Our day trip to Blue Springs State Park could also be titled “how to plan the most unplannable trip!”
I found out about the manatees that migrate to the blue springs of the St. Johns River back in 2018 and instantly added this to my bucket list of things to do with the family.
So here are the details. Manatees depend on the warm 72 degree water of the springs for survival as they cannot tolerate the water temperature in the St John River if it gets too cold. So when the water is cold, they find warmth in the springs. Blue Spring State Park is home to one of the largest winter gathering sites for manatees in Florida. This park is unique because visitors can view the manatees in the crystal-clear spring water safely from the boardwalk without influencing or bothering the manatees’ natural behavior.
So while Blue Springs state park is pretty to visit year around, if you are going there to see the manatees you have to plan for when the weather is right. It’s all dependent on the weather! This means you can’t really plan the trip weeks in advance, but instead you have to be ready to go when the manatees go! It’s not the air temperature but the river temperature that will impact whether you see manatees on your trip. The manatees migrate to the springs when the river is cold, 68 degrees or less. So you need two days in a row of cold temperatures (below 60) and the river will then cool and the migrates will head to the springs! The best bet is to call ahead or check their Facebook page to see the manatee count from that day!
We were having very chilly weather in Charleston a couple of weekends ago (down to the 40s!) so I checked the weather in Orange City, Florida and saw they had temperatures in the 50-60s all week. I called the park and they said that day’s manatee count was 308!
So on noon on a Saturday, I told Will it was now or never. Let’s all get to bed early and hit the road first thing Sunday to see the manatees! He agreed and we “planned” our trip for the next day.
Some Tips:
- Note that water heats and cools slower than land does. So although it may be very cold on land the day you are planning to visit, if yesterday was warm, the water may still be warm. Wait for a few days of cold. Then the water will slowly begin to cool, increasing the manatee numbers.
- Call the park the morning of and ask for the manatee count. Their contact number is here.
- Give yourself about 1.5-2 hours to hike the trial and look out on the boardwalks. Unless you plan to rent a kayak or go on a boat tour that should be more than enough time,
- We are crazy and made this a day trip from Charleston. Our kids do really well on car rides and we like sleeping in our own beds so this made the most sense to us. Otherwise, there are some places to stay in either Orange City or Daytona Beach. And some great places to stop/visit/sleep along the way include: Savannah, Jekyll Island, Amelia Island, and St. Augustine.
- It is $6 per car to get in and they take credit cards.
- There is also a small gift shop/snack shop at the park, but bring lunch if you are a picky eater as there weren’t many healthy options.
