Almost 25 years in the past, I visited central Florida’s Silver Springs State Park with my household. We hiked, canoed, watched a stay music present and rode on the park’s iconic glass backside boats. It was a tremendous expertise that I bear in mind fondly.
The glass backside boats, which the park first launched within the 1870s, present passengers with a view down into the crystal-clear waters of one in all Florida’s largest networks of pure springs. Guests are capable of see “numerous species of fish, historic Native American and Spanish artifacts and even underwater film props from the times when Hollywood productions flourished on the park!”
The one drawback: the historic boats haven’t been wheelchair accessible.
That’s about to vary. In line with the Orlando Sentinel, Silver Springs State Park will quickly debut a brand new high-tech and wheelchair accessible glass-bottom boat, making the favored sightseeing expertise on the Silver River accessible for the primary time in 150 years.
When the boat launches within the coming weeks, it’s going to function a wheelchair area with room to show a wheelchair round, in addition to “underwater lights for night time excursions, particular electronics for listening to aids and capability for underwater video cameras.” It will likely be capable of accommodate as much as 30 passengers.
Envisioned by Paula Russo, an worker and former volunteer for the Florida State Parks Basis, the accessible glass backside boat undertaking has taken almost six years to finish. Funding for the brand new boat was generously offered by quite a few sources: $200,000 from Florida State Park Basis; $100,000 from the Felburn Basis; $90,000 from the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund; $20,000 from the Fish & Wildlife Basis of Florida; $10,000 from the Mates of Silver Springs; and $10,000 from Cape Leisure Corp. The State of Florida has agreed to cowl the price of motors, batteries and electronics.
Fairly quickly, wheelchair customers will be capable to get an up-close have a look at the magical Silver Lake, its resident manatees and the aquatic life that makes Florida’s waterways a number of the most stunning on this planet. See you on the water!
Featured picture courtesy Silver Springs State Park.
