Society has changed drastically in only a few short weeks. We all now need to reduce our contact with other people in order to “flatten the curve,” or lessen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In this moment, I am focused on protecting my mental health and encouraging others to do the same. We can do this by eating healthy, going for walks, or socializing with friends and family over WhatsApp video. These are some of the things I have been doing recently to stay centered and healthy.
But I also realized early on that this situation is completely conducive to my solo travel lifestyle. Solo adventuring is not canceled! Nature is not canceled! And kayaking with manatees is definitely not canceled! In this post, I tell my story about hitting the water less than 2 weeks ago to socialize with manatees instead of people.
Black Point Marina in Homestead, FL
Two weekends ago, Miami was still deciding the extent to which it would go under quarantine. I sensed things were not about to get better and decided to practice social distancing early.
It’s easy for a solo travel like me to choose an activity to do on my own and just do it. So when I heard from some friends in the area that Black Point Marina has lots of manatees all year round—I was super excited to check it out!
Apparently, manatees have been frequenting the area in recent weeks. My chances of seeing them were very high.
Black Point Marina is located in Homestead, Florida at the mouth of Black Creek which accesses Biscayne Bay. There are boats docked at this marina and there are several ramps for launching vessels.
On the way into the Marina, I drove passed the huge, smelly Miami-Dade landfill where hundreds of birds soared overhead. It was not the best first impression of the area. The stink from the landfill came right into the car.
Luckily, the smell didn’t reach the marina on that day. But I imagine Eastward winds on another day would turn anyone off from spending the day there.
Parking and Kayaking at Black Point
Black Point Marina was a very easily accessed launch site for my kayak. And it cost me nothing.
I was able to park for free in the lot right next to Black Point Ocean Grill. This lot is adjacent to 6 boat ramps all in a row. Nobody approached me to charge me a fee for launching my kayak here.
There is a lot of activity at this marina. Many boats were going in and out. The multiple ramps helped so I didn’t have to wait.
My inflatable kayak is super easy to put together. It fits in a bag with a manual pump included. I had it inflated in less than 20 minutes. The kayak is a two-seater but when I take it out on my own I only install one seat so I have plenty of legroom.
Black Creek Wildlife
The water at the ramp was a little dirty at slack tide. But the water cleared up once I was heading toward the bay along the creek.
To my left as I was paddling was Black Creek trail. Black Creek trail runs 8.5 miles from near Larry and Penny Thompson Park all the way down to the marina. It ends at a tiny little strip of land that stretches out into shallow water that is revealed at low tide.
People were bicycling, walking, jogging, and fishing along the trail. I felt a safe distance from other people as I moved along the center of the channel.
As I paddled, I kept looking down at the water. I was looking out for what I know looks like a giant, blotchy, swimming potato. That’s what manatees look like to me. Giant potatoes. I didn’t see any yet but what I did spot were lots of pelicans!
Moving out of the channel, I followed a small fishing boat to the right along the coast. There was a bit of a current now—the tide was coming in and there was a slight wind pushing in from the East. I made it maybe 500 yards out and then I heard something out on the water.
A huge flock of seagulls were grouped together on the surface of the water out in the middle of the bay. When birds come together like that it can mean there are lots of fish under the water. I decided maybe there was something interesting to see there so I approached them.
It took a lot of effort to row against the current into the bay but eventually I reached the seagulls. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much to see. The seagulls were just chilling and talking loudly. I kept thinking about the seagulls in Finding Nemo “Mine! Mine! Mine!”—yea, seagulls are annoying.
Kayaks Are The Best
I made my way back toward Black Creek Trail. I wanted to get to the endpoint of the trail to get a full view of the bay.
I was still fighting the current but it was worth the energy. The sun was out, the breeze was perfect, and I was getting some exercise—so it was all good!
I paddled along eventually making it to the endpoint. There was a couple sitting there having a snack with their kid. There was also a cyclist who took his bike right across the sandy pebbles and shallow water out along the strip. He headed straight for some of the trees surrounded by water along the channel that guides boats out of the bay.
I decided to take a break from fighting the current and beach my kayak. I was careful to aim around some sharper-looking rocks. After all, I was in an inflatable and I’m still not sure how easily I can damage it.
As the kayak pulled up onto the sandy, pebbly beach, I had this great feeling of satisfaction. Wow! I love this kayak. This was so easy to pull right up here for a break.
I sat in the kayak in the sun, getting myself sorted for a second. After only a few minutes, the family guy approached me. Uh oh. Keep your distance, dude!
He stopped several paces back and asked me about the kayak. I gave him the details and he was amazed at how inexpensive it was on Amazon. Then he thanked me and his family packed up and headed back down the trail. I brought my backpack up onto some rocks in the shade and took out my lunch.
As I munched on a salad, I watched as the cyclist made his way further out along the shallow path. He was actually riding along in the ocean! When he started to come back, I headed back to my kayak.
Where Are The Manatees?
At this point, I was fairly certain I wouldn’t see manatees. I’d already been out for over an hour. Instead, I distracted myself with some fishing line that was wrapped around a tree along the trail. I managed to unravel a whole bunch of it from my kayak that I could bring back to throw away.
On my way in, I was watching the water up ahead and that’s when I saw it. A huge rounded tail flipped up out of the water, slapped the surface lightly and then disappeared below. This was maybe 25 feet in front of me. I wasn’t quick enough to take a photo but I was so excited! A manatee was right there!
But did I really see that?
I was getting closer to the marina. There were some people out, helping with the lifts for the boats into the water. One of them shouted across the water at two vessels heading out of the creek, “There’s a manatee right in front of you!”
The manatee was still there, I just couldn’t see it because I was so low to the water. I steered clear of the boats and then circled around to where I thought the manatee was.
It was nowhere in my view.
I figured that was it. Manatees are bottom feeders. The manatee probably sunk below or got distracted by something to eat under a dock somewhere. I accepted that nature does not always give you what you want. Sometimes you get a pandemic, changing life for every human on Earth. And sometimes you get to see a manatee tail and that’s it.
I tried to be grateful that I at least saw its tail.
I was tired and definitely sunburned. So I paddled into the marina and pulled my kayak up onto the pier to begin deflating.
I kept glancing at the water in the creek as I packed up the kayak. No manatee in sight. But as I drove out of the marina, my GPS took me over a small bridge that brought me over the creek. And that’s when I saw not one but two giant potatoes floating in the water below.
I pulled over to get a closer look. There they were with their blotchy skin and big, blundering bodies, moving slowly one after the other. They were just cruising along, flipping their fins and tails above the surface every so often. I couldn’t believe my luck!
It was as if they took their time just so I could see them.
In Conclusion
There is much uncertainty and tragedy right now and nature seems unpredictable and uncontrollable. But if we have patience and listen to the messages being sent, we might learn something about our Earth. For instance, satellite images are showing reduced pollution in China due to less human-generated emissions since the COVID19 pandemic hit the country last year.
So I encourage you to get out there and explore nature while you practice social distancing in the coming weeks. It will be good for your health! And who knows, perhaps this is a chance for everyone to reconnect with nature and realize what we can do to protect it.
