We camped at Manatee Springs State Park and spent the morning hiking around and taking the boardwalk to the Swanee River (it flows 240 miles out to the Gulf). The name of the campground (which was terrific)did not disappoint— we actually saw manatees.

Manatees are called sea cows, chubby mermaids, and river potatoes. We saw five manatees, one of which was a mother nursing her baby. They were below the surface of the water and in the shadows so we didn’t get any great pictures. We also saw otters(no pictures), bald eagles and several other birds.

Manatee Springs and the Swanee River were beautiful. Here are some photos.

After Manatee Springs, we headed west along the Gulf of Mexico shore. The drive was on two lane highways with little or no traffic and lots of water and vegetation.

Tonight we are at St Joseph Peninsula State Park Campground. It is on a slender peninsula off the Florida panhandle shore into the Gulf of Mexico. It is beautiful here. There is a pristine, white sand beach stretching for a couple of miles just mere steps from our campsite.

Here are some photos of the magnificent sunset tonight.