Nature Coast: Homosassa Springs, Crystal River Manatees & Rainbow Springs

Florida's original aquarium — a state park centered on the Homosassa River spring head, where a floating underwater observatory lets you watch manatees, mullet, and tarpon through plate glass at the spring vent. The surrounding Wildlife Park rehabilitates injured Florida wildlife, including the famous Lucifer the hippo, a permanent resident grandfathered into the park when the wildlife laws changed in 1964.

A guided kayak tour from the park dock downstream toward the Gulf through a subtropical mangrove-and-hardwood corridor that looks unchanged from the 19th century. Manatees follow the warm spring water downstream toward the Gulf in cooler months; the fish life in the spring-fed river is extraordinary year-round.

A waterfront restaurant on the Homosassa River serving stone crab claws, grouper sandwiches, and cold beer from a dock-side patio where you may see manatees surfacing 20 feet away. The stone crab season runs October through May; in summer the grouper and snapper from local Gulf boats are equally good.

The ruins of the 1851 sugar mill built by Florida senator David Levy Yulee — the stone grinding wheel, the kettle furnaces, and the stone boiling vats are well-preserved and free to visit. The surrounding hardwood hammock is one of the oldest in Citrus County.

An open-air waterfront bar and grill at the MacRae's marina on the Homosassa River — fresh grouper sandwiches, fried shrimp baskets, and cold beer at the water's edge. The classic end to a springs and manatee day on Florida's Nature Coast.

Three Sisters Springs is the most spectacular manatee congregation site in North America — a shallow, crystal-clear spring complex where hundreds of West Indian manatees gather between November and March to warm themselves in the 72-degree spring water. Snorkeling among the manatees under NWS guidelines (passive observation, no touching) is one of the most affecting wildlife experiences in North America.

The westernmost point of the Crystal River area, connected to the mainland by a long causeway — a Gulf of Mexico beach with a boat launch, picnic shelter, and the horizon-wide Gulf view that the entire Nature Coast looks toward. Different in character from both the Panhandle beaches and the Atlantic side.

A Crystal River outfitter running kayak and snorkel tours through the Kings Bay spring system — the tour guides are knowledgeable naturalists and the access to spring areas not reachable independently is significant.

The largest known concentration of Native American ceremonial mounds on the Gulf Coast — occupied for 1,600 years between 200 BC and 1400 AD, with burial mounds, middens, and a stelae that may have been used for solar alignments. The museum explains the Weeden Island culture that used Crystal River as a trade hub.

A Crystal River institution on the marina — local grouper, mullet, and stone crab prepared simply in a dining room where the fishing guides eat. The mullet smoked on the premises is the signature order.

The headspring of the Rainbow River — a first-magnitude spring producing 490 million gallons of water daily through a spring pool of extraordinary clarity. The Rainbow River is consistently ranked among the clearest and most beautiful rivers in Florida; the 3.5-mile snorkel trail downstream to the KP Hole County Park is the best freshwater snorkel route in the state.

The lower takeout for the Rainbow River float — the 3.5-hour tube or kayak float from the state park delivers you to a county park beach and shuttle. The river alternates between gin-clear open sections with full sun and canopied passages through overhanging hardwood forest. The eelgrass meadows and freshwater springs along the route are visible to a depth of 30 feet.

A country restaurant in the rolling hills of Hernando County -- homestyle cooking served family-style, with blueberry everything (pancakes, muffins, pie) in the heart of Florida's interior strawberry and blueberry farm belt.

A first-magnitude spring that has been staging mermaid shows since 1947 — live underwater theatrical performances in a spring-fed theater built directly against the spring vent, with the performers breathing from air hoses concealed in the set. The show is kitsch in the best sense; the spring itself is a genuine 74-degree first-magnitude wonder with an adjacent river boat tour and swim area.