Dragon boat Races Tampa Bay in the mouth of the Hillsborough River

                                                High Mountain Discount Camping Supply

       Went to the dragon boat races in Tampa yesterday it was hot but great. Amazing how they stay in cadence.  I did not paddle far just a nice little paddle. Their boats looked sharp lots of colors.  The sun beat down and it was hot out there. Water condition was good with many boats around. Tampa police was out there watching too. We put in at the University of Tampa and paddled over. First time I have went and saw them had a great time. The paddle around the University and Harbor Island was great would recombined it to everyone. Will blog more about this location later.  We will make a trip when it is not so hot out. 

 

High Mountain Discount Camping Supply

Weeki Wachee River

      We went to the world famous Weeki Wachee River and started at the Weeki Wachee State Park Home of the world famous Weeki Wachee Mermaids. The Seminole Indians named the spring “Weeki Wachee,” translated it  means “little spring” or “winding river.” Each day, more than 117 million gallons of clear, fresh 72-degree water bubbles up out of subterranean caverns. The first show at the Weeki Wachee Springs underwater theater opened on October 13, 1947  Water is some of the clearest in Florida. The Weeki Wachee River has a nice flow for a leisurely float down river. You can paddle up stream to the spring and see the spring. There is a $5.00 launch fee per boat, and you can only launch Kayaks, Camoes and paddleboards there, NO INFLATIBLES. They are open every day except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  They are open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.  The latest you can launch is at 12 p.m. if you rent a kayak or canoe from them, if you have your own kayak or canoe, you can launch up to 2:45 p.m. with no return transportation. All RENTED KAYAK and CANOES HAVE TO BE AT ROGERS PARK BY 3:30 pm or they charge a $50 dollar an HOUR LATE FEE. Therefore, if you rent from them WATCH YOUR TIME it is easy to lose track of time when you are having fun on the river.  Reservations are accepted and suggested. (Especially on weekends.)  We had one from our group rent one and they had none when we arrived but luckily they had a cancelation and he was able to get a tandem kayak. (Close call)  They do not allow Styrofoam items or ADULT beverages on the river and might check coolers when you launch. When we went down, we saw no trash all the way down. The trip is about 6 miles and is a very easy trip with the nice flow. We did see people tubing down river but do not know where they launched. On the way down the river, we found a rope swing and had all kinds of fun there. Many people were stopping to swing and swim or watch.  There are several points that we stopped to cool off and relax in the river. We did see a manatee swimming up river. We went on a Sunday and there was a lot of people on the river. Down river, we ran into people in powerboats and around Rogers park there are some large boats. The lower part of this paddle you have houses. The closer to Rodgers Park you get the more populated it gets. Rodgers Park is a very popular place to swim and the parking lot was full when we arrived. There are a couple canals on the way down river just keep left and you will come to Rodgers Park. This trip is excellent for beginners. They will even give you instructions when you start. This is a very good trip.  

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Peace River, From Homeland Garfield RD to 98

          This trip was GREAT, we launched at a new park (Heritage Peace River Landing) they opened up on Homeland Garfield RD, it is on the south side of the road. You drive back a little ways go to the right and you will come a nice parking area. When we went to drop off the trucks a Polk County Sheriff drove through the park on 98, we joked about him giving us a ride, and he said he would if we needed it almost unbelievable. I guess they do serve people here. We felt safe leaving our trucks here. The place that you launch from is nice with a floating dock. Head south and it is a nice shady stretch of the river. River has a good flow even without rain and you can just float down with just a leisurely paddle. We spent about 8 hours going down the river with several stops. We always stop for lunch and we grill something. The water is clear and very refreshing. If you swim just remember it is a wilderness area and keep an eye out for gators and snakes. We did not see any this trip. We did see birds. It is a long trip but a easy one with no jams anywhere along the river. There are shallow places but you can paddle all the way down. You might have to scoot across a log or sand bar. The point we got out is nice. Several people were around fishing. Although long this trip is a great paddle just give yourself plenty of time. A beginner could do it, but just remember the length of it. I would recommend it for intermediate on up, only because of the length. 

 

                                          High Mountain Discount Camping Supply

Peace River, From Paynes Creek State Park

          This trip we went up river from Paynes Creek State Park the trip was great. When we got to the park, we paid a $3.00 per vehicle fee to get in the park. We had to hunt someone to get the combo to access the launch area.  We arrived to the launch area and found it good. Our trip was up river and had just a little flow and paddling was easy. Tried to go up Paynes Creek and found it jammed up with logs and branches. We continued up the peace river and had a great trip, When we turned to go back to the truck we ran into the afternoon rains, with the weather being hot it was cool and refreshing. The river where we were at is sunny and not much shade. We were able to see alligators, birds, fish, and even a cow cooling off in the river. When we arrived back to the launch area we found it very slippery, that made it hard to load up the kayaks. This is still a great place to launch from and we will be back. The launch area is secluded and behind a locked gate the ranger came by while we were there. Did not feel there   was any need to worry about the truck, But as always it is best not to have things of value in plain sight. I would  recommended this trip for beginners and experts alike. I would also recommend being plenty of water and sunscreen on this trip.

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Hillsbrough River Morris Bridge Park to Sargeant Park

          This trip we went to the Hillsborough River. We went to Morris Bridge Park off Morris Bridge road in Hillsborough County. This trip is one that you can rent a canoe or kayak and be dropped off and picked up by Canoe Escape.  It is what they call trip I and starts at Sargeant Park to Morris Bridge Park a 4.5 mile trip that takes about 2 hours. We went from Morris Bridge Park up river and back, and the trip back was much easier.  Alligators are a big part of the trip you will most likely see many along the way. The alligators are scared of people and will try to hide from you, do not FEED them anything, as it is ageist the law to feed or harass them. When they are sunning on a log or the bank they make a spectacular photo. There are also plenty of birds along the river, and I have even seen owls along this section. There are many fish in this section of the river, and you can fish just remember your fishing license.  This trip is a very good trip. It is easy and fun. If you have never paddled before it is a good trip to learn and practice. The river is open with no logjams blocking the river. The river is flowing and you can just float down the river with minimal paddling. This is a wilderness trip and you see only woods along the way. On most days there are people going down the river. The weekends are busy time. I rate the trip as excellent and would recommend it for novice and experienced paddlers alike.

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Kayaking The Withlacoochee River

      We went kayaking on the Withlacoochee River. We launched just down from the Withlacoochee River Park. The park is just off Sommer lake road. We paddled up river about 4 miles to see where it went and to see how clear it was and came back down the river back to the park. There were no fees to pay to launch the kayaks. We had not had a lot of rain the past few weeks, so the water was down. We ran into many logjams, and had to get out of the kayak a lot. This is a great part of the river. We just had a hard time navigating it. Some sections we had to walk. With more water, it would be easier to paddle. We came across some alligators, turtles, and many birds. We only saw 2 people outside of our group going up the river. When we got back, some people were at the park, but not many. We enjoyed the trip and we would recommend the trip to someone, we would just rate it as strenuous. When we returned to the park, we swam and there was a rope swing there we used it but would advise to check the river for trash and depth. A log or other object just below the surface could ruin a great day on the river.

High Mountain Discount Camping supply