Liz Howell

  Tuesday we went to Crystal River  to swim with the Manatees.  It was quite different from what I expected. We left the house at 5am, picked up Bonnie at Walmart. drove through McDonalds and still got there before 7am.  Mom and Zach are not early birds so I drove to the docks where they were fitted with wetsuites and fins.  Bonnie and I opted out of the wetsuit since it was a river and not a springs we were going to.  Our boat captain was a very nice person giving us information on the area and pointing out the local wildlife on the 30 minute trip to the Manatees. Continue reading →

Sea Shell found at Silver Glen Springs. Picture taken under water.

Bonnie got an AGFA DC600UW underwater camera so we headed to Silver Glen to try it out.  The camera was easy to operate and so long as you remembered to press the underwater button and the land button during your photo shoot it operated nicely.  After some playing around with it we were unable to get the flash to work all the time but decided to head on out to Silver Glen so that we could see how well the pics showed up underwater.  They are pretty good for a 6mp camera but the flash was still only working sometimes so she decided to take it back. Continue reading →

These pictures were taken with a one time use Walgreens underwater camera.  They came out ok but the view finder was hard to see through so mostly I just held it out and clicked when we were under water. Continue reading →

The last place on our list to visit while Mom and Zach were here was Silver Glen.  Like Alexander and Juniper it was very beautiful. This springs was the shallowest of all the places we had visited but the snorkeling was awesome!  At one point in the area the bottom gave way to a huge cavern with a quick running current and HUGE fish.  Continue reading →

Alexander Springs was totally different than Juniper Springs. At Alexander there was more of a wilderness feeling, with trees and grasses in the water. I introduced Bonnie to snorkeling and she has never looked back.  There were lots of fish to see under the lily pads and through the grasses growing on the bottom. We saw lots of Sunfish and other pan fish. Continue reading →

We went to Mill Dam recreation area the day after going to Juniper Springs.  The boys really liked it as the water was a lot warmer than at the springs.  The lake is very pretty but I felt it was dirty and too hot for me to want to swim in it. Bonnie and Mom went swimming with Zach and James while I stayed on the shore watching our stuff and reading a book. Bonnie said she definitely did not feel refreshed after going in for a swim. Continue reading →

My Mom came down this weekend and brought my nephew Zach with her.  Jim went and picked up our other nephew James and brought him down from north Florida for the Memorial Day weekend.  Saturday myself, my Mom, James, Zach and my friend Bonnie all went to Juniper Springs.  What a beautiful place it was!  Continue reading →