If you are looking for an “eco-friendly” adventure through the protected waters of West Bay in Panama City Beach, then Captain Rick Ackerman with Airboat Adventures is your man. You may remember him from our article on the Betsy Ann Riverboat – well, murder mystery cruises aren’t the only trick up his sleeve.
7 minutes up Highway 79, under the new bridge that spans West Bay lies Airboat Adventures – the tag line reads: “Bay County’s #1 Eco Tour Company.” Guiding you to the boats, a cartoon gator points the way to the parking lot. As we pull in, Captain Rick directs us to where he wants us to park.
I have my brother with me, who was visiting from out of town, and we’re all excited to experience an airboat ride. I’d never done anything like this before. We had 10 (including my party) going on our tour, but the SwampVette seats 18, 6 people per row. Their other airboat is smaller, nimbler, named MudStang and seats 6. They both run modified roaring V-8′s that sound oh so beautiful.
We were all handed our ear protection and asked to board the boat for an adventure that included some water acrobats, gator sightings and a little bit of R & R with gorgeous mother nature.
We started off slow, as the 4-blade carbon fiber propeller gained momentum. As the RPM’s increased, our speed increased and water began to pass under the flat-bottom boat at speeds of up to 35 mph. Trailing behind us was a cloud of water mist as the spray was blown into teeny tiny drops from the blades spinning at 3,000 revolutions per minute. Little wake, however, is created by these types of boats as the water intrusion is minimal. Airboats only need a few inches of water to perform.
As we soared over the calm waters of West Bay, little did we know that we were about to be victims of Captain Rick’s first acrobatic antic of the day. After intentionally clipping a tight corner around a small grass covered island Captain Rick broke hard right, causing the entire 25 foot vessel to wip around, dipping the front of the boat down and lifting the back of the boat completely out of the water for a split second in what I came to call the “flippy-turn-around-thingy”. Scared, I held my camera high as I was very lightly (surprisingly) sprayed with just a little bit of water – my camera was fine. Of course, those who know me know I’m a big sissy. Everyone else was thrilled, including my 5 year old son.
“In no other boats can you do a maneuver like that,” said Captain Rick, “that is one of the many things that make an airboat unique.” Captian Rick used to pilot aircraft, and now pilots airboats.
Our first adventure off the beaten path included a calm, quiet ride up one of the many off shoot creeks to explore for gators. “This gator we’re about to see up here’s name is Payroll,” said Ackerman, “because he’s always where he’s supposed to be.” Captain Rick is speaking with a little bit of a country/cajun accent today, as opposed to his casual way of talk he normally carries. All part of the show. We quietly coasted up the creek, cutting the engines and floating along. Payroll was nowhere to be found. Captain Rick asked us to put our ear protection back on, cranked up the motor, and we moved on.
As we explored up the Intercoastal, we came across two Osprey nests Ackerman said had been there as long as they’d been doing the tours, which was 10 years. Not sure if she was one of the owners of the nest, we spotted an Osprey watching over us from about 150 feet in the air. This was one of the coolest experiences we had as it really defined where we were and how beautiful it really was. All of us were astounded that not one, but two nests were still delicately placed in the same location as they had been for at least the last 10 years, only a mere handful of miles from bustling civilization. This truly was mother nature at her finest.
An interesting fact: Ospreys are mates for life, once they find a mate, they are with them for the rest of their lives. Quick joke: Why are there no divorces among Osprey? No lawyers. 
Throughout the one hour tour, we ventured up and down various creeks learning about brackish water and the fact that depending on conditions and bait used, a fresh-water or salt-water fish could be caught. We learned about the special breed of grass that grows on the shoreline and islands these waterways are peppered with. We learned how to find where gators had been sunning and we learned a little about ourselves, being given an opportunity to get a small glimpse of life on the protected waterways of West Bay.
When we got back to shore, Captain Rick brought out Chomps, a 3 foot long 4 year old gator with a hair tie around his mouth. Allligators have tremendous strength in their jaws to close their mouth and “chomp” down, but very little muscle to open with. In fact, all it takes is a little bit of tape to keep their mouth closed. Of course, Chomps was just a name, he was born in captivity and has been held all his life. He was very docile and quite willing to be passed around, seeming to enjoy the attention.
The half hour tours cost $18.95 for adults and $11.95 for kids and the one hour tours are $28.95 for adults and $21.95 for kids. For more information, visit www.SwampVette.com.
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