Scott and I enjoyed a month in Cedar Key, Florida. This is old school Florida, no Disney or fast food chains. A laid back environment where stores and restaurants open when staff show up and close when the staff leave. Our time there was centered around experiencing manatees (though we did not find any wearing novelty tees)

Manatee Springs State Park

We visited Manatee Springs State Park where rainfall had flooded areas of the park. So much so that the manatees had taken over the swimming hole, closing it to people.

Swimming with the Manatees

We had to do more than just look. I did a lot of research to find the best place to swim with manatees and found Bird’s Underwater Dive Shop in Crystal River (ask for Paul and Rob).