All great journeys must come to a end!!!

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Back out on the main river we again met up with the folks from the southwest Florida water management district... We told them of the springs that we had just visited but they where unaware of them...The two of them where testing a smaller spring on the north side of the river... Our sun was beginning to get a bit lower but that did not stop us from paddling even further down river. ..Ten more minutes heading west the river splits with the left side for the larger boats and the right side being more suited for canoes or kayaks...We padded for some time...Perhaps a half hour and ones again the route split...this is where we made our decision to start making our way back up the river to the campground..Paddling the trip back up river seemed easy....Perhaps the wind at our backs was helping us with our return trip...About half way back to civilization we where approached by a large boat. The four men on board asked if we would like to make the front page of the Sunday Citrus County Chronicle newspaper...All as we needed to do was to follow them back to the boat dock...As we did..they snapped many pictures of us paddling from the sides and to the back of there much larger vessel...Ones back photographer Matthew Beck asked us to follow a bit feather...He had one more place he would like to take photos...That place is where in fact the photo that ended up in the paper was taken...After we pulled out at the boat dock and loaded the kayaks on my Ford ranger Bill could not thank me enough times for such a great trip...As he prepared to drive away on his way back to home to Thonotosassa he stopped and said the next time you go kayaking Gator...Make sure to include him in any of my river trip plans... With the sun fading fast in the west I pulled my little Scotty silverside camper in to lot #45 of Chassahowitzka River campground. After pull out a chair and sitting down for a bit of a brake...I called Serro Scotty camper enthusiasts Barbara Ellis of Wildwood Florida to tell her about how wonderful Chassahowitzka River was...Not long in to the conversation I felt the first signs of night fall...Mosquito's where beginning to show up. I told Barbara that night fall was coming quick and that I needed to get a campfire going fast...I sat in front of that campfire for about four hours .... Listened to the sounds of crickets and a good number of owls in the cool night air...Yes Chassahowitzka River and Chassahowitzka river campground is on my return list of places to see ones again in the very near future...This wild life sanuary is only twenty two miles from my home in Spring Hill Florida. So in fact this could end up being my host campground. The one I end up taking many of friend to see when they visit me here in Florida...Some from as far away as New Hampshire or Massachusetts...Whether you canoe or kayak with friends or just like the solitude of a river...Perhaps you like fishing, wildlife photography, or still life painting, tent camping in the outback or camping in your Scotty camper.......You will love the Chassahowitzka river and the Chassahowitzka river campground...Kayaking the Chassahowitzka river here in Florida was truly a religious experience and the most exciting river I have kayaked in the sunshine state... Folks that know me can tell you better than I can that I'm not a religious man...Having said that... And having a place like this so close to my finger tips make it even more inviting for my return...I can tell you one thing... that sharing a kayaking experience on the Chassahowitzka with a good friend...Is like sharing a kayaking trip with God...Your friendships will be even stronger having done the trip...The Chassahowitzka river is truly a heaven here on earth!!!

....................Gator Ron

Chassahowitzka River Campground 8600 West. Miss Maggie Drive Homosassa, Fl. (352) 382-2200

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This story brought to you by the Yahoo Vintage Camper Group of Florida and the other 50 FREE State Vintage Trailer clubs.

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Contact Gator Ron @ scotty_lad_1973@yahoo.com

Exploring the Chassahowitzka River

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Our trip down the river continued but not for long...no sooner that we stated our journey we noticed a large amount of water entering the river from our right...We then paddled up this channel or creek fighting a pretty strong current along the way. Continuing on for about five minutes before coming to the channels end or should I say beginning... A large pool with two very large springs vents spews water up out of the ground in such a very large amount...This would be the larger of the springs we would see on our trip that day...It would also be the last time we would see any signs of true civilization. It was here next to these two massive springs that we also saw the two largest homes on the river.... and large homes they where...After riding the current back down to the main channel of the Chassahowitzka...we again headed down river. Some time later we found another creek....this time to our left. The creek was much smaller than the one we had just visited and this one was much more dense semitropical forest / jungle like...the kind of over vegetated creek that makes my blood begin to boil.... Yes If Bill and I where to in counter the Florida alligator..then it would be here on this creek run.... My guess was that if we paddled the creek we would also find yet another spring at its end and that we needed to at least explore part of the creek... So off we went..This was a very long kayak run. It took the good part of a half hour to get up this run... Of course I had to keep stopping to take more photos along the way but this part of the trip was slow going anyway... As we paddled further and further up this natural channel it began to get pretty narrow and the vegetation began to get much thicker...Not only was there more brush and trees in this part of our journey but the creeks bottom had this very thick and long grass than our kayaks seemed to just skim over...This grass although dark in color...gave off this kind of fluorescent green tinge as what little light stuck it from the filtering sun shining high above the tree tops...I could not see the bottom of the creek because of this long swaying grass and believe that this was one of the best breeding area for fish we would encounter on our trip...Soon the grasses would begin to slowly give way to a better view of the creeks bottom...As we looked down from our kayaks we could in fact see many large fish swimming under us and between the grassy areas... Where the bottom view had been blocked by the thicker grass the only way for us to check for water depth was to stand our paddles up right and to push them strait down in order to see if they would hit bottom...As the grasses began to fade away..I also noted that the water depth was getting to be less deep....Then what had been a very grassy bottom began show signs of a beautiful sandy bottom..At only about knee deep we decided to ground the kayaks and to try walking up the up stream bed... Leading the way up the creek as Bill lagged behind... He to was taking many photos of all the beauty that surrounded us..flowers, fish, birds, wild berries....We had found a living paradise all around us as we walked up the middle of this crystal clear stream and each corner we made would bring more surprises..Its such an incredible feeling to leave the boats behind and to start walking up this Florida creek...The sounds that you hear as we tread through the water...The sight of fish smimming by you...looking down on them from only inches away.... I then looked back and could see Bill was beginning to kind of fall behind a bit more that I had wish him to be..He seemed to be preoccupied by something he was photographing in the water on the waters edge...As I came around the next bend in the stream I could hear something over head....Just like the TV show "Fantasy Island when Tattoo yelled out "De plane! De plane!" .....I to got a glimpse of a plane passing over the trees tops and cry out "De plane! De plane!"....Only to spook a Florida black bear that was at the creek perhaps doing a little fishing himself...all you could hear from that point was the sound of small trees snapping off at there base... As this beast made off for the deep jungle or forest... I could see trees and brush as high as ten to twelve feet falling over as this bear not only ran away from us but plowed right into the trees and knocked them over in his rust to escape his intruding visitors...I was so shocked at what had just happened that I kind of just stood there...Then Bill yelled out...Whats going on up there!...Whats all that noise in the forest.!!! I just looked at him as he snapped a photo of me standing in the water and said while laughing ... Ah!!! Nothing...Another two hundred feet of walking up this jungle stream and we finally came to the most beautify large pool with two more good sized springs pushing out lots of water from its vents... Again these two springs looked pretty deep.. The neat thing about this place is it would make a such a nice place to pitch a tent for a night of true wilderness Florida camping... We rested here for some time before heading back to the Chassahowitzka River... Bill and I had found this place to be the best location of the day and the two of us seemed to have a diversely time leaving this area... but there was more exploring for us to do back on the river...One last look back at this unbelivible lagoon and we began our walk down the sandy stream bed to our boats...It was at that point that I had joked to Bill that maybe when we get back to the area down stream where we had left the kayaks that perhaps they would be gone...What a fix we would be in then...Up the creek with no boat!!!

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Chassahowitzka River...... "Piece Of Heaven Here On Earth"

By Ronald Levesque

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Can you say chassahowitzka?...It seems that I have trouble with many of the names down here in the south...Names like thonotosassa, chassahowitzka, pithlachascotee, withlacoochee...I'm getting better at it...I have a new rule that seem to work for me. That is...If I can kayak it...Then I can learn to say it. Yes we did get to do our kayak trip to on the Chassahowitzka river pronounced "Chaz-wits-kuh"...meaning "hanging pumpkin"..... Plus I did a nights stay at the campground there and I must say that I think I have seen a bit of heaven right here on earth...I can not say in words how incredible this place is... My friend Bill Pike and I arrived early to the campground... After checking in...it was time to get the kayaks in the water to see first hand this river. The Chassahowitzka river is only three miles long from put in to the gulf of Mexico so you should be able to make it to the gulf and back before the sun begins to fade...But think again!...There is so many springs feeding this river and so many places to explore that you should plan on a number of days of camping and kayaking to see much of this truly wonderful work of God... First of all the Chassahowitzka river is a fisher man or fisher womans paradise...You will see boat after boat heading down and up the river.... Kayaks, canoes, flat bottom boats, air boats.... Its one busy river for sure...Usually when I see this many boats in one place I tend to want to shy away because I like looking and photographing nature and to me...to many people on a river means much of nature tend to shy away as well... luckily for the Chassahowitzka river this is just not so... We literally saw with out exaggeration....Thousands of fish,....hundreds and hundreds of birds, sorry to say that on this trip we did not see any alligators but I'm sure there out there...Did get to see a bald headed eagle swoop down to the river and grab up a good size fish and then fly to the top of a high tree only to devourer it...I tell you that I have never ever seen so many fish in one place in my life.... I'm not sure what kind they where but we got to see more than a hundred of these one type of fish jumping up out of the water in a sideways motion.. all day long. They where doing this right in front of our boats...The first part of the trip we meet up with two very nice folks from the southwest Florida water management district. They where on the river with a small power boat testing the springs and rivers water quality...There where nice enough to lead us right to the first and second in a series of springs near the boat ramp..We got to talk to them for about ten to fifteen minutes and saw first hand there work on the river. I would have to say they have one of the very best jobs in the state of Florida and think I would almost kill to have it...They told us that the springs here on the Chassahowitzka river are made up of many linking underwater caves. The younger swimmers in the area like to dive down into the spring vents...swimming deep underwater from one cave opening and then resurfacing out of the water through another spring. I looked down into a number of the deeper springs from the comfort of my kayak and kind of got the quivers just looking down at them...Trust me!...cave diving is not a sport I will be taking up at my age....

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Chassahowitzka River and U.S. National Wildlife Refuge

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Chassahowitzka River and U.S. National Wildlife Refuge

Difficulty: Moderate Scenery: Very Good Location: Homosassa,Citrus County Distance: 7 miles round-trip springs loop Atlas: Page 77 C-1 Last Update: May 2003 Canoe OK: Yes
DescriptionChassahowitzka, pronounced "Chaz-wits-kuh", consists of a series of freshwater springs; river and U.S. National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). Located 60 miles north of Tampa and St. Petersburg on the gulf coast of Florida, the 31,000+ acre refuge was created in 1943 as a winter preserve for migratory waterfowl. In addition to plenty of bird watching opportunities, a keen-eyed canoeist or kayaker can spot manatee, raccoons, otters, numerous alligators and possibly even deer, bobcat or a Florida black bear. The headwaters of the river start approximately 100 feet upstream from the Chassahowitzka River Campground's boat ramp. A first magnitude spring and smaller 2nd magnitude springs in the area create the river which flows 7 miles west to the Gulf of Mexico. The wildlife refuge starts three miles downstream from the campground. The northern boundary of the NWR parallels the Homosassa River, with the southern end 12 miles south at Raccoon Point. Access to the National Wildlife Refuge is by boat only with the best put-in for paddlers at the campground.
Paddling the Chassahowitzka River. Camping is prohibited in the NWR, but is certainly available and encouraged at the Chassahowitzka River Campground. The campground features RV and primitive (tent) camp sites, a general store, showers, restrooms, telephone and a boat launch. AccessFrom Weeki Wachee take US-19 north 13 miles to CR 480 (Miss Maggie Drive). Go west (left) on 480 for approximately 1.5 miles to Chassahowitzka River Campground. Follow signs to boat launch. Be sure to ask for a canoe map when you pay the parking fee.Important ItemsBoat, Paddle, PFDChassahowitzka Parking Fee, $2Map, CompassInsect Repellant[Optional] Canoe rentals available[Optional] GPSEnvironmentNational Wildlife RefugeFirst and Second Magnitude SpringsBrackish Water (upper)Lowland Swamps (upper)Saltwater Bays, Estuary (lower)Tidal Marshes (lower)Palm, Ferns, SawgrassMany birds and mammals Blue Springs on Baird Creek. Tour #1: The Springs Loop (7 miles)The Springs Loop will take you through seven of the more easily accessible springs along the Chassahowitzka River. If you make the trip on a weekday, you'll probably have most of the springs and river to yourself. On weekends, plan on sharing these wonderful springs with a few boaters (paddle and motorboat variety). Arrive early in the day to have a parking space at the campground. Please note that some of these springs are located in remote, deep woods areas. You should be comfortable with using a map, compass, GPS or other navigational tool prior to making the trip. Chassahowitzka Springs: To begin, put-in at the campground's boat ramp. Paddle 100 feet upstream (east). Congratulations, you've made it to the first spring. The opening to the spring is about 20-30 feet deep in the upper portion of the basin. Swimming and diving are prohibited due to motorboat traffic. Unnamed Springs:The next set of springs can be found just a few hundred feet to the east of the main spring. Enter the manmade channel (left as you are paddling east), and go about 75 feet. The spring run is between 1 and 2 feet deep in most places, so it's easy to exit your boat for photos or a quick swim. Water flowing from the springs is clear and appears to be a radiant blue when viewed in direct sunlight. By paddling the length of the spring run, you should be able to spot at least 8 different vents feeding the springs. Crab Creek Springs:Starting at Unnamed Springs, head downstream about 200 yards past the boat ramp. The entrance to Crab Creek is located on the north side of the river. The spring run is jungle-like and about 100 yards in length. You'll see two beautiful homes immediately adjacent to the springs. You can visit the springs, but all surrounding land is private property. The water is full of particulate matter and is 6 to 8 feet deep with a light blue color at the three spring vents. Blue Springs - Baird Creek:From Crab Creek Springs, head downstream and paddle along the Chassahowitzka River for approximately 1/2 mile. Turn south (left) to Baird Creek. You can identify the entrance by a tiny island, complete with palm trees, marking the pathway. Baird Creek is a narrow, shallow (1-2 feet deep), twisty, jungle-like waterway enclosed by sawgrass and trees. If you are terrified of the possibility of running into alligators, snakes or swarms of mosquitoes you might want to skip Blue Springs and The Crack. For those brave enough to continue on, slap on generous amounts of insect repellent and start the 1/2 mile paddle to the springs. This tiny partially canopied waterway offers some tremendous photo and wildlife viewing opportunities. Blue Spring forms a small lagoon, about 100 feet in diameter. The water is a dark, cloudy blue so it's not possible to see the bottom. Much of the pool is surrounded by sawgrass and trees, but you can dock along the backend of the pool for either a quick dip or well-deserved break. The Crack - Baird Creek:The entrance to the Crack can be found at the backend of Blue Springs. Look for a small opening between two large palm trees. The waterway here, like much of Baird Creek, is narrow and shallow. Pass the two small turquoise-colored pools and continue upstream until the water becomes too shallow to paddle. You'll need to exit your boat and hike the remaining 200 feet through ankle deep water to the spring.
The Crack on Baird Creek The Crack is a jagged crevice about 30 feet long. The clear, oval shaped pool is less than one foot deep and surrounded by forest. The mosquitoes will keep you from spending too much time in the area. To return to the Chassahowitzka River, hike and paddle downstream to Blue Springs. Enter Baird Creek and paddle 1/2 mile back to the river. Salt Springs - Salt Creek: After returning to the main channel, paddle downstream for 1/3 mile. Here you will encounter a large island that divides the river. The south (left) fork is used by powerboats. The right fork is shallower and provides a route much less traveled. Take the right fork and paddle in a northwest direction for approximately 1/4 mile to the "T" intersection that signals the entrance to Salt Creek (to the north/right) and the main channel of the Chassahowitzka (south/left). Salt Creek is fed by several streams which look a-like, so it's easy to get lost in this area. Be sure to carefully chart, or better yet, use a GPS to map your route. At approximately 1/5 mile from the entrance, a small creek will run directly north. Stay to the right to keep on Salt Creek. If you pass a tree growing in an upside down "U" shape, you're on Salt Creek. The upper branches of the tree are partially blocking the creek so it's easy to spot. Salt Creek narrows considerably and heads southeast to a large spring-fed lagoon. After a rest stop, carefully retrace your route back to the entrance of Salt Creek. Paddle 200 yards southwest to the main channel of the Chassahowitzka. Turn downstream to continue to Potter Creek. Potter Springs - Potter Creek:Just west of where Salt Creek meets the river, the Chassahowitzka widens and becomes shallow. You'll see old posts sticking up from the river bed. These were once part of a railroad trestle crossing the river. Another 1/4 mile paddle downstream will bring you to the entrance of Potter Creek, located on the north side of the river. Potter Creek runs almost directly north for approximately 3/4 mile to the springhead. The creek is 30-50 feet wide in most places so it's easy to navigate. The spring itself is about 100 feet across. A very shallow creek flows into Potter Spring from the north, with Ruth Spring as its source. If you are extremely adventurous, you can paddle and hike 300 feet up the narrow creek to Ruth Spring. Be careful as this is truly a wild place and you will almost certainly come across alligators, snakes, spiders and who-knows-what-else. There is no good place to exit your boat along Potter Creek as the banks are either overgrown with vegetation or muddy. Return to Chassahowitzka River Campground:To return to the campground, go 3/4 mile south along Potter Creek to the main channel of the river. Turn upstream (east) and paddle 1.5 miles to reach the campground. At 1/3 mile from where Potter Creek meets the Chassahowitzka, you'll come to the large island in the middle of the river. Staying right of the island will reduce your chance of getting lost. Once past the island, it's one mile to the campground. Tour #2: Chassahowitzka NWR Entrance (11 miles)If the seven mile, seven spring tour doesn't do it, you can always add an extra four miles by heading back down Potter Creek to the main channel. Turn right (downstream) and go two miles to the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge. On the way to the NWR, you'll pass a number of abandoned boats and summer cottages. All are on private property so be sure to keep off. Immediately adjacent to the NWR entrance signage is a private boat dock.There are very few places to land your canoe or kayak once you enter the tidal creeks and salt marshes of the refuge so plan on spending lots of time in your boat. Following the main channel for another 3.5 miles will take you to Pompano Key in Chassahowitzka Bay. About a mile before reaching Pompano Key you'll see trail markers for the Nature Coast Canoe and Kayak Trail leading north to the Homosassa River.
One of several springs thatfeed the Chassahowitzka River. Clear water and eel grass atPotter Creek.

Map GPS Location AidDescription LatitudeLongitude

ChassahowitzkaRiver CampgroundBoat Launch N28.42.892'W82.34.631' Unnamed SpringsNo Exit N28.42.968'W82.34.516' Crab Creek SpringsPrivate Dock N28.43.026'W82.34.555' Baird Creek EntranceSand Bank N28.42.875'W82.35.066' Blue SpringsNo Exit N28.42.545'W82.34.777' The Crack

Chassahowitzka River Campground

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Chassahowitzka River Campground 8600 West. Miss Maggie DriveHomosassa, Fl. (352) 382-2200

This 40 acre campground is within walking or boating distance of a30,000 acre National Wildlife Refuge.Feeding into a complex network offresh water creeks, the spring fedChasshowitzka River is lined with the hardwood cypress and manyother varieties of native trees.Situated near the ChassahowitzkaNational Wildlife Refuge, ourcampground offers camping, boatingpicnicking, fishing, canoeing, and anumber of in-camp activities.For the fisherman, the river is home to the coveted large mouth bass. Saltwater angling in the famous Gulf of Mexico is a short boat ride away.Whatever your interest may be, we assure you, your stay with us will be an enjoyable one. So bring your boat, or rent one from us, but be sure to bring your camera! Amenities: Bath House Boat/Canoe Rentals Boat Ramp Full Hook-ups Horseshoe Pit Laundry Facilities Pets Allowed* Primitive Tent Area Shuffleboard Courts Store (Pets are allowed - on a leash - and must be under control at all times. Proof of vaccination is required).No Swimming Alcohol is prohibitedRates:CAMPGROUND SITES Check-in by or check out time is 2:00 P.M. >>Prices Include Site Facilities For Two Persons (1 Unit/Tent Per Site) Nightly Rate Full Hook-Up $20.00 Water / Electric $18.00 Tent (Primitive) $15.00 Extra Person $3.00 Weekly - if paid in advance Full Hook-Up $120.00 Regular Site $108.00 Extra Person $15.00 Monthly Full Hook-Up $300.00 Extra Person $60.00
CANOES AND BOATS >>Canoe and boat rentals start at 8:00. All boats must be in by 5:00 pm. (We do not rent motors). Canoes / Boats Rate Per Day $20.00 Per 1/2 Day $15.00 Equipment Deposit (Optional) $10.00 Parking Per Vehicle $2.00 With Trailer $2.50 Annual Pass $75.00 Visitors Day visitors & picnicers $2.00 Dump Station Dump Station Fee $5.00

Take a kayak or canoe down this great river right from the campground!!!

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THE ONE NIGHT STAND FLORIDA CAMPOUT

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Hello members
A number of the members on the Florida group have emailed and or posted me and asked if I would please try to list in advance where I plan my mini camping and kayak trips that I make around the state so that perhaps they to could join in the fun rather than ending up reading about of my many trips after they have been made.....So here goes!!! Introducing "THE ONE NIGHT STAND CAMPOUT"......
Yes I am planning on a series of smaller campouts at a number of very interesting Florida locations. Basically these will be scouting trips to see first hand the many wonders of Florida...All will be at campgrounds that have activities or recreation features that so many of our great county and state campground have to offer here in the sunshine state...
Many of the campgrounds are are on lakes or rivers that see big numbers of campers on the weekends. Kayaking, canoeing, swimming on the weekends can get a bit crowded and other activities like hiking the trails or walks on the nature trails end up on weekends feeling more like a trip to the local city zoo... So hopefully I will plan a number of these "THE ONE NIGHT STAND CAMPOUTS" for the midweek rather than on weekends when the campground numbers are down from the more over packed weekends.
"THE ONE NIGHT STAND CAMPOUT" will be a full day of park activities, and a wonderful nights stay at the featured campground for that trip...Some of us may like a perticular campground that we decide to stay for more then one night....I do this myself alot of the times when I really end up loving the park...I just have to stay an extra night... This will be left up to anyone that indeed wishs to stay longer.
Whether you are into bird watching, a nature buff, kayaker, hiking, swimming or just want to get a way from it all...Than hopfully one of the planned trips will work out for you. Bring you cookout grill and injoy everthing the great outdoors has to offer...And don't forget you camrera!...If you do decide to go on one of the planned "ONE NIGHT STAND CAMPOUTS"... Please read on and then make the resavation by calling the number listed for that campground. If you do sign up for a campsite...please email me and I will list your names and your campsites numbers to the "THE ONE NIGHT STAND CAMPOUT GUEST LIST"...listed in the Database area of the Yahoo Serro Scotty Florida Camping group....That way..if any other campers want to join in they will know better of what campsite to book by looking at the guest list and sites booked.
First trip posted for a full day of fun and a night camping is for Chassahowitzka River Campground in Homosassa, Florida for Wednesday November 9th Hope to make use of this park all day and then camp by the fire, there on Wednesday night.. .Below you can read up about Chassahowitzka River Campground and about the river trips by kayak or canoe. .........................Gator Ron

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