Crystal River to Homosassa

       Homosassa is about 10 miles south of Crystal River. In a car that is 10 minutes. In the boat it is not that simple. Remember in this part of Florida the water deepens about a foot a mile. In addition there are some very shallow flats, less than a foot, which extends well out to sea between the two towns. I have to figure out the mileage but I left Crystal River at 8 AM and we got here at 4 PM. Eight hours at speeds ranging from 5 mph to 7 mph.

       The Gulf waters are finally becoming clear, though not as crystaline as they are at home in Port Richey. We were gliding across the flats in water 8 feet deep and you can see the sea grass covered bottom perfectly.

       We are old hands in Homosassa; this is probably our fourth trip here in this boat. It is a great little town of 2200 people. It has a much smaller town feel than Crystal River in that the latter city is adjacent to suburban areas outside its city limits whereas Homosassa sits surrounded by wildlife sanctuaries. There is one big spring here which sits next to a State Park Zoo which to me seems completely out of place. The river channel is deep and wide enough for us to reach the spring in the houseboat. The river channel to the town is good for anyone drafting 4 feet or less, more if you time it to high tide.

       Tomorrow we plan to anchor at the spring and snorkel.

Native Florida Spider Monkeys.... not really. Right in the middle of the main river channel there is a small island where the owners of a resort have placed monkeys, at the present time there are five. The monkeys date back decades and are a remnant from the old road side attraction days prior to the interstate highway system. The resort is still in business and you can hang around the Monkey Bar and drink while you watch the monkeys play - I mean the ones on the island.

This is the Gulf of Mexico. It is shallow and pretty calm much of the time. Hence our purchase of a shallow draft houseboat. Boats made for the ocean are only good for travel in channels to and from Marinas. We can go places that Sea Rays and other boats built for boat shows cannot. If you are going to boat Florida or the Bahamas, get a boat with as little draft as possible.