Very disappointing experience at Alexander Springs today.
We visited Alexander Springs today, September 13th, and had an extremely uncomfortable experience that completely changed our opinion of the park.
Around 3:30 PM, after kayaking, my boyfriend, his uncle, and I went into the bathroom/shower area to rinse off. There were already a few people inside. We used one of the shower stalls to rinse off the lake water, and the entire thing took less than five minutes.
There was a large gap in the shower stall where people could clearly see inside, so we placed a towel over the door for privacy. After I finished showering, I got dressed while my boyfriend rinsed off. His clean clothes and towel were hanging over the door.
I was facing the door and reached for the towel when I suddenly felt a pull and the towel and clothes were gone. We looked at each other completely confused. I immediately looked underneath the stall and saw the clean clothes on the floor, but the towel was gone. I opened the stall and there was nobody there.
I asked out loud, "Who took our towel?" Nobody responded.
As soon as we left the bathroom, we immediately checked the trash cans because we had gotten out so quickly that whoever took the towel would have had to be right there. One of the men who had been inside the bathroom was already sitting at a bench directly outside with a bag. There were three trash cans in that area, and one of them was literally about a foot away from where he was sitting.
We checked all three trash cans and couldn't find the towel. At that point, there was nobody else around except us and this group. The man continued staring at us and mumbling while we were looking.
We asked him if he took the towel, and he said no. We continued looking and eventually asked again. Then his wife and children joined him, and the wife became extremely aggressive toward us while they argued and yelled.
We asked staff if they could check the cameras, but were told they couldn't. After going back and forth trying to figure out what happened, we eventually decided to leave.
As we were walking away, we heard them yelling and cursing at us from across the park, including, "Come get your towel, bitch!" At that exact point, a staff member came out with our towel and it was pulled from the trash can that had been sitting about a foot away from this group the entire time.
That was incredibly telling.
The towel itself is NOT the main issue. The issue is that someone took our personal belongings while my boyfriend was still showering. The clean clothes were left on the floor, and the towel was taken. Had the clothes been taken as well, he would have been left with nothing to put on. It felt intentional, humiliating, and completely unnecessary.
And honestly, after everything that happened the fact that they were the only people around, the man sitting directly next to the trash can, the constant staring and mumbling, the aggressive reaction when we questioned him, and then hearing them yell "come get your towel" right before the worker pulled it out of the trash next to them I genuinely don't understand what the reason could have been other than a problem with the fact that two men were using the shower stall together.
We came to Alexander Springs to kayak, enjoy the water, and have a good day. Instead, we left extremely frustrated and disappointed by the experience.
We appreciate the staff member who ultimately found and returned our towel and the staff members who apologized to us. But visitors shouldn't have to deal with having their belongings taken, being yelled at, or being made to feel uncomfortable simply while using the park's facilities.
The towel was recovered. Unfortunately, the experience is what we'll remember. read more