Check out my article in DivePhotoGuide.com on Photographing Manatees.
Logistics
Best Season is January to March. Colder water, 68F, brings in more Manatees from the Gulf.
Snorkelling only, no free Diving down. Wet suits necessary, can be rented on site.
Fly into Tampa - car rentals can be very expensive, even for Florida.
DIVE BOAT AND STORE SUPPORT: BIRDS UNDERWATER
320 N.W. Highway 19
Crystal River, FL 34428
Run by Bill & Diane Oestreich for 20 years
800 771-2763
bird@birdsunderwater.com
http://www.birdsunderwater.com/
Get to the store / Dock at 6:15 am Store is open till the boats leave. Dock is at the side of the store.
HOURS Shop is open 9-5 every day year round.
Rhonda, Christine (boat Guide), Marty
$35 per person per day
Morning trips are the best 6:15 am & 11am
reservations are required.
This year 150 at 3 Sisters, Kings springs maybe 250
Hotel: Holiday Inn Express about a mile form the Dock / Store. Mention Birds Underwater for a discount. THERE IS A HOTEL right next to the Store as well. See the Birds Website, they have a ton of info.
Having your own boat makes no difference, and may make crowded conditions worse. At Three Sisters, after leaving the boat, you are moving past a roped sanctuary and up a barricaded stream to the 3 sisters spring. It is a five minute swim. It has two foot openings to allow Manatees and kayaks and not much else. Photographers with long strobe arms should have arms extended and pass cameras sideways. Strobe arms are a consideration. See the DOs and DON'Ts section below. Visitors are required to view the Fish & Wildlife Video on Manatee behavior and proper conduct.
COMMERCIAL PHOTOGRAPHY PERMITS
A Commercial Photo Permit is required for Kings Springs if you will be publishing photos as a professional. If you are using Three Sisters, a permit not required as of this writing, but this could change in the next couple of months. The permit costs $100 and can only be made by check or money order. They prefer to have the fee mailed ahead of time. Florida Fish & Wildlife is near the Dive store and the fee can be dropped off if necessary. For more info, contact Ivan Vicente of Florida Fish & Wildlife, at 352-563-3088 x 213. All shooting for this article was at Three Sisters.
HOTELS
We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, they offer a discount for Birds Underwater customers, we paid $85 a night. Wi-Fi is included. It is a mile or so from the dock. There are also a Best Western close by and a Plantation Inn. The Holiday Inn Exp is diver friendly, we were routinely walking through the lobby in wetsuits.
FOOD
Crystal River has lots of casual dining, it does not have a Nobu or the accompanying prices. Charlies Fish House is next to the dive store, and on the water, and has Stone Crab Claws. Crackers Restaurant, also on the water, is a little further North on Route 19 and also has good seafood. Reservations were not needed when we were there. Wine is frequently served by the bulk carafe in Crystal River. You may need to do some coaching on opening a bottle of wine. Get a cultural grip and remember you are here for the Manatees.
There is a Publix supermarket a mile or so past the Holiday Inn for essentials and wine and beer.
Afternoons
Since you will be chilled after a couple of hours in the water in the morning, you may want to do some terrestrial activity in the afternoons. Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park is a few miles south on Route 19. This park has a great assortment of rehabing Mantees, local birds, exotic mammals and other critters (technical term). I got some of my best flamingo portraits here. This is easily a half day and is family oriented. The day we were there, almost every bird seemed to think is was spring and there was courting behavior all over the place despite the cold snap.
