Air Boat Ride

March 30/2014  Weather ~ Beautiful clear day after the storm, 75.

We are boating people but have never taken an Air Boat ride in Florida.  Many rides are in the Everglades which we hear are quite good.  It's a bit too far to get there so we found a one hour trip in Central Florida's Green Swamp down the Withlacoochee River (Crooked River)  near Inverness on Wild Bills Airboat Rides.  The boat held 21 people it was much larger than we thought it would be, but it was fast and the seating was tiered so everyone had a great view.  Oh yes and loud.  You get ear muff noise protectors which you want to wear.  Our captain was born and raised on the banks of the river, he was proud to tell us he was a Cracker.   (just to understand the slang, a Cracker is a descendant from families who have lived in the state for many generations. It is considered a source of pride to be descended from "frontier people who did not just live but flourished in a time before air conditioning, mosquito repellent, and screens")

The ride is excellent.   Scenery is eerie and since it is spring the colors are so intensely green.  Yes we saw a bit of wildlife; an Osprey in her nest, a gator laying in the banks of the river, a rattlesnake slithering across the top of the river and yet another snake called a water bandit also making its way across the water.   Highly recommend you put this exhilarating ride on your bucket list.