gators.

On one day there was a man in a kayak with a dog that barked constantly to the annoyance of everyone else on the water.
He kept saying “Now Gator (apparently the name of the dog) you’ve seen manatees before…..or now Gator you’ve seen other boats before.”  Not once did he attempt to suggest the dog should stop barking.

Lazing in the sun. Ain’t life grand!

And smiling at us all.

For a second time today, manatee.  This time touching noses here.

I’m sure on the week-ends they are mobbed by boats.  I wonder what they think?
These 3 are traveling together and could be gossiping about us for all I know.

Coming up for air next to my boat and not under it thankfully.  Some are broad like this fellow.

Always paddles up when you see them.  

Others are long and thinner.

Last shot for the day, before heading into the dock.  I caught the Limpkin in mid cry.  I was actually amazed since I was shooting over my head.   She definitely sounds like a damsel in distress.

Here, you can see what the river looked like on a Thursday morning.  On the week end,  I did actually do things other than paddle the river.  That will be coming up next.