We got to the Marine Discovery Center on the 3rd of July for the 5:30 cruise. It was a small place, not-for-profit, off the beaten path a bit. It was cool checking out all they offered, including Adventure Camps for kids and Artist Workshops.
We were directed to the dock to get on the pontoon boat for our tour. The tour covered the Indian River lagoon and would be driven by Capt. Scott and our educational narrator was Lou King. There were quite a few kids but it was a good group. We were all excited to see the wildlife!
Smidge of a setback #1: Since it was July 3rd, we were blocked from getting on our boat by a huge truck unloading fireworks and placing them on a barge. Yikes. As Capt Scott said, NO ONE SMOKE!
On to the boat along with a few sprinkles of rain. No big deal, because right off the bat, while we were ALL unprepared, a manatee appeared next to the dock. Everyone on the other side of the boat rushed to our side to see (capsize, people??). Capt Scott gave us a general intro lecture ("If you fall off the boat, flail around a bit then stand up and walk back to the boat") and Lou came aboard to start the 2 hour tour.
Lou explaining the wonders of the wild life
We all missed the photo op of the manatee but Capt Scott did try to chase them down for us. Unfortunately, we didn't see any more. Onward to the bird rookeries! There are 3 islands where birds come to roost and lay their eggs. Lou knew all of the birds and explained how even if the birds were enemies, they all came together here to watch each others back (Keep your friends close and your enemies closer)
The sheer amount of birds was amazing!
Capt Scott is a pretty funny guy. One of the little boys on the boat said his name was Fire and Lightning. We all did a double take at that, including his mom. I think it was Fire and Lightning who asked who lived in these houses. Capt Scott answered "People with money" You ain't kidding!
"People with money"
Mangroves
Mangroves
Snowy Egrets
Lou brought some mollusks on board for the kids to hold. I'm not sure exactly what happened but one exploded. Just pulled back and spit out quite a lot of mud (or, per Capt Scott, "poop") onto Lou and the boat. She swears that in 7 years of doing this, that has never happened :)
We did get to see dolphins and a baby dolphin. They were hard to catch with a camera, but I video taped a but with my new phone and realized the next day I could take screenshots off the phone. Yay for new technology!
Dolphins!
Lou brought out some hermit crabs for a hermit crab race. I got a front row seat for that!
Hermit crabs
MDC offers us kayak tours too and sunset cruises. I even got the thumbs up from mom and April for getting us this groupon. Go me.
It pays to check out off the beaten path adventures for vacation!
