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Writer's pictureAnna Valencia Tillery

Rainbow River our 72nd for Mom's Birthday




At JB’s Tires in Perry, we were in and out with a brand-new tire in mere minutes before continuing our journey southeast. Though we have been to Dunnellon before, years ago when renting a rv from a private fleet and staying at the state park to tube down the Rainbow River, going by boat as a river roamer was a first. After a pit stop at Walmart to stock up on drinks and snacks for the next three nights, we set off to find our rental for mom’s birthday portion of the trip. We rented a single wide home in the Buena Vista community, offering its own private boat ramp and lots of toys through VRBO. However, they meant it when they said a 4pm check-in and so we doubled back after finding it and filled up with rec fuel so we would not have to go back to a gas station throughout our stay. While there, we saw a food truck specializing in wings and fried porkchops. After a 3-hour drive and no real breakfast or lunch, getting some dry rub wings made waiting to check-in far more bearable. After 45 minutes of watching a project wrap up on the unit, we finally were able to off load our truck and camper to settle in. That is, after kindly showing the owner, he had already charged me a pet fee when we booked the home almost a year earlier…Inside the home was quite nice and cozy with plenty of space including a private bathroom and large bed for our son who seemed thrilled to end the trip in such comfort. Our plans were to go out to eat each night to support local businesses since there was no camp to setup or breakdown with each drive. However, we were all tired and dark clouds were rolling in, after our short golf cart ride to see how close the boat ramp was, so we ordered some pizza from a local favorite parlor, as highlighted in the fun book the venue provided, and off the parents went to pick up the order. It was packed at 7:30 though closing time was 8pm, so we felt pretty good about our choice and once back, we were happy with the pizza and linguini with clam sauce. We stayed up to play a few games on the screened in porch and devised a plan for the next morning that entailed leaving Seger at the house so we could use the paddle boards.


On property, the owners provided a free golf cart to use along with john boats, paddle boards, kayaks, and a fun basketball hoop scoring game. After a long walk with Seger, our dog, in the morning and two cups of coffee, we prepped lunch on the boat that had some pretty stringent rules: no disposables on the Rainbow River. The house came stocked with lots of plastic ware to put chips, sandwiches, and fruit in as well as River Life cups so no open cans would be on the boat. Once properly prepped and a canvas bag emptied to served as trash onboard the River Roamer we were off. The community boat ramp was easy to use and though it seemed too shallow, it accommodated us well. We followed the path through the tall grasses and instantly was greeted by hundreds of brightly colored tubes and people floating down the river. We took in the sights and sounds of houses along the river and happy campers enjoying the cool, crystal clear water and sunny skies. Per the owner of our rental, he suggested we take our boat towards the head of the spring and then anchor out where it says no motors beyond this point. From there he suggested pulling out the paddle boards and using those to get to the head of the springs, what a terrific recommendation! Our son, Charlie, was a paddle boarding natural and it felt good to get the exercise. The head of the Rainbow River Springs was jam packed with people in the swimming hole portion, so we turned around and swam around our boat anchored in the water. After posing for our family picture to capture river #72, another family pulled up behind us and we enjoyed hearing their salsa music while we floated and ate lunch before meandering back in. That evening, we dressed casually and went to a local Greek restaurant for dinner. There we all enjoyed Greek salad and gyros with a surprise chocolate ganache for a birthday dessert. Afterwards, we walked along the water’s edge which proved to be the Withlochoochee River and devised our plan for the water on day two.


Our next morning called for rain midday, so we set off a bit earlier and went the opposite way as the day before in search of some island time for our dog to run around. Though we tooled the entire balance of the Rainbow River before merging onto the Withlocoochee and explored it is wide turns for more than an hour, we did not see a single spot that was Seger friendly. What we did see…was a drastic color change in the water once the spring was no longer feeding it. So, we turned around. Back on the Rainbow River, a sudden onslaught of colorful tubes greeted us, accented by paddle boarders and kayakers. Within minutes of heading towards the private community boat ramp, the skies unleashed a rainfall so hard, cold, and consistent; it was far from enjoyable. Thankfully, our Bass Buggy has a small canopy, and we were able to huddle with hat bills to divert the rain from our eyes; the tubers did not have that same luxury. It was impressive to see how quickly the private park flooded, gushing water rushed down the boat ramp as we ran for our truck to load up the boat. Soaked to our cores, we got the boat on the trailer and drove straight back to our vacation rental. Gratefully, we were able to put o dry clothes and play some games then go for a nice golf cart ride before for a bit prior to showering for a dinner out on mom’s actual birthday. Have you heard of “Chicken or the egg” Fun game!


Dinner that night, took us for a short drive to Riviera Mexico. It was a new restaurant in town and on that Friday night, the whole town got the memo. The wooden booths and wall inlays were all colorful, captivating, and full of high energy. It was a perfect way to end the trip and day of my 39th birthday. We ordered a queso filled with chorizo and an order of Mexican corn; it went down quickly. For dinner, Michael and I ordered steak and shrimp fajitas for two; perfectly cooked! Charlie ordered the tacos and devoured them in record time, the salsa was on point and for dessert mom received a birthday shot of tequila. Our server, Mario, was attentive and allowed me to play with the tambourine that came out during the Happy Birthday song. I could not have asked for more.


Relaxing back at the rental spot, it was a cozy and a good night’s sleep was needed for our big day of driving. We had to be out by 10am and with most of the items still on our camper, it was a much easier loading process. With road trip snacks ready, our trio set out for the 4 hour drive home. It was an eight-day journey full of adventure, good food, and even better memories. Hope to see you all out on the river!

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