Juniper Run Paddle -

Any time is a good time on the Juniper, but the best way to paddle in the summer is on the Juniper with its cold waters and almost entirely shaded avenue of tight twists and turns. Seven of us turned out to take advantage of getting in some summer paddle, but the popularity of this locale requires early rising to be the first ones the river, before the lines form and the traffic jams ensue.

We were on the water by 8:35, pretty decent since we had already shuttled the boat trailer down to the take-out. Juniper is one of my favorite paddles for honing ones skills, enjoying the consistent rush of flowing water and the well canopied shade from the summer heat. The animal sightings included 3 alligators - one enormously smiling one - just a few turtles and plenty of fish, including jumping mullet. A few of us stopped at the high bank location that rose about 18 feet above the creek. We took a look around and discovered it to be the tyipcal Florida scrub land with the exception of a fair number of hickory trees.. Further down, we all stopped at what remains of the old stopping off dock (only the vertical posts remain) for a lunch break. Entry to and from the shore at this location is less than ideal. A couple of us took time to swim and cool off.

Somewhere along the way, about 4/5th of the way down, there is a place where the water rushes over some limestone shelf. The water was rushing sufficiently to actually make noise. Any time there is an feature like that on a Florida creek, it is a special treat, sometimes visited multiple times by paddling back up just to repeat the rush.

We took a second stop at some shallows about a half an hour before takeout. Some of us cooled off in the white sandy bottom with a fair rush of water. It was a good group in all and we all worked together in taking care of each other as team.

It was another outstanding river adventure down a familiar but certainly not boring creek in the Florida wilds.

Host: Clark Getz

Juniper Springs Paddle -

We had another fun day paddling Juniper Springs Run. At our usual stop, 1 1/2 hours into the run, we had few drops of rain, not even lasting for 5 minutes. A beautiful day with good company, meeting new people and making new friends. We saw few turtles and one 12 foot gator , totally relaxed and insensitive to us passing him by. We started at 9:30 and with two breaks, we made it to the first shuttle run at 1:30. Some of us stayed at the take out watching for the kayaks until our buddies took the bus back to the park and returned to load up.

Mariam

Juniper Springs Paddle -

Despite the forecast of 60% thunderstorm for the entire day , we had nine (9) non-believers of weather forecast who showed up to paddle.The run was flowing faster than we have ever seen before. A new spring had opened up part way down. We had a lot of fun going down the run. the day was hot and the water was cool, so even the 5 capsizes didn't bother anybody. The water was cool and inviting and we were able to quickly get each person back in their boat and continue onward. Bill Smith in a canoe with Vickie rescued a capsized sit on top and help the paddlers to get in her boat.

There were a lot of trees down, one had knocked out the dock at the rest stop. We saw a deer looking at us, not running away at all, a 9 foot alligator and couple of others, couple raccoons that were hanging out in the rest area. There is nothing like this run in the State. It is a great place to hone your skills and improve your paddling techniques. We did not get rained on at all, even after we finished loading the kayaks at the take out around 2:30. We had so much fun, we schedule another trip for August.

Host: Mariam and Ken

Juniper Springs Paddle -

On this Saturday morning ten Trekkers and one guest met at the gate just before the opening of Juniper Springs Recreation Area. It was a pretty day but the sky and the air was filled with smoke due to a controlled burn in the area. This was the first time that we had paddled Juniper since the woman was killed by the alligator back in May. I don?t know if it was due to that incident but there were many warning signs posted informing that you can not swim or go into the water anywhere along the run and if you were caught doing so you will be kicked out of the park. At the put in, right by the waters edge, there was a hint of going through airport security as two park workers were stationed there watching everyone to make sure that you didn?t put so much as a toe in the water. In the past we would slide our yaks in the water and then get in, no more, you cannot enter the water at all. It was kind of strange being watched at a canoe launch like if you made one slip and touched the water commandos would swoop in and take you to some prison in Cuba. Anyway, after we paddled away from the launch area it was back to being the same beautiful Juniper Springs Run that we remembered from prior trips. After about a half hour of paddling the smoke cleared and we again returned to a beautiful. Wildlife was abundant as we saw deer, gators and many birds. When we reached the halfway point to stop for lunch it is almost impossible to get out of your boat without touching water but we did the best that we could. Again, after our experience at the put in we were sure that there were probably snipers laying wait in the woods waiting to pounce on the would be traveler that touched the water. All joking aside we really had a nice day paddling a beautiful spring with some great Trekker friends. When we reach the end of the run we discovered that the ?don?t go in the water rules? didn?t apply here as there were numerous locals splashing about and sitting in the water in beach chairs along with an array of airboats and various alcoholic beverages. You gotta love it!

Host: Dennis Gonzalez