Florida Springs
Terrie and Eli canoeing down Juniper Run - July 4, 1982
Here I was at Juniper Springs August 10, 1985.
When Eli was a little boy we began tent camping to take economy vacations that fit our budget. Frequently we went to Florida Springs. They are all connected to the underground Florida Aquifer, which is the largest aquifer system in the Southeastern United States, covering over 100,000 square miles through parts of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina and all of Florida. Multiple layers of porous rock underground, limestone in our case, is what gives Florida 90% of our drinking water. Billions of gallons of fresh water are there. Over 1,000 artesian springs pour out fresh water on the surface.
Recently Terrie and I had a get away and went to some of the Florida Springs. We began at Silver Springs. I used to go to summer church camp nearby when I was a boy. The glass bottom boats have been going since the 1870's and originally began as a tourist spot in 1852. One captain just retired after 54 years, and sat in a small display greeting folks and answering questions. It is operated as a State Park, so the entry fee is only $2 per person and an additional fee for the glass bottom boat tours. We saw one manatee on our tour. This spring produces 550,000,000 gallons per day from 30 springs, which is claimed to be the largest flow in the world.
Ross Allen Reptile Institute is now shut down. That used to be quite amazing.
Silver Springs is where they used to film the TV series, Sea Hunt, starring Lloyd Bridges. Also way back the early Tarzan movies were filmed there, and even Jackie Gleason filmed a movie there later on, and a James Bond movie, Moonraker, had a scene filmed there, too. Creature of the Black Lagoon was also filmed there, and scenes from Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean and Distant Drums with Gary Cooper. It originally opened in 1878 with glass bottom boat tours. The park covers 4,000 acres today.
Across Highway 40 used to be Six Gun Territory in the 1960’s when we moved to Florida. Now it’s been preempted by Disney, but it was pretty cool to see gunfighters simulate the old western style duels daily and ride the old steam locomotive train. All that remains now is a shopping Plaza called Six Gun Plaza. The old locomotive is now on the Kirby ranch in Williston where they periodically do a reenactment and have some of the western style shootouts.
Ed, Willi, Tom Sager at Six Gun Territory, May 1965
Next on our agenda was Juniper Springs. It had not changed much over the years.
It still produces 13,000,000 gallons per day with Fern Garden Spring. They still operate kayak and canoe rentals to paddle down the river like we did years ago. Being in the Ocala National Forest it cost $12.50 per person to go here, although the Senior passes help cut that in half. It is operated by a private concession.
We happened to see a lady walk by with some other folks dressed in the same colors we were wearing! She turned out to be the author of ‘I Swam With Alligators’, Dr. Diana K. Kanoy. She’s very outgoing and enjoyed a brief visit. She lives in Ft. McCoy nearby. We had our photo taken - she had exchange students with her from Mongolia and a few other exotic places. Quite an experience for high school girls.
Our next stop (Tuesday, November 21) was Salt Springs. This has brackish water and is still in the Ocala National Forest. Blue crabs can be seen down in the spring! It is a second magnitude spring and produces 52,000,000 gallons per day. It used to be used medicinally for bathing many years ago.
We have good memories of church campouts in recent years here and at Silver Glen Springs nearby. Another generation of our family is enjoying the Florida Springs.
October 2018 with Highlands Grace Reformed Church, Sebring.
Finally on Wednesday, November 22, we went to one more, Rainbow Springs in Dunellon. This is another old Florida tourist attraction begun in 1937 and with the modern interstate highway system and Disney it just could not keep going. They used to have animals on display and a botanical garden, too. This one is operated by the State of Florida. It is a first magnitude spring and produces 493,000,000 gallons per day.
We hiked the ‘Yellow Trail’ for about 2.5-3.0 miles through the big scrub. There was what we thought was a sinkhole along it. Turned out it was the remains of a phosphate mining operation from the 1880’s, which was why a developer took it over and it became a tourist attraction instead of a mine. At one time they competed with Silver Springs by having submarine tours and a monorail ride! The waterfalls are still there, and walkways through the gardens along the river.
This was a refreshing getaway and prepared us for a nice visit with Terrie’s sister, Sandra Jayne, and her husband, Chuck Miller in Lecanto. We had a visit with our friends Scott and Carol Kemper who came over after dinner.
The next day we enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving with some of Terrie’s Brooksville relatives at a beach house at Hernando Beach owned by Kyle and Heather Tuttle. What a feast we had! With around 40 attending it was a fun way to wind up our little trip in a very beautiful place with great weather.
As always, it is good to be back home. Thank you, Lord, for the beauty and refreshment of our Florida Springs. Your creation is truly amazing. And I did not even mention Weeki Wachee Springs with the mermaid show! That’s another story I guess. There are so many of them. For us fair-skinned folks who don’t go to the beaches, the Florida Springs are a great alternative. Very refreshing.
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