'Plenty of manatees' expected as organizers ready this year's manatee festival
If ever there was a most opportune time for Orange City's annual manatee festival, it would be days after a record number of manatees appeared at the Blue Spring State Park.
The park reported a total of 932 manatees on Sunday, beating the previous record set on New Year's Day: 736.
When winter arrives in Volusia County, locals line up at Blue Spring State Park to catch a glimpse of the manatees flocking to warmer waters.
And every year the Orange City Blue Springs Manatee Festival celebrates the beloved tradition, while giving the community an opportunity to enjoy a day of fun at Valentine Park in Orange City.
The nonprofit Orange City Blue Springs Manatee Festival Inc. was founded in 1985 “with the mission to facilitate improvements and wellness for West Volusia residents as well as promote environmental awareness in the community to the fullest,” according to the festival’s website.
“We were green before green was cool,” Jeff Allebach, the organization's president since 1995, said in an interview.
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What to expect at the Orange City Blue Springs Manatee Festival
The festival, slated for Saturday and Sunday takes place at Valentine Park, where guests gather to enjoy food, music, crafters, environmental displays, children's games and more.
But since its inception, the festival’s main attraction is encouraging guests to watch manatees at Blue Spring State Park.
And guests count on the festival’s free shuttle service, which is available both days.
“We have four, 50-passenger buses,” Allebach said. “They run continually from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days up to the park.”
The shuttle service, which covers the approximately 1.5-mile distance between Valentine Park and Blue Spring State Park, gives more people a chance to view the manatees.
“What happens at Blue Springs is that the parking lot fills in and people can’t get in to see the manatees,” Allebach said. “When the parking spaces fill, (guests) should be at Valentine Park with us. The buses skirt around the line and get straight to the run to see the manatees.”
He said there is no limit to the number of guests who can take the shuttle during the festival. Once inside the festival, guests get a stamp on their hands and head to the line for the buses.
Valentine Park is operated by the city of Orange City, one of the event's sponsors.
In a statement to The News-Journal, city spokeswoman Madie McCallister said the festival is "great fun for residents and visitors" and also "provides an opportunity to learn about manatees and the need to preserve and protect their unique habitat."
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New this year is a new bounce house in the kids play area, as well as more rides.
Other entertainment features throughout the two days include:
Saturday: World Famous Disconnected K9’s Frisbee Show at 11 a.m. and 1 and 3 p.m.; solo artist Karegan Wodz, noon to 1 p.m.; and live band Caerbanog, 1:30-4:30 p.m.
Sunday: World Famous Disconnected K9’s Frisbee Show at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.; Jeff Howell Band From “Monsters in the Morning” 104.1 Real Radio from 12:30-4:30 p.m.
Disconnected K9’s has been part of the festival for more than 20 years and become a crowd favorite, Allebach said.
The shows often involve dogs with impressive Frisbee-catching skills while members of the audience are invited to participate in different ways.
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“The shows are new every year,” he said. “They are exciting and wonderful. We have a lot of fun.”
University High School’s regiment band will also perform the national anthem both days and a few extra songs, “right off their New Year’s Day parade, where they performed in London, England.”
Festival’s contribution to the community
Approaching its 40th year, the festival is a continued opportunity for locals to show their support and educate themselves about the importance of conserving manatees and their environment, Allebach said.
Since manatees in the St. John’s River area have not seen as big a loss of seagrass, they haven’t suffered as much as those manatees who live in the Indian River Lagoon, where nearly 2,000 have died since 2021.
The festival is a partner of other organizations whose missions are either entirely or partly dedicated to helping manatees, including the Save the Manatee Club, SeaWorld, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and others.
“It’s a whole conglomeration of support to get the word out,” Allebach said of the festival’s partners.
One of the merits of the festival, he said, is its consistency.
“Not trying to be too big, or too much, just the right hometown festival to support the environment and the manatees is what really keeps it going, and that helps the manatees in our area.”
Over the last 28 years, the festival has raised over $500,000, according to its website. “Last year alone over $40,000 was raised to give back to the community.”
Donations are also used to help the residents, specifically “individuals who face hardship or poverty or overwhelming medical expenses,” as well as contribute to “academic scholarships to local high school students to help defray college tuition costs.”
Proceeds also benefit "the Blue Spring State Park ‘wish list,’ area educational scholarships, the sheriff’s DARE program," and many other local programs, according to the festival’s website.
Allebach said he is confident that this year's event will feature plenty of manatees for guests to observe.
“It hadn’t even gotten cold yet in December and there were 116 manatees counted, so we get a little cool snap down to the 40s or 30s and we’ll get a good couple hundred,” Allebach said. “There will be plenty to check out for sure.”
The Orange City Blue Springs Manatee Festival takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets are $10 for adults, $2 for kids (ages 4-10) and free to children 3 and under. Dogs also have a $10 admission fee.
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Valentine Park is located at 1511 W. French Ave. in Orange City.
The Big Red bus will be at the festival outside the entrance on both days. Guests who donate blood can get free admission, Allebach said.
For information, visit themanateefestival.com.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Manatee festival in Orange City: A chance to see manatees and more
