New years eve moonlight trip!

Well everyone we just wanted to let you know, that Dec 31 is our first ever new years eve moonlight trip. The meeting time at Canoe Escape is 9:45 p.m. Then we head for the river. We will paddle a Little over an hour through the wilderness area to Lettuce Lake, and will arrive a little before midnight. We'll celebrate the new year with a champagne toast and explore the lake for about 30 minutes. Afterward the group will paddle about 45 minutes to the take out.

Reservations are required so call the shop at 813 986 2067

rates are as follows
Tandem Canoe or Kayak $70.00
Solo Kayak $60.00
3rd Passenger in canoe $25.00

sorry no kids under 12.

This is a family friendly event not a booze cruise. This is a fun and unique way to ring in the new years, and we hope to see you.

Moonlight trip report

Well Nov 28 we had our first moonlight trip of the season. It was a small group of 6 canoes but we had a great time. Everyone got to the shop about 4:45 and after getting signed in we hit the water at 5:30. The trip would take up about 3 hours on the water from Trout creek park to Riverhills park. Roughly 5 miles with a break at Lettuce Lake.



Once on the water we took a 15 minute paddle up river from Trout creek park. We normally do this to see a variety Woodstorks, ospreys, herons, egrets, limpkins and spoonbills on that stretch of the river. Once it got dark we headed down stream and paddled under the Flood control gate between Trout Creek Park and I-75.




Now it is finally getting dark. This pick shows the evening sky and it's reflection off the water.



As we moved down stream we entered a section of the river called "the narrows" The river here gets down to about 50' wide for a mile or so. The canopy here blocks the moonlight some what so for this stretch, so it can get really dark. You can however get close to the birds and shore for picture taking.















Once past the narows we came into lettuce lake and took 30 minutes to explore the area. Here you can make out some gator eyes in the pic. They are glowing back red from my headlamp. There is only one gator here. His eyes are reflecting off the water between us making it look like 2 pair of eyes.







Once we got the the lake the temperature dropped down into the high 40's everyone bundles up and was ready to paddle in for some coffee and desert.


The fog started to roll in along the river and it made for some intersting pics. we even encoutered a family of racoons in the fianl stretch.





Ah the bus at the take out, our chariat awaits.




At last we arrive at Perkins for coffee and desert. Great service and pies as usual from the staff at Perkins on Fowler ave. Apple pie and coconut cream seemed to have been the most popular choices this time....well next tot he cofee and hot tea.



Thanks to everyone who came out. I had a great time leading you down the river. Hope to see you all again soon.

Tampa Bay and Company outing

Yesterday Joe and I had a great day on the Hillsborough River with Tampa Bay and Companies FAM tour. A total of 21 meeting planners from around the U.S. came out for a tour on the river. We had a wide range of planners that focused on everythig from fortune 500 companies to schools to church ministries. We paddled trip 1 from Sargeants Park to Morris Bridge park. As is normal this time of year, we saw alot of wildlife. Atleast 40 gators, hundreds of egrets and herons, woodstorks, limpkins and more. After our trip we were greeted at Morris Bridge Park by the catering staff of Mise en Place. This is Tampa's finest French restaurant and catering company. They prepared a lovely spread of fresh grilled food, served on white linen under the shade of the oak trees. This was no doubt the best after trip meal I've had in 18 years on the river!

Here are some pictures from our trip.

Joe is greeting our guests for the fam.




Giving paddling instruction to the group before we hit the water.




Exploring the river.




Stopped at "the Lake" for some fresh fruit, drinks and some nice Florida sun.



My canoe paddling down the river



More shots on the river




Landing at Morris Bridge Park




The Mise en Place catering staff with tables set up for lunch Yum!




Our guests enjoying a gourmet lunch and refecting on their Hillsborough river trip.





We just want to say thanks To Norwood and Susan from Tampa Bay and Company for organizing this event. We had a great time sharing our services with the group and look forward to taking care of their clients.

Guided trip report Joe and Pam

Yesterday I took Pam and Joe down trip one for a guided tour. They were visiting from Connecticut and drove over from the Sheraton Sand Key in Clearwater. Pam and Joe come to Florida once a year to visit family, but this was the first time they paddled on the Hillsborough River. I think Pam looks nervous in this picture. Could it be the Alligators?


After leaving Sargeants Park we headed up into Flint Creek and saw several gators, a limpkin and a variety of Herons. Here is nice 8' alligator enjoying the morning sun in Flint creek.

Once Moving Down stream we found ourselves paddling under the canopy of trees. There was an amazing amount of wildlife out. We saw roughly 40 gators, 6 limpkins, 10 Woodstorks, countless turtles and all the Egrets and herons. November is the Beginning of the wildlife viewing season, and it will continue to get better until it peaks March-May. I've said it before and I'll say it again, you will see more wildlife on a 2 hour canoe ride here than on a week long trip in the Everglades.

About 1 hour into the trip we came to "the Lake" a small section in the middle of the trip where the river gets wide. Usually we take a break somewhere here to eat lunch and observe the wildlife.



Wood Stork in flight.



Camo Gator.



A little further downstream we come to where Cowhouse Creek starts and the Hillsborough turns due North. The next mile you will always see alot of turtles and alligators. Although Pam is now relaxed around the gators, Joe is still keeping a watchful eye.

Sun tanning friends?

Super turtle!

This was another amazing day on Hillsborough river,. We were on the water for 3 hours and for a final treat, I spotted a red shouldered hawk on the bank. It had a banded water snake in his talons! The snake looks like a branch in the photo but if you look close you can see it. From here we had only a few hundred yards to go before ending out trip at Morris Bridge Park.