Aug, 7th 2015
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| DuBois Park |
This has so far been my favorite place to start going out and paddle boarding. It is great for beginners and for advanced as well. From the scenery to the ease of access, this is a fun spot. I've been out of
DuBois Park several times. It is on the inside of the Jupiter inlet where there is a ton of
activity all day. You have sunbathers, people grilling, fishing,
boating, kayaking, paddle boarding ect... If you are lucky you might
even see some great wildlife like I did today. Meet my new buddy
George. He scared the the life out of me at first.
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| George the Manatee |
I had jumped off my board to enjoy the water a cool off. As I'm floating there messing with my GoPro camera I see something moving towards me. I realized it was a manatee but have never interacted with one. I've seen the videos where they have flipped over people before. Like every video though, who knows if there had been any antagonizing prior to the aggression. Anyway, I put the board between myself and George. He veered away, obviously curious as to who I was. I immediately jumped on my board and started to follow him slowly. I kept trying to get a good shot but the clouds were not cooperating with me. They rolled in and made it more difficult to pursue George and get that award winning shot. After hanging out for a little while I started to head back in. To my surprise there is George right next to me. Again I felt a little anxious, but I think that is normal. I finally got a pretty decent underwater shot without bothering my new pal. He hung out with me on my way in to the launch and eventually lost him in the clouds again.
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| Jupiter Inlet |
It was an amazing outing today. This is one of the main reasons I wanted to get a paddle board to begin with. I still have yet to stand up on it yet, but I'm working on it. Hopefully I'll get a pic of a sea turtle next. Two have passed right under me and I'm smiling too much to grab the GoPro quick enough.
Feel free to ask me anything about my adventures. My GoPro setup or my board. If you have any great places in South Florida please share. Next time we will go over safety and what you should be taking with you out on the water.
Have fun and stay active friends. Jim.
