But after a short conversation with the ranger about the paddle not being for "beginners" (even though we're not new to paddling, I wanted something easy because I'm not familiar with Florida waters) and mentioning to the ranger that it would just be the girls and I paddling, she suggested Alexander Springs. She said Juniper Springs was better done with at least two (or more) canoes in a group with a couple of experienced paddlers.
After her description of Alexander I agreed it sounded like a better plan for me and the girls.
My mother, the not-so-keen-on-nature type, was relieved we decided to skip Juniper Springs. In the ranger's description of that river she said many paddlers, even ones with some experience, tend to dump their canoes around the first two bends in the river.
Oh, did I mention part of the appeal of this paddle was to see alligators?
Yeah, grandma didn't mind driving the extra mileage to Alexander Springs.
And truth be told, I thought it a better plan as well since I was the solo parent on the adventure.
When we got to Alexander Springs the canoe rental coordinator took some time to explain to me what the river was like and a landmark turn-around location he thought offered an easy paddle that wouldn't take more than an hour and a half.
My mother liked the sound of this place much better but she was still not keen on renting a canoe with her husband to join us though.
Then the canoe guy explained it was the start of alligator mating season so we would likely hear some alligator bellowing (to attract mates and declare territory - learn more here) and see some of them along the riverbank during our paddle. He advised we stay in the middle of the river to avoid territory disputes among gators at this time of year. And although alligators are not aggressive toward humans and generally want nothing to do with us, the males sometimes get a bit territorial during this season.
Then he mentioned that the forest rangers had taken a male alligator out of the river to relocate just a couple of hours before we got there because he was more than 10 feet long. The rangers don't like gators that big in the waters at the national forest we were told (they manage the population to stay under 9 feet long) so we didn't need to worry we'd see anything "too big" in the river.
This did not scare the girls or I off the paddle. We were eager to see, and hear, some gators along the way while maintaining a healthy respect (and reasonable distance) for the wild creatures that live in and around the river. And being told the rangers remove the larger males (they're the most likely to get aggressive if provoked in some way) sounded perfectly reasonable to me. Grandma did not offer an opinion on the matter.
It always takes the girls and I a few minutes to get in to a paddling rhythm and this ride was no exception (i.e., glad we skipped Juniper this time and will try it next time when Fino is with us).
But the river was very calm (we were told it was less than a 1-knot current) and was just as described by the ranger - a super easy paddle.
We saw a lot of turtles and fish swimming in the clear blue water...
many different kinds of birds...
turtles sunning themselves on logs....
and yes, alligators by the shore (we heard a lot more than we saw though).
Had we not been to Silver Springs (yes, everything seems to be named 'spring' in Ocala) the day before to learn about alligators and attend an educational workshop about the reptiles, maybe I would not have been as comfortable with the paddle.
Grandma played off her comfort with our river adventure well as we launched the canoe. But she did send us a text to check in about 15 minutes in to the paddle just to make sure we were doing OK.
It was an AWESOME paddle that took us about a hour and a half, just as the canoe rental guy had said, which confirmed something we have known for quite some time - take advice from the rangers because they KNOW what they're talking about (many people I know have their own ideas about things and don't always listen).
We were so jazzed about the adventure and all our wildlife sightings that we decided once the rental was returned, to hike the park's short trail through the woods along the river bank we had just paddled by.
There were some interpretive signs to explain the trees and plants along the trail and was a super easy 1.5 mile round trip hike on a board walk trail.
This was a gem of a place and a nice easy nature trail introduction to the Ocala National Forest.
Hiking at Alexandar Springs in Ocala NF
And no, we didn't see any alligators on the nature trail. But the flying bugs, whooo boy, there were plenty of those around!
L.'s assessment of the bug situation, which was manageable after an application of bug spray, focused on the bees when sharing our hiking story with Fino.
"Daddy, they have bees the size of thumbs in Florida!"
As far as L. was concerned, the "thumb bees" were much more scary than the "cool alligators" on our Florida outdoor adventures.
In a debate between which would be more likely to actually hurt us - an alligator or a bee - I'd have to say L. might be on to something.
After a quick web search, I found bee stings kill approximately 50 people each year. Since 1948, only 17 humans have been confirmed killed by alligators (according to Time Magazine).
I think a little time in a new place, some education about wildlife and perspective is all that's really needed to enjoy, appreciate and respect the natural world.
A supply of bug spray doesn't hurt either.
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