Splash and Dash In a Seaplane

I’ve been in a small private plane, a traditional passenger plane, a helicopter, a hot air ballon and even a glider. When I had the chance to add one more up-in-the-air adventure, a flight in a seaplane, I jumped at it.

By Kathleen Walls Contributing Publisher of AmericanRoads.net

I’ve been in a small private plane, a traditional passenger plane, a helicopter, a hot air balloon, and even a glider, so when I had the chance to add one more up-in-the-air adventure, a flight in a seaplane, I jumped at it.

History

Seaplane history predates the famous 12 second Kitty Hawk flight make by Wilber and Orvil Wright on December 17, 1903. A Frenchman, Alphonse Pénaud, filed a patent in 1876 for a flying machine with a boat hull and retractable landing gear but was an Austrian, Wilhelm Kress, who built the first seaplane, Drachenflieger, in 1898. It was not successful and sank when one of its two floats collapsed.

The first somewhat successful seaplane flight was a towed kite glider on floats that took off and landed after its 150yard flight on the River Seine on June 6, 1905. Seaplanes were used successfully in both WWI and WWII. With the building of many airports, seaplanes became less popular but are still used for remote areas, forest fire fighting, and maritime patrol.

Tavares: America’s Seaplane City

Tavares, Florida operates Tavares Seaplane Base (FA1), a public-use seaplane base in Lake Dora. Ir has become popular with seaplane pilots from both the US and overseas, who created the city’s nickname, “America’s Seaplane City.”

Tavares has two museums that explore the city’s history. Lake County Historical Museum is located on the first floor of the historic courthouse on Main Street and tracks all of Lake County’s history. Tavares History Museum, is a replica of the old train depot from the days when Tavares was a railroad hub for Central Florida’s citrus industry. It focuses on the history of Tavares. There is an exhibit there about seaplanes.

Splash and Dash

Jones Brothers’ Air and Seaplane Adventures is housed in a wooden administration building at Wooton Park on Lake Dora in Tavares. They offer several flight options. You can choose the Harris Chain & River Run that takes you across Lake Eustis, Lake Griffin, the Harris Chain of Lakes, and the Ocklawaha River. The Gator Tour & Attractions live up to its name by giving you an over-thetop look at Universal Studios, Sea World, and Walt Disney World. St Johns River & Springs tour is and eco tour experience along St. John’s River, America’s only North-flowing river. The Harris Chain of Lakes Sunset Celebration is a sunset flight above the Harris Chain of Lakes, the Ocklawaha River, and Ocala National Forest. I was doing their Splash and Dash tour.

Never having flown in a seaplane, I was a bit nervous when I boarded my flight. Our pilot, Paul, put us at ease and even offered to take pictures of us boarding. We were flying in a 1978 CESSNA Fixed wing single-engine plane with just six small seats including the pilot’s. There was just me and a couple, Bob and Sue. We boarded from a dock in Lake Dora. It was a bit scary when I stepped from the solid wood dock directly into the door of the plane which was bobbing with the waves on the lake. Paul explained that the plane had a 300-horsepower engine and could reach a speed of 132mph.

He glided it over the water like a boat and rose in the air. As we flew over Lake Dora and across the town of Mount Dora it was so much lower than a commercial flight, around 500-feet. We scanned the waters of Lake Dora and spotted an alligator. Paul circled around the Mount Dora Lighthouse. The 35-foot red and white lighthouse stands in Grantham Point Park and is the only freshwater lighthouse in Florida registered as an inland aid to navigation. Its 750-watt photocell powers a blue pulsator sending out a guiding light at the Port of Mount Dora to boaters on the lake at night.

We flew low over fields of blueberries which are currently a big crop in Lake County. The Splash and Dash part of our flight came in the middle of the lake when Paul splashed down and dashed on the plane’s pontoons along Lake Dora for several hundred feet. It was like being in a powerful boat for a few minutes and then we gracefully rose into the air again. This is an amazing experience everyone should try at least once!

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