Rainbow Springs--What Once Was.

In the decades between the time Florida was popularized as a tourist destination and the time Disney changed the face of tourism in the state, there were hundreds of various amusement parks there. Many of these parks had been based around the first and second magnitude springs that had ended up in private hands. In fact, many of the greatest freshwater springs in Florida were privately owned, and of those number, quite a few had amusement parks built around them.

Some of these amusement parks were fairly low-key, counting on the vast pools of water to attract the ticket-buyers. But others were far more complex with rides, additional gardens, glass-bottom boats, zoos, and other attractions. One of the more detailed of these parks was Rainbow Springs.

In its day, Rainbow Springs was a major tourist attraction in Florida. People came not only to see the amazing first magnitude spring billowing the millions of gallons of pure, fresh water, but to also take in the rest of the attraction. To paraphrase Richard Attenborough in JURASSIC PARK, someone "spared no expense". The infrastructure of the amusement park, although long since moth-balled, is still impressive on modern review.

Among the things that the park had was a fairly impressive small zoo. Many parts of this zoo are still standing, and quite solidly at that. Of course the enclosures have been mainly taken down and there are no more exotic creatures in them, but the walls and outlines can be seen. In addition, there was a huge aviary there; one can still see the massive steel and concrete anchors that once held up the gigantic metal skeleton and nets.

A part of the park now is called "the Butterfly Garden" and is planted with native flora to attract butterflies. But up until the park was closed as a commercial concern, that area had a corral and was home to a western-style rodeo.

And in various places around the park there are waterfalls. The owner had added to the already hilly terrain of the slope above the head spring to create towers of earth and rock. These were specifically engineered and landscaped to create a surface upon which waterfalls were constructed. Some of these artificial waterfalls are very impressive. The water is pumped to the highest points to big clear pools where gravity takes it back down over rocky overhangs producing waterfalls suitable for even the hills of North Carolina. To me, this is one of the most impressive things about the faded ghost of the old amusement park.

Today, most of the flash is gone--the zoo, the rodeo, the aviary, and the rides that included the glass-bottom boats and a rather unique submarine that had been built to allow visitors to sit below water level as the craft took them on a circuit around the massive Rainbow Spring. But you can still see the substrate upon which all of this was built. Like almost all of the other amusement parks that were based around Florida's gorgeous freshwater springs, this one ended up in the hands of the people of Florida where it can be enjoyed by everyone for a couple of bucks, instead of an expensive admission ticket.

So the rapacious Disney corporation was good for one thing--it was obviously instrumental in causing all of these great springs to end up in the hands of the State of Florida.

(And here is a site with a little bit of information on old Lost Florida.)

Rainbow Springs, the natural feature around which the old park was constructed.

Waterfalls? Really? (Well, not really.)

The trails and boardwalks are renovated when needed, but are built on the same template laid down by the private owners from decades before.

One of the largest of the fake waterfalls.

This was my favorite of the fake waterfalls.

The main center of the old amusement park is still in use. Here are the park offices, a shop where you can buy State Park stuff, and a bit of a burger/sandwich/ice cream joint and dining area where you can enjoy your food.

Some of these man-made waterfalls really are quite pretty.

Brick laid decades ago still serves perfectly today.

This was once a pool that held some kind of aquatic critters. Now it's a giant planter.

Journey to Gum Slough.

One day Carole went into the park office to ask the rangers about some good places to go kayaking to find out of the way springs. One ranger is particular seemed to know quite a lot about the various locations of lesser known springs and told us that a good one was Gum Slough (pronounced "slew"). It was about 30-minute drive to an out-of-the-way boat launch. So we decided this was going to be our destination for the day and loaded up with directions and headed out.

Without a lot of trouble we found the boat launch (that was indeed located out in the sticks), and were soon underway. The water of the main channel we were traveling was dark and shallow. Around us was mainly forest, with a few old fishing shacks and some camps built into the forest on the left bank. About thirty minutes into the paddle we noticed a park area on the left bank and headed over to see it.

We were very surprised to find what is apparently a National Forest group camp. It consisted of a large maintained open grassy field surrounded by thick forests with two small sandy beaches appropriate for swimming or launching boats and kayaks. There are also picnic tables and a very clean vault toilet. Deciding that this place was too pretty to just view and leave, we got out our lunches and ate there at a picnic table close to the water's edge. The weather was good--partly cloudy with mild temperatures--and we were not bothered by bugs. We had pleasant meal and we took some photos of the camp and the views along the waterway and then we jumped back aboard our kayaks and continued on our way to find Gum Slough.

After paddling for no more than ten minutes beyond the camp we looked down to note that the water had gone from dark and murky to suddenly clear blue and clean, and rather deeper. Peering to our left, we could see that we had obviously reached Gum Slough and the influx of clear fresh water from the spring heads that were waiting to be seen far upstream into the dense jungle beyond.

So we turned and headed upstream on Gum Slough.

The stream was a weird one to me. The water was mainly shallow and only occasionally opened up into deep pools, always crystal clear. The farther upstream we went the more intense the current became and I found myself very much wanting to see the spring that had produced this run. Around us the forest pressed in close, and the way was full of downed trees and limbs, most of which we were able to float above. I could see where some enterprising group had come in to saw away and remove the worst of the deadfall, but not all of it. Later, we found out that a kayak club maintains the stream, but leaves as much debris in the water as necessary to keep out motorboats. My hat's off to this clever group!

As we paddled along we saw some wildlife. Mainly birds and fish, with a spectacular Barred owl who landed on the limb of a hardwood above to stare down at us with what seemed a disapproving glare. We pushed on, anxious to see the head spring.

But, eventually, we had to face the fact that we could not make it all the way to the end of the spring run. The debris in the waterway was just too heavy--even for kayaks--for the drought had left the stream level just too low to allow us to float over the deadfall in the water. With a great deal of disappointment, we finally faced the fact that we would have to turn around without reaching the main spring.

After that we just took our time fighting our way back along the wood-choked stream. Too soon we were back out on the main channel and paddling back toward the boat launch without having reached our destination. But that's okay. We saw a lot of wildlife, including some otters, and having not reached the headwaters of Gum Slough give us a reason to return for another attempt.

The Fish Camp just beyond where we put into the river.

Panorama of the river.

I know some people get into the whole religion thing. But this was just way too creepy for me.

The ever present Black buzzards. They are everywhere we go in Florida.

Lesser Blue Heron.

The National Forest group camp we stumbled upon.

Picnic table where we had lunch. Nice, clean vault toilet beyond.

Quickly after reentering the river we reach the clear water of Gum Slough and are anxious to see the spring that births it.

Birdsong greets us as we head upstream into wilderness.

This wonderful Barred owl stood on a perch and looked down on us.

This is the low water level that robbed us of our goal.

Carole precedes me downstream as we head back out to the main channel.

The dark water of the main channel.

I love the ever-present Great blue heron. They are tremendous predators. People don't realize what effective hunters they are, preying on not just fish but turtles, snakes, mammals, and even young alligators. The theropod predator still lives with us!

On the Silver River

I had thought that most of the rivers and spring runs produced by the very large freshwater springs in Florida were immune to drought. But they are also influenced by periods of low rainfall. We witnessed this one our trip, most dramatically on the Silver River which appears full cloth from the mouth of the tremendous Silver Springs.

We found that the level of the river was down by about two feet from our last visit here. But the spring is so vibrant and produces such a tremendous volume of water that the current remains very powerful and the river very deep. It was still chock-a-block with wildlife and even at low ebb is still an impressive waterway.

I was happy to see that the feral monkeys are still thriving along the wild state park property. These rhesus monkeys are here because of various escapes from old movie sets and a monkey habitat that was once part of a private park somewhere along the river. Various enterprising monkeys took off on their own, and a large number--from what I've read--got loose after a hurricane destroyed their enclosure. Thus, the area is now home to several hundred feral monkeys. I've been told that the State of Florida has done studies on the impact of this invasive species on the local environment and found them largely harmless inhabitants and have chosen to leave them alone. I like that.

Like most of the other major springs in Florida, Silver Springs was destined to end up in the hands of the public, which is as it should be. It always bothered me that so many of these great places had been locked up in private property. But the old parks that had been built around these magnificent springs began to decline in attendance when Disney sucked all the air out of the room. Silver Springs was one of the last to give in to the fading audience of idiot tourists but is, at last, being transferred to state ownership.

We almost immediately noticed that the Silver River was running lower than normal.

Strange to see so much root system exposed.

As you can see here, the water was at least two feet below normal.

We saw a large group of feral rhesus monkeys. The young one at the bottom had just caught and eaten some kind of bug, so the other one was interested as they searched for more bits of mobile protein to ingest.

This guy was on the bank, same side as the monkey group, about forty or fifty feet down from them.

Even in low water the Silver River is an impressive spring run.

Some extra color.

More color.

I'm not exactly sure what these are, but I think they may be snail eggs.

The exposed root system and series of cypress knees looked like a picket fence arranged to protect the tree from the flow of the river.

First Day on the Spring Runs.

We began our vacation by leaving rather later than we intended and loading up in the dark. I drove as far as I could and we pulled into a rest area somewhere in Georgia where we climbed into our trailer and went to sleep. Generally, we try to start our trailer vacations this way because it helps to cut the stress of driving long distances.

The next day we headed out at the crack of dawn and got to our campsite at Rainbow Springs State Park. We chose this park for several reasons, among them the fact that the campground had full hookups (water, electric, and sewer), and that it was central to a number of the springs we had chosen to visit. The first day there we got my kayak (to add to Carole's), and just mainly scoped out what we were going to do over the next few days.

The weather was pretty good to us. Temperatures were unseasonably mild, the bugs were likewise mild, and we hardly had to use the air-conditioner in the trailer at all. What was a bit strange is that this part of Florida is apparently in a pretty bad drought, so the levels of the rivers and streams was down quite a bit. This would have some impact on us later on.

I have to say...getting away from cities I am reminded more and more how disconnected I have become from society at large. You can have your crowds and your craziness. My preference remains what we have left of Mother Nature in her wild state. Give me the forests and creeks, the mountains and waterfalls. I'll watch the critters move through the trees and the rest of you can rub elbows in the city streets.

This was our campsite at the Rainbow Springs State Park. It looks rather exposed, but in fact it was shaded for most of the day, getting full sun only in the later afternoon.

We wasted no time in getting out on the Rainbow River. The day we paddled it, though, was a Saturday, and the river was rather crowded. Unfortunately not just with other kayakers and canoe enthusiasts, but with your gas-belching power boats.

There are almost always lots of turtles on the rivers and spring runs. They don't let you get close, though, so you have to take photos with telephoto settings.

I know this is a lousy shot...but it's almost impossible to take photos of river otters. This one was fishing and he caught a fish while I watched. Gobbled it right down, too, on the fly.

A barred owl we saw on the ride upstream. We saw a lot of barred owls this trip. I don't know if it was the luck of the draw, or if there are just a lot more of them now.

Good ol' Snowy egret.

Carole in her Wilderness Pungo 120 kayak as we paddle down the Rainbow River.

Home!

We're back from vacation. The cats have forgiven us.

I'll post more tomorrow. Now to rest.

My old stand-by, the Great blue heron. They're always on the waterways.

Despite appearances, these spring boils are not thermal. Merely clear, fresh water welling up from the limestone and bubbling through the very fine white and brown sands.

Heading Out.

Well, we're headed down to Florida to kayak some of the first magnitude springs. We're going to spend probably every single day kayaking. I hope to get some really decent wildlife photos. The website will remain pretty much static until we return, barring any access I can stumble upon to WiFi. If I do that, I'll post some updates from my laptop computer. The only bummer is that Andy couldn't go with us because he ended up getting a new job. Oh, well. At least he's employed again.

All of these photographs were taken on, or on the banks of, some of the first magnitude springs we've explored in Florida.

The Seven Major Laws of Zombies

We all know the religious fundamentalists. The guys who believe in, and adhere to, the letter of their holy books as published for them to see and read.

I never thought I'd compare myself in any way to those jokers, but in one strain of thought, I am a fundie.

I'm a Romero zombie fundamentalist.

Yeah, that's right. You don't like it? Then kiss my happy white zombie-writin' ass.

Here are the rules as laid down by the Great Prophet of Zombies, George A. Romero (gore be upon his name).

 1: Zombies are slow. That's right. No running zombies. No dashing zombies. No zombies out to win an Olympic race. They are slow. They are implacable. They do not give up.

2: Zombies only eat living human flesh. No eating other animals. They target living humans and kill and eat only living humans. Why? I couldn't give fuck one why. That's the way Romero made them, goddamn it.

3: They decay, but very damned slowly. They do rot, but as put forth in Romero's DAY OF THE DEAD, there is something that inhibits uncontrolled decay in them and they can last for years as zombies.

4: They are pretty much mindless. Bub (from DAY OF THE DEAD) standing almost as a fluke, zombies are pretty damned stupid and have only rudimentary memories of their lives before rising from the dead. Zombies do not operate machinery, and they don't figure out complicated puzzles or communicate with one another. They're dead. They're all messed up.

5: All people rise from the dead within a couple of hours after dying. Doesn't matter how you die, you come back to life, unless your brain was destroyed.

6: If you are bitten, you will get sick, and you will succumb, and you will rise from the dead. What is the reason for the raging fever that kills you? Hell if I know. Sepsis? I don't know. I don't really care. So it is written, so shall it be.

7: The only way to put down a zombie for good is to destroy its brain. As Chilly Billy says: "Bash 'em or burn 'em. They go up pretty good."

These are the Seven Major Laws of the Romero Zombie. Anything else is heresy and should be roundly condemned as such. I have spoken.

New Additions to My Comic Collection

Latest additions to my Jack Kirby Fantastic Four collection. Conceived by Kirby (and Kirby alone). Written by Kirby (and Kirby alone). Penciled by Kirby (and Kirby alone).

After the editing debacle of FANTASTIC FOUR #66-67, it seems that Kirby was not in the mood to deliver any more marketable creations to the thieving bastards at Marvel. For the longest time Kirby was still delivering top-notch, action-packed superhero adventures, but if you judge on the basis of new characters, he was mainly just giving Goodman and Lee cookie-cutter androids and aliens as villains. And no more great new superheroes to join the pantheon he'd already created. This particular android is telling. Not even a face that the corporate pigs could steal.

Fun stories, but few new properties for Marvel to steal and merchandise.

Kirby must have liked The Wizard. He introduced him initially as a Human Torch villain in STRANGE TALES, but kept going back to him again and again. He seemed like a good foil for Reed Richards (they were both technological geniuses), but the arch-enemy role was already filled by Doctor Doom. However, that didn't stop Kirby from returning to The Wizard as one of the FF's mainstay villains for many an adventure.

I can afford to get these later issues of FANTASTIC FOUR in higher grade. As I narrow down the focus to the issues before #21 (I only have a few before that number), I'll have to settle for lower condition copies.

This is my copy of STRANGE TALES #102, which has the first appearance of The Wizard. Initially, Kirby intended him as a villain to face the Human Torch in the backup series in Strange Tales. But he realized that the guy would make an effective antagonist for the entire Fantastic Four, and soon brought him to the pages of Marvel's best-selling comic by teaming him with other villains to form The Frightful Four, an evil analog of the Fantastic Four.