Florida WOFO: Lu the Legend — YOFO Adventures

Lu is a bit of a local celebrity - the video will show you why!

Welcome back to YOFO adventures! It’s Kady here, and I have returned to tell you all about another fantastic WOFO…this time in Florida!

As per usual, the fun-tivities began as soon as I got off the plane when I was greeted by the YOFOtruck with kayaks on top and Dad and Dawn’s new pup, Swinger, in the back seat. If that doesn’t sound like adventure, I don’t know what does! We went to lunch at a great little dive bar (the first of many delicious meals that week) in Inverness before heading over to the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge for a private tour by the best volunteer tour guides in the refuge (I think we all know who they are). We walked around the boardwalk and saw a few manatees hanging out in the Three Sisters Springs. Normally at this time of year, there are hundreds of manatees in the springs, but alas, a heat wave came through the same week I was visiting and most of the manatees traveled back to the gulf of Mexico to feed. In the winter months these gentle giants usually like to hang out in the springs because it is much warmer than the gulf. But have no fear friends, we ended up getting lucky and were able to snorkel at the Three Sisters Springs, something that would’ve been impossible had there been no heat wave. So it all worked out!

The water in Three Sisters Springs is clear

Tuesday morning we slid into some wetsuits and kayaked about a mile to the springs. We tied up the boats and slipped into the water. Right as we swam into the spring run, a huge mama manatee (well over 1000 lbs according to my expert guides) swam within a foot or two of us on her way out. We swam further into the springs and saw a young manatee, maybe 3 or 4 feet long. The water was gorgeous; it was super clear (literally, like faucet water) and it was so fun to see all the schools of fish swimming beneath us. On our way out of the springs to get back to the kayaks, the mama manatee was still hanging out by the entrance and we had a great close up view of her coming up for a breath. Her whiskers were awesome! We ate lunch at a great local seafood dive called the Freezer. Their peel-and-eat shrimp was the best shrimp I’ve ever had…it tasted so good!! Dad took the leftover shrimp and put it in an omelet Friday morning…so tasty. Later that day, we were taken on a boat ride out to the Gulf of Mexico by Dad and Dawn’s “boss,” Jody. He was a great tour guide, showing us all the different landmarks and houses on the water. Jody joined us for dinner at Cracker’s that night and we enjoyed some delicious fish to go with the great company. Dad even smooth-talked the waitress into bringing us some extra hush puppies on the house!

Wednesday was a great day of kayaking and paddleboarding down the Silver River with one of Dad and Dawn’s volunteer neighbors, Kim. It was a great meandering paddle with the current and once again, the water was spring-fed so it was crystal clear and a pretty blue color at the deepest part of the spring. We also spotted a few more manatees! Along the way we spotted a total of ten gators hanging out in the grass at various points. I would’ve sworn the first gator I saw was a log…till I noticed the log had eyes and teeth. We also saw some really excited monkeys swinging around in the trees…very fun! I was craving BBQ for lunch, so we found Sonny’s BBQ nearby and feasted on some brisket and pulled pork.

That’s not a log! Can I stop posing now?

Thursday happened to be my birthday, so Dad and Dawn made me a fabulous breakfast of blueberry and chocolate chip waffles with bacon. Then, we went to the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park and walked around for a while looking at all the animals. One of the highlights of the trip happened at the beginning of our walk. We went over to see Lu, the 61 year old hippo who is a celebrity in the area as a former TV star. In 1989 the state purchased the park and began to get rid of all of the exotic non-native animals in the park. Local school children petitioned the governor to protect Lu. Governor Chiles was swayed and made Lu a citizen of Florida, and therefore no longer a non-native. We were warned about Lu’s “splash zone” and sure enough, as we arrived at his pen to say hi, he started pooping while rapidly twirling his little tail at the same time, flinging feces all over the place. It was awesome!! Luckily no one was sprayed. After this amazing performance, Lu actually belly-laughed at us, sounding quite similar to Jabba the Hut. Lucky for y’all, I caught it all on film. It was one of the best unintentional birthday gifts ever!

The sunset wanted to join the birthday party

Dad and Dawn treated me to a fabulous birthday dinner at Crumps in Crystal River right as the sun was setting. It was beautiful! So, naturally, I had Dad take some pictures of me by the dock. He was a great sport. We had some delicious fish and more shrimp followed by a birthday slice of key lime pie and a happy birthday serenade by the waitresses! We ended the evening playing cards and enjoying homemade coffee-cookie-dough-oreo ice cream pie with some of the volunteer neighbors.

Although COVID canceled a lot of travels and many WOFOs the last couple of years, we ended 2021 in style, and hope this adventure will kick start the new year and the YOFO blog. While 2022 may not be back to normal quite yet, let’s hope it will be fun and full of adventure and good times. I’m already looking forward to the next WOFO in Wyoming this summer. Until then, be happy, remember that Lu gives a shit (literally), and have a great new year!