About five miles upriver, nonprofit environmental groups Friends of the Hillsborough River and Tampa Bay Sierra Club welcome boats—and especially paddlers—to get in the water, all decorated and shit complete with battery operated lights, for a short trip to Sulphur Springs as part of the “Hillsborough River Holiday Boat Parade.”
The route officially launches at the Lowry Park boat ramp just before sunset, and goes to the Bird Street overpass, then paddles back. Life jackets must be worn at all times, and the deadline for mandatory advanced registration is Saturday, Dec. 10 at 5 p.m.
Heavy rain will force a cancellation, but if it sprinkles, you’ll have plenty of company—some years there have been as many as 200 people.
This article appears in Dec 1-7, 2022.