As we head into fall, and our paddling season, we are super excited to get back on the water. Fall always reminds us of getting outside and breathing deep, the crispness in the air, and the smiles as we reunite with friends. Nothing is better than being on a river, sleeping in a tent, and enjoying that morning cup of coffee. We hope you will join us for our Suwannee River Wilderness Trail trip, October 14-19 for days filled with paddling, warm meals, evening presentations and campfires with friends. We will hear from Jill Lingard (Florida Springs Institute), Ryan Smart (Florida Springs Council), Doug Alderson (author) and Florida State Parks about the Suwannee River, and its springs. 

In this issue you will learn a bit about our NEW "Fall on the Peace" trip with an excerpt from Doug Alderson. We also have an update from Ryan Smart with the Florida Springs Council, a reminder to mind our manatee friends, and what to do if you find yourself out of your boat and in the water. 

We hope everyone is safe and sound as you recover from Hurricane Ian. 🌀

“The history of the Peace River Valley of Florida in the nineteenth century is a tale of violence, passion, struggle, sacrifice, and determination. It was written with the lives and deaths of Creeks and Seminoles who refused to surrender their independence; of runaway slaves and fierce black warriors; of white frontiersmen struggling to build a better world for themselves and their families; of men and women who supported the Confederacy and their brothers and sisters who would not abandon the Union; of settlers from the defeated South and, later, from the North and Midwest; and of freedmen and women who suffered to overcome the shackles of slavery, who farmed, who built the railroads, and who toiled in the broiling heat of open-pit phosphate mines.” Canter Brown, Jr., Florida’s Peace River Frontier

 Serene and generally slow-moving, the Peace River—known as “Rio de la Paz” on old Spanish charts—emerges from the Green Swamp and flows more than 100 miles past largely undeveloped shorelines. Calusa Indians once utilized the waterway in large numbers, especially the lower stretches near where the river meets the Gulf, and Seminole Indians called the river home in the 1700s and early 1800s. They named the river Tallackchopo, “The River of Long Peas,” after the wild peas that were abundant along the riverbanks. [Read more…]

Photo credit: Doug Alderson

The purpose of a BMAP is to reduce water pollution levels back down to the point where we don’t have algae blooms and mass manatee die-offs, or get sick from going into the creeks in our backyards. For Outstanding Florida Springs, like Ichetucknee, Poe, Silver, and Rainbow the law requires these plans to achieve water quality goals within twenty years.  

In 2018, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) proposed BMAPs for twenty-four impaired Outstanding Florida Springs. Several of these, including the BMAP for springs of the Santa Fe River, fell woefully short of that basic statutory goal.  

The most obvious failing in the Santa Fe BMAP is that it only proposes a small fraction of the nitrate reductions necessary to clean up the springs. At the same time, it ignores the increased pollution that will inevitably occur in the next twenty years from population growth and greater agricultural intensity. At best, DEP’s BMAP is a prescription for treading water. At worst, our springs will be more polluted in twenty years than they are today.  [Read more…]

Manatees face many threats, from habitat loss to watercraft collisions, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reminds anyone on the water to slow down and look out for manatees while boating in Florida.

From April 1 through Nov. 15, seasonal manatee zones require boaters to slow down in certain areas to prevent manatees in their summer habitats from being injured or killed by motorboats or personal watercraft. Boat strikes continue to be a major threat to Florida manatees. [Read more…]

How To: Float to Live
From BBC

Ross MacLeod from the RNLI's Water Safety Team explains how to float in the water if you find yourself in danger.

Click here for article and video.