Manatee Stake-out As we move further south to the Central Florida area we note that much of the salt marsh is replaced by mangroves. We started seeing the familiar "slow no wake" signs being replaced by "manatee area slow" signs in Georgia. We've wondered since then if indeed the endangered manatee were really in the area or if it was just another way to try to get the boats to slow down. Our curiosity caught, we had to see for ourselves. Our "Skipper Bob" cruising guide showed a small basin at M869.5 ICW, in the Haulover canal as a manatee "hot-spot", so we decided to lay anchor and see if we could spot one. It took about 3 hours of watching the bubbles come to the surface before we finally spotted an adult manatee. It rose about 10 feet off of our bow, had a good look at us, as we it, and re-submerged. An average adult weighs in at 2,000 pounds and measures 11 feet in length. It was hard to miss and quite a thrill to see. The Haulover canal area was also a dolphin "hot-spot". Five made themselves very visible as we waited out the manatee. They were agressively feeding right beside the boat. Each time they came in to the small basin, the strength of their bodies had the water in a full frenzy. While in the Haulover canal, the operator of the bridge, Earl, kindly invited us in to show us the bridge operation.