BUCKET LIST: A list of things you'd like to do before you die.
That’s how the Urban Dictionary defines it. Being short of money and imagination, I have a single item on my Bucket List. If it turns out there isn’t an Island of Super Models where red Pull ‘n’ Peel Twizzlers grow freely, then I’ll have to find another dream to chase.
Renée has dreams of her own. “My Bucket List is a long one,” she said. “Starting with finishing this graveyard.”
(The graveyard really became a thing. She created a white skull for another project, and it didn’t fit. It was a decent little skull — you’ll see it in the center of the pic — so she kept it. It sat in her workroom until she decided it needed a graveyard to rest in. She’s been building one for weeks, with at least another to go. I just hope she doesn’t have any pieces left over when it’s done.)
“Also at the top of the list, I want to go swimming with the manatees,” she said. “Are people still allowed to swim with manatees?” Which shows she’s done as much research into manatees as I’ve done with the Island of Super Models. So, since she’s busy with the Graveyard of the Damned, I decided to see if her dream was doable.
Turns out, there are three kinds of manatees: the West African Manatee, the Amazonian Manatee, and the West Indian Manatee. Oh, I know what you’re thinking: What about the manatee’s relative, the dugong? Yeah, well what about it? Manatees have a paddle-shaped tail, while dugongs have a fluked tail. Nobody wants to go swimming with the dugongs and their nasty fluked tails. You want to talk dugongs, you take it to another website.
Only the West Indian Manatee gets to have swimming buddies. Protected by the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, there are rules about human-manatee interaction.
First of all, no thongs. Even though you’ll be wearing a wetsuit, you’ll still know, so have some dignity. Second, book a trip to Citrus County, Florida and the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. This is pretty much the only place in the world where it’s legal to scratch this encounter off your Bucket List. And, since swimming with manatees is more fun when there are manatees present, you’ll want to be there from mid-November to late March, after the manatees have migrated from the Gulf of Mexico.
Once in Florida, you can sign up for a group tour to see the aquatic beauties – it runs around $100 for boat transport, a guide, and a wetsuit/mask/snorkel – and that’s the easiest way to go about it since nearly all the land surrounding the manatees’ favorite spring-fed areas is private property or protected refuge land without water access. If you want to DIY, you can launch off from a public park (Hunter Springs Park/Kings Bay Park), but bring your own 5mm wetsuit. You might need a kayak to reach our water friends. You’ll definitely need to have watched the “Manatee Manners” video (it’s the law). There are a couple of other concerns, too. If you’re DIY-ing (we would not), you’ll want to dig into all the details before you go.
Once a person’s settled into that warm Florida water, what happens next? Passive observation is key. Since swimmers are prohibited from initiating contact with the gentle giants, people are encouraged to bob along quietly on the surface, waiting to see if a manatee wants to hang. Which may or may not happen. Most manatees prefer to avoid humans, but there are some sea potatoes who might swing by to flirt. (There are all kinds of nicknames for manatees. Sea potatoes, gentle giants, water sausages, and nature’s speed bumps are among the many.) The social butterflies in the group may want to sniff your wetsuit, nudge you, or roll over to show their bellies.
It’s a big deal when a manatee flashes some belly at you. It means that particular mermaid is comfortable in your presence and may enjoy a little tactile interaction. Here’s the deal, though: legally, the human swimmer can’t join in on the fun without facing fines and possible jail time. No touching, remember? Conservationists say it’s better for the manatee not to get too comfortable with people, anyway. If they start associating people with belly rubs, they may fail to be cautious around boats and propellers. Propellers are not a manatee’s friend.
I’m not sharing any of this with Renée until that graveyard is done.
That’s how the Urban Dictionary defines it. Being short of money and imagination, I have a single item on my Bucket List. If it turns out there isn’t an Island of Super Models where red Pull ‘n’ Peel Twizzlers grow freely, then I’ll have to find another dream to chase.
Renée has dreams of her own. “My Bucket List is a long one,” she said. “Starting with finishing this graveyard.”
(The graveyard really became a thing. She created a white skull for another project, and it didn’t fit. It was a decent little skull — you’ll see it in the center of the pic — so she kept it. It sat in her workroom until she decided it needed a graveyard to rest in. She’s been building one for weeks, with at least another to go. I just hope she doesn’t have any pieces left over when it’s done.)
“Also at the top of the list, I want to go swimming with the manatees,” she said. “Are people still allowed to swim with manatees?” Which shows she’s done as much research into manatees as I’ve done with the Island of Super Models. So, since she’s busy with the Graveyard of the Damned, I decided to see if her dream was doable.
Turns out, there are three kinds of manatees: the West African Manatee, the Amazonian Manatee, and the West Indian Manatee. Oh, I know what you’re thinking: What about the manatee’s relative, the dugong? Yeah, well what about it? Manatees have a paddle-shaped tail, while dugongs have a fluked tail. Nobody wants to go swimming with the dugongs and their nasty fluked tails. You want to talk dugongs, you take it to another website.
Only the West Indian Manatee gets to have swimming buddies. Protected by the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, there are rules about human-manatee interaction.
First of all, no thongs. Even though you’ll be wearing a wetsuit, you’ll still know, so have some dignity. Second, book a trip to Citrus County, Florida and the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. This is pretty much the only place in the world where it’s legal to scratch this encounter off your Bucket List. And, since swimming with manatees is more fun when there are manatees present, you’ll want to be there from mid-November to late March, after the manatees have migrated from the Gulf of Mexico.
Once in Florida, you can sign up for a group tour to see the aquatic beauties – it runs around $100 for boat transport, a guide, and a wetsuit/mask/snorkel – and that’s the easiest way to go about it since nearly all the land surrounding the manatees’ favorite spring-fed areas is private property or protected refuge land without water access. If you want to DIY, you can launch off from a public park (Hunter Springs Park/Kings Bay Park), but bring your own 5mm wetsuit. You might need a kayak to reach our water friends. You’ll definitely need to have watched the “Manatee Manners” video (it’s the law). There are a couple of other concerns, too. If you’re DIY-ing (we would not), you’ll want to dig into all the details before you go.
Once a person’s settled into that warm Florida water, what happens next? Passive observation is key. Since swimmers are prohibited from initiating contact with the gentle giants, people are encouraged to bob along quietly on the surface, waiting to see if a manatee wants to hang. Which may or may not happen. Most manatees prefer to avoid humans, but there are some sea potatoes who might swing by to flirt. (There are all kinds of nicknames for manatees. Sea potatoes, gentle giants, water sausages, and nature’s speed bumps are among the many.) The social butterflies in the group may want to sniff your wetsuit, nudge you, or roll over to show their bellies.
It’s a big deal when a manatee flashes some belly at you. It means that particular mermaid is comfortable in your presence and may enjoy a little tactile interaction. Here’s the deal, though: legally, the human swimmer can’t join in on the fun without facing fines and possible jail time. No touching, remember? Conservationists say it’s better for the manatee not to get too comfortable with people, anyway. If they start associating people with belly rubs, they may fail to be cautious around boats and propellers. Propellers are not a manatee’s friend.
I’m not sharing any of this with Renée until that graveyard is done.
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