Econfina Creek Canoe Trip

During our Spring Break trip to Florida, we discovered Econfina Creek. Located just north of Panama City Beach, it is a beautiful spring fed river that offers 24 miles of the "best canoeing in Florida". To celebrate my birthday, we signed up for the 8 mile canoe trip with Econfina Creek Canoe Livery and spent the day exploring the crystal clear springs, running from snakes enjoying the abundant wildlife, and admiring the fern covered limestone cliffs and many other little surprises along the way. It was wonderful!

Parked for an afternoon picnic on the banks of Econfina Creek.

There were parts of the river that were thick, dark and murky, where Spanish moss dripped from the old Cypress trees...spooky quiet, causing my husband to start humming the dueling banjo number from Deliverance. Then all of the sudden, it would open up to the most beautiful, clear, blue, bubbling spring...cool and drinkable...breathtaking. The pictures don't do it justice. All I had in my backpack was a disposable camera and I was aggrivated at myself all day for leaving the Nikon behind.

One of the larger springs in Econfina Creek, a great spot for observing tadpoles.

Ben had a blast catching and releasing gigantic tadpoles that were in the late stages of metamorphasis. Are they still called tadpoles if they have all their legs and a tail? I'll have to look into that. Anyway, they were everywhere!

Ben catching tadpoles in Econfina Creek.

7 miles into the trip and nervous that we might be lost

The kids learned more on our 5 hour canoe trip than they would in a week in the classroom. Our trip was a perfect opportunity for some fun, hands-on learning. They got to see, smell, hear, touch and even taste nature. So even though we haven't offically started homeschooling yet, my kids already think I'm the coolest teacher ever!

Happy Birthday to ME!