Bioluminescence Kayak Tour – Titusville, FL

As 1 out of the only 5 bioluminescent bays in the world, Mosquito Lagoon in Florida is home to the Cone Jellyfish (jelly-like sea creatures that glow in the water) and Dinoflagellates (bioluminescent plankton). And the best thing is you can kayak out in the middle of it. So obviously, the bioluminescence kayak tour was one of the first things to go on our itinerary as we planned our Florida adventures. We decided to go with A day Away Kayak since they have awesome reviews from our research.

STATS:

Where:
Website: A day Away Kayak

Launch Sites:
Haulover Canal (Titusville): 28°43’51.1″N 80°45’39.8″W
(this launch site is a lot darker than the one at Kiwanis Island Park, so it might give you a better view of the bioluminescence. It also has more bugs and wildlife such as dolphins and manatees.)

Kiwanis Island Park: 951 Kiwanis Island Park Rd, Merritt Island
(this launch site is closer to civilization so it’s not as dark as the Haulover Canal. But it also has fewer bugs and wildlife such as dolphins and manatees.)

Restrooms: 
There are porta-potties at the Haulover Canal Launch Point and regular restrooms at the Kiwanis Island Park in Merritt Island.

Level: Easy

Estimated Completion Time:
About 2 hours of paddling on the water

Ideal Weather: 
Calm, dry days are the best. It’s not super fun to be paddling in the rain.

Ideal Time: 
Bioluminescent Dinoflagellates: June – Early October (July and August are the best months.)
Comb Jelly Bioluminescence Tour: November – early April ( January and February are the best months.)

You’ll also want to plan your bioluminescence kayak tour around a new moon since moonlight will drown out the light from the water making it more difficult to see.

Dog-friendly: No

THE ADVENTURE:

When we booked our bioluminescence kayak tour, we picked the Haulover Canal as our launch point. The Canal is located inside the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. It is about 20 minutes drive from Titusville to the Haulover Canal. This drive was beautiful as it took you to what seemed like a hidden part of Florida. The best part about this launch point, obviously besides the bioluminescence, is the Manatee Observation Deck, right before you turn left to the launch site.

If you pick the Haulover Canal for your tour, make sure to give yourself a few minutes to spend at the Manatee Observation Deck. We got there right about sunset time, with just enough light to see the manatees resting along the shore. They are adorable. You can only observe them from here. Summer is the best time to see these gentle giants here at the Haulover Canal. If you want to kayak and/or swim with these manatees, you have to go to Crystal River for that. From the observation area, you can also see dolphins swimming through the canal. We saw a couple of dolphins while we were there.

After you’re done here, head back out to the main road and make a left on a small dirt road, almost right across from the Observation Deck. There were a few other tour companies here, sharing the same launch site. Just make sure to check in with the van that has the A Day Away Kayak logo on it.

Our guide, Jayden, must have had a sixth sense because shortly after we exited our car, he hopped out of the van to introduced himself. We knew almost immediately that we were going to get along just fine. You can tell that he loves his job and is passionate about making sure that everyone has a great experience. Jayden is an avid kayaker. Even on most of his days off, you can find him paddling the same waterways in his own personal kayaks. You can tell that he truly enjoys teaching people about these super unique creatures. 

It is very important to wear long pants, long-sleeves shirts, and water shoes to help protect yourself from bugs and mosquitoes. Don’t forget to spray yourself with bug spray as well. They call this area Mosquito Lagoon for a reason. The whole place is full of bugs, especially when it gets darker.

While we waited for the other people on our tour, we were treated to a beautiful sunset. As the darkness began to engulf our surroundings, we saw headlights approaching in distance. It was the rest of the group. We saw 4 silhouetted figures emerged and hurried over to join us and Jayden. The funny part is that we never did get to see what they looked like.

At this point, all we could see was Jayden’s green glow sticks and a red flashing beacon that he had on his vest. Jayden proceeded to hand out our life jackets, paddles along with a blue glowstick, a whistle and a small flashlight to use in case of emergency. After a quick rundown about some guidelines of the tour and safety instructions, it was time to head to the boats.

Since we were paddling at night, all the kayaks on the bioluminescence kayak tour were tandem, for safety reasons. It was pitch black here, except for the stars and our glowing glowsticks. Our flashlights were only to be used for emergencies such as falling into the water. The flashlights can ruin the bioluminescence experience or they might be distracting boats and other kayakers if used for other things.

Eventually, our eyes adapted to the darkness so it wasn’t so bad. It was a little windy and started to drizzle as we pushed off. The wind definitely helped keep the bugs away. They also seemed to prefer to stay onshore as well so we were safe from being eaten alive. Lucky for us, the rain stopped almost as soon as it started and held off for the rest of the night. Once everyone launched, we all started to follow Jayden’s green glowstick as it headed to the left of the launch point.

Since the wind was against us, it was a little harder to paddle. We also moved a bit faster at the beginning to get to the darker area for better viewing of the bioluminescence. Despite all of it, Jayden did a great job making sure we were at a very manageable pace. We had different experience levels of kayakers with us that night but Jayden was always on top of his game. He always slowdown or circled around to make sure no one was left behind.

At first, the glow was almost so subtle that I almost didn’t notice it. It looked like little sparks trailing behind our paddles as they cut through the water. As we got closer to the darker area of the waterway, it got brighter. It was also because these planktons were just starting to wake up. Even though the Dinoflagellates planktons are simple single-cell organisms, they are smart enough to be on a strict time schedule. They won’t glow in the day time even if you put them in a dark room. They reach their brightest right around midnight. One burst of light is all that one individual plankton can do in 24 hours period. So feel special if they used their energies to glow for you.

As we pulled into the darker area, Jayden told us to put our hands in the water and swirl them around. As our hands moved, the water around them started to glow. We also could see these tiny little sparks slipping through our fingers. These were Comb Jellies. At the time that we went, we were in between the Dinoflagellates bioluminescence season and the Comb Jelly season so we were able to see both. Jayden used a little net to scoop up a few silver dollar-sized Comb Jellies and let us hold them.

Comb Jellies are not jellyfish. They are transparent, jelly-like invertebrates with bright, iridescent color bands. When disturbed at night, the color bands of these tiny creatures glow. They also don’t sting and are quite harmless. They set off these tiny glowing sparkles when you jiggle them around in your hand. It felt like holding a piece of jello. After spending some time with our slimy friend that we affectionately named “Sparky”, we wished him well and released him back into the water.

After this, Jayden guided our bioluminescence kayak tour to a dark cove and let us play with the glowing water. We felt like Harry Potter as the water glowed which each of our hand motions. The plankton was definitely starting to wake up now. The glow was getting significantly brighter.

I have to say, paddling in the almost complete darkness is quite an experience. Your sense of hearing is heightened. You can hear every single noise out there, from the fish leaping or a manatee splashing in the water. It was a little bit creepy and awesome at the same time. Of course, since we were in Florida, I had to ask the obvious question: “Is there any alligator here?” Jay told us that even though the alligators don’t prefer to stay in this area, they were seen here before since it is Florida after all. That being said, they are opportunistic feeders. This means they won’t try to attack kayakers, especially a group of us. So you can set your fears aside. Jayden also does a great job checking the shorelines with his flashlight to ensure our safety.

According to Jayden, the scariest thing that might happen is if you accidentally run into a sleeping manatee. They are harmless creatures. However, if you startle them, they might thrash around. In this case, they’ll either take you for a ride or possibly tip your kayak over. Luckily, this doesn’t happen often at all. And if you do fall down, you’ll have your life vest and flashlight to keep you afloat and easy to find. What happens more frequently is fish jumping onto your boat. They aren’t dangerous but it is a bit scary if you can’t see what is jumping around in your boat in the dark.

As we paddled along, our surroundings continued to get darker. Because of this, the glow of the water got brighter. The best time to do a bioluminescence kayak tour is during July or August. According to Jayden, it can get so bright that you can see light trails in the water when things are moving. This can range from tiny fish to manatees, dolphins, and occasional sharks. They sometimes swim directly underneath your kayak. This can be eerie. We didn’t see anything large go under us so I guess sometimes, ignorance can be bliss.

At one point, the area got dark enough that we could start to see the brilliant Milky Way above us. I was surprised that we were able to see a very clear Milky Way being so close to the large cities nearby. From here, Jayden let us take our time to enjoy the gorgeous glowing water and the magnificent Milky Way. He encouraged us to ask him any questions we might have and proceeded to tell us about the area and the animals here. It was a very peaceful moment as we took a deep breath and enjoyed the stillness around us along with the breathtaking display of Mother Nature.

After everyone was ready to leave, we leisurely paddled back. The wind was in our favor this time around so it was a breeze going back. As we crossed back under the bridge, we can hear a faint drumming sound. We weren’t sure what we were hearing. Lucky for us, Jayden jumped in and told us it actually came from a fish. It is a special called Black Drum Fish. They can get up to 100 lbs. They make a loud drumming or croaking sound by vibrating their swim bladder using special muscles. It sounded kind of similar to an emu. We have never heard of anything like that before.

The way back was a lot faster as we did a loop instead of an out and back. Before we knew it, we were back at the launch point. We had an amazing and very educational time with Jayden. We definitely want to come back for the bioluminescence kayak tour during the peak season. A big shout out to A day Away Kayak for the awesome photos and videos since the conditions weren’t optimal enough for us to take decent photos. If you love kayaking, check out these awesome kayaking spots: Mono Lake, Shoshone Falls, Sand Harbor in Lake Tahoe.

Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and sign up for our newsletter!

RECOMMEND GEAR:
Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.

•  Water shoes
We usually use ALEADER Women’s Mesh Slip-on Water Shoes for Vy’s shoes and ALEADER Men’s Quick Drying Aqua Water Shoes for Dustin’s shoes

• Towel
In case you get wet

• Light long sleeves shirt and long pants
To help with the bug situation. Also, make sure these are clothes that you don’t mind getting a little bit wet.

•  Jacket
Depends on the season, it might get cold and windy. We love our packable Patagonia Puff Jackets! You can get Vy’s version here, and Dustin’s version here

• Camera and Drybag
Optional. The camera is quite useless to take pictures of the bioluminescence unless it is really bright but good for capturing people.

•  Water/Snack
We didn’t use our water or snacks but it’s good to bring just in case.

•  Bug spray
We recommend Bug spray with DEET and baby oil for no-see-ums. There are a lot of bugs and mosquitoes!! We use Repel HG-94108 100 Insect Repellent and it seemed to help.

CAMERA GEAR:
•  Camera:
   Sony a7 III
   Gopro Hero 7 Black

•  Lenses:
   Sony 24 -70mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar T Zoom Lens    

•  Accessories:
  GoPro The Handler Floating Hand Grip – Official GoPro Mount   
Aluminum GoPro protection frame

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