Tuesday January 26th 2016

Today I took a road trip down US 17 to the southwest. I had a general goal of checking out the area then cutting over toward the gulf coast and visiting the Tampa Electric Company Manatee Viewing Area. I had thoughts of intersecting the Tamiami Trail (US 41) in Bradenton but actually arrived north of the Manatee River just north of Bradenton. It was interesting that the citrus groves in the middle of the state seem to end at the Manatee county line. I wonder if that is a true assessment and if so why.

Each of the items in the water that look like floating junk is actually a Manatee.

The Manatee viewing area at the Tampa Electric Company in Apollo Beach Fl is an area setup by the power company to view the Manatees and other aquatic life that live in the warm water of the out flow from the power plan cooling systems. Today I counted over thirty noses or backs of Manatees out in the water. I know there were even more than that below the surface of the nearly 80 degree water.

There is a long walkway along the cooling canal out through a mangrove into a gulf backwater area. I was able to see many species of fish underwater and jumping out of the water. As much as I tried, getting a picture was not possible. The jumping may have been caused by the shark that gave its presence away with the classic dorsal fin above the water view.

This area is very enjoyable and I’m sure I’ll be back to check up on the Manatees.