Monday, August 24, 2009

More of Rainbow Springs



29 comments:

Lee Spangler said...

Looks terrific. During the day it may be paradise for the people, but night belongs to the you know what! This is an excellent series of pix, informative and colorful. I really enjoyed the sign.

Small City Scenes said...

`What a beautiful place. I would like to be in that boat paddling around. FUN!!! MB

Kcalpesh said...

This is an extremely beautiful place! Not sure if people really pay attention to the "caution" part when swimming and having a blast. I love this beautiful place 10 on 10.... Nice shots..

Cezar and Léia said...

Oh Jacob, the landscape is awesome!
This last picture is so beautiful, adorable trees!
But I need to confess, I have a fear so big about alligators!
Léia :)

Olivier said...

courageux les gens dans les canoës, avec des alligators se n'oseraient pas ;(

audacious people in canoes, with alligators would not dare ;(

Sean said...

I am kinda curious to see what the rest of the sign says about the Alligator warning... like "onlly bite if provoked" or "dont feed them"... wouldnt catch me in there regardless!

magiceye said...

idyllic!!

paula said...

Such an amazing place!

VP said...

Nothing is more relaxing than swimming with caution among alligators...

Memphis MOJO said...

Call me a big chicken, but I don't think I could swim with alligators in the area. The boat ride, on the other hand, looks great! Sign me up!

Virginia said...

GOOD GRIEF! Those folks are actually swimming with that sign posted? Hard to believe.
V

jusdealem said...

Love the alligator sign. Ha! I grew up in FL (Orlando) and your photos bring back such memories! I went to the website you recommended. So much great info there! Very interesting and informative. Thank you so much Jacob!

Dan J said...

Looks like a beautiful area. That whole alligator thing is something I think I just could not get used to. I'll stick to mosquitos.

Halcyon said...

Does the sign give you tips on what to do if you do spot a gator?

Are there any actual documented gator-swimmer run-ins there? Or is it all just a tactic to release them from liability?

Lois said...

What a lovely place! The "other" Florida as they say.

Lowell said...

Hi Dan...I think our alligators are almost as big as your Minnesota mosquitoes!

Daryl said...

what a beautiful place .. gators aside

EG CameraGirl said...

The moss hanging from the trees makes it look so exotic. I KNOW I'd never be brave enough to swim there. The thought of alligators scares me. ;-)

Judy said...

Nice! The last picture has Florida written all over it. (not literally of course)

cieldequimper said...

Lol @ VP! My thoughts exactly! I wouldn't relax one second! The last shot is definitely my favourite, it's so lush.

Anonymous said...

I love this place! Just looking at the pics reminds me how crisp the water is and how much fun we always have!

crocrodyl said...

Great, green, great, green:) Lovely photos Jacob! Especially the third one is so impressive! Superb work!

Frank said...

Breathtaking. Even with the gator warning sign. What a magnificent example of Florida's natural beauty. I must visit.

stromsjo said...

According to good old Kermit the Frog, "it's not easy being green". No idea what he was talking about! This looks like the easiest kind of living imaginable.

Lowell said...

@ Per Stromsjo - It is nice living, most of the time. But when we were here last week it was soooo damn hot. And humid. Sweat was just pouring off our faces. But we are getting some cooler weather and Ocala has very nice winters...usually in the 70s during the day and 50s at night. Somethings, though, it can get below freezing, 32 F, but that's unusual and only lasts for a night or so.

Antjas said...

How funny Jacob, you and I are on the same wave length, Rainbow Springs and Walden Pond, both beautiful bodies of inland water and state preserves.

Buenos Aires Photoblog said...

Wow, these pics are a terrific appetizer! I think I would go for a swim in the swimming area. It's relatively safe, I suppose. The danger is present but one should try to deal with it in a more rational manner. I think it's more likely that you die in a car accident than in an alligator attack.

Unknown said...

Jacob, I don't know for how long I've been watching the last pic! The spot is so gorgeous that I want to be there now! Love it!

As to your question, I may be wrong but I call crocodiles the african ones (and australian) and alligators those who live in the american continent. I know there are many species, so may be I'm totally messed up...

Lowell said...

@ JM - There are crocs all over the world. We have crocs here in Florida, too, but not so many. They're the American crocodiles. I don't know much about them.

But we also have what are called salt-water crocs. We were swimming once on Sanibel Island and just a few yards away one of these salt-water crocs came swimming nonchalantly by us.

That's the only croc I've ever seen in the wild.

Crocs here (and elsewhere, I think) are much more aggressive than alligators. I've read that in Africa several hundred people are eaten by the river crocs each year!

"Photographers deal in things which are continually vanishing and when they have vanished there is no contrivance on earth which can make them come back again." — Henri Cartier-Bresson