Florida Vacation Part II: Silver Springs State Park
- Mary Blowey
- May 3, 2017
- 3 min read
While visiting Florida on the west coast, Tom’s sister Mary and our brother in law Joe brought us to Silver Springs State Park in Ocala, Florida. This park was the first tourist attraction in this state, before the iconic Disney Magic Kingdom became the place to go.
It’s a magical place of tropical ferns, wooded jungle like scenery with walking paths and ornamental gardens along the way. As you enter the park, a fountain sprays water, peaceful and serene. Fountains are good luck and paved the way for a really nice walk. Boardwalk paths weaved through the park overlooks lush plantlife, where the old Tarzan movie was once filmed.
The water was from the Crystal River, sporting a bluish green hue ,resembling a lagoon. Butterflies fluttered on a bright orange flowering bush and black Comorans sat around the edges. Amid the swampy rivers edge, an alligator hump floated but never moved. Further up the river, a small gator sunned on a log for all visitors to gawk at and perhaps some to shy away from in fear.
I highly recommend the boat ride if you ever visit the park. We rode on a glass bottomed boat on a little tour. The tour guide was informative and talked in a true southern drawl. “ Take a good look, folks” he kept saying as the boat coasted across the river and spun in circles for good viewing. We saw many fish, small and much larger. We went over five or six Springs, one about fifty feet down below. Much fresh water bubbling up and contributing to the crystal clear river.
It was cool to see three unique statues below. They were in the filming of the James Bond movie Moonraker starring Roger Moore in 1979. The movie takes place in space, Italy ,Venice and Rio De Janeiro. Tom and I look forward to seeing it to spot the familiar scenery and say, “ We’ve been there before!”
We saw geckos in the park and our brother in law revealed a new talent he has, he’s the gecko whisperer! Joe was making noises to get them to flap their throats forward in response. Haha, a little entertainment emerged on our trek.
The bent palm tree, the horseshoe, on a wooden dock was supposed to give you good luck for five years if you touched it. So, of course we joined the fun and the poses were great photo ops! Tom humorously said that we had to come back in five years to continue our luck! That man cracks me up!
The tall statue was of Osceola, an influential leader of the Seminole tribe. It looked important and was beautiful to look at, overlooking the river. We couldn’t pass up a photo with it in the background.
Our second day in the sunny state drew to a close. The next day we met Tom’s mom, Theo, his other sister Pam and our brother in law, Jim. My next post, part III will focus on Monkey Island and Circle B Bar Reserve.
If you’re currently on vacation, I truly hope it’s as wonderful for you as it was for us! It’s amazing how a few relaxing days can brighten your life and make you look forward to the days ahead!
All My Best,
Heart and Soul
