“Kayak and swim with the manatees!”
Three Sisters Springs are located on the Crystal River, in Florida, USA. They are in a natural inlet on the east side of Kings Bay. They contain three spring areas that contain many sand boils and vents. The land surrounding the springs is privately owned property and there is no landfall or boat tie up permitted, the only access to the springs is blocked by concrete posts to stop the boats from entering. Only kayaks, canoes, and swimmers are permitted in the area. Three Sisters Springs is also home to many of the local manatees and is one of Crystal Rivers a group of sanctuaries. Three Sisters springs is also accessible by land. The land around Three Sisters was acquired in 2010 and is currently open to the public only on certain dates. In adherence to the mission of protecting and preserving the manatee and its habitat, the areas around the springs have been designated Manatee Sanctuaries and are closed to all humans from November 15th through March 31st. Visitors can still visit and view the manatees in their natural setting, however, from boats or in the water outside of those sanctuary boundaries. Many dive shops and marinas in the Town of Crystal River offer manatee tours and cater to the needs of divers and snorkelers.
people that visit this beautiful place must take care of it. it is slowly turning in to a mess. dont touch things that you should touch and dont tie you boat, kayaks ect to the foliage. you are ruining it for others.
Great place, been there, it is beautiful!
There aren't enough words to describe this place. Three Sisters Spring is an absolutely amazing place to be! It looks as it belongs to another world.
The waters are cocooned within the rocks and one can have straight connection with the water animals..extraordinary!!!
Kayaking to get there was a good exercise for all of us!! One of the most worthy experiences of my life!
Our first trip to Crystal River was wayyyyy back in 2005 and we haven't been back since, at that time it was beautiful though. Every dive boat we encountered seemed to do a really great job of enforcing the rules and keeping people from making bad choices. We're headed back there later this month, and are excited and also a little anxious to see how much its changed. Looking forward to going back...
www.venturewild.net
I have been snorkeling Kings Bay, the river, and Three Sisters Springs as often as possible ever since I was very young. Unfortunately lately when I go I do still see the incredible manatees, but I see far more cattle call style tour groups clogging the river with boats that each dump 20-50 unexperienced people into the water to flail about like they've never seen water and break every rule in place to protect the animals and ruin it for the rest of us.
I prefer to go when its cold enough to scare people away so I can have this place all to myself (2 times ago we went out in an ice storm, it wasn't exactly crowded...) as too many people are absolutely destroying all of this for all of us
It's not really "free" anymore (coming very shortly). Upcoming restrictions to better protect manatees are imminent and needed due to overcrowding and bad behavior. If people would just keep their hands off we wouldn't have this big of a problem). Under current proposals, in water access will be via guided tours only and no touching will be allowed. Upland access is already limited to a commercial tram at $15 per person.
Unfortunately what used to be a serene spot is now overrun with over enthusiastic to out of control swimmers much too frequently.
For more info:
http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Crystal_River/Three_Sisters_Springs_Manatee_Information.html
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Three Sisters Springs
Hours
- Sun - Sat: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
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