Meet Robert Scott Thayer – Author of the Kobee Manatee® Children’s series at the Orange City, Blue Spring Manatee Festival January 25th and January 26th!
Warm greetings to you! Yes – it’s that time of year once again when all of us manatees celebrate! Where? At the 35th Annual Manatee Festival on Saturday, January 25th and Sunday, January 26th at Blue Spring State Park! This 2,600-acre park is located in Orange City, Florida. Blue Spring State Park is in Volusia County and it’s nestled along the banks of the St. Johns River. The park is located about 30 miles northeast of Orlando, Florida and 30 miles southwest of Daytona Beach, Florida.
Uncover Hundreds of Manatees in Florida’s Largest Spring – Blue Spring State Park An Extraordinary Triple Crown Winner!
Blue Spring State Park is a Triple Crown winner! According to Florida’s Natural Wonders, Blue Spring is actually “a first magnitude spring, meaning it discharges more than 100 cubic feet of water per second. In fact, Blue Spring discharges about 165 million gallons/day!”Here are some more fun facts for you about Blue Spring…
- It has the largest spring, which feeds the St. Johns River. The St. Johns is the longest river in Florida, flowing south to north, and spanning 310 miles!
- Blue Spring State Park is the only park in Florida’s State Park System – to receive the National Gold Medal 3 times! A Triple Crown Winner! No other state has even won it twice!
- It has a 72 degrees Fahrenheit year round water temperature, courtesy of its natural warm spring, which is enjoyed by humans and wildlife year round. However, from November 15ththrough March 15th, it’s a refuge for only us manatees! Sorry humans. During these cooler winter months, there may be up to 400 or more of us manatees partying and just having a grand old time in the spring! Remember, we are warm-blooded marine mammals and we prefer water temperatures in the 70’s. So when Florida’s winter nights get cooler and the St. Johns River dips into the 50’s, Blue Spring State Park – here we come! So we all celebrate every January at our awesome Manatee Festival!
Admission:
Adults – $8
Children Ages 4-10 – $2
Children 3 And Under – FREE
Dogs – $10
Ride the FREE Shuttle Bus to Blue Spring State Park to see Hundreds of Manatees!
If you are in Florida and you see a sick or injured manatee, please call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at: 1-888-404-FWCC. They are the folks who are responsible for rescuing us in Florida.
Here’s the Save the Manatee Club link to learn more about manatees …
Here’s a cool link for you to learn more about how we’re rescued and brought into rehabilitation …
~ Kobee Manatee
