OK, so on our last full day (Sunday) stay at Manatee Spring State Park, we decided to paddle part of the Santa Fe River. The Santa Fe river itself is interesting because it disappears underground at O'Leno State Park in a lazy whirlpool.
http://www.floridastateparks.org/oleno/default.cfm
It follows subterranean passageways for 3 miles and re-emerges at River Rise State Preserve.
http://www.floridastateparks.org/riverrise/default.cfm
The portion we decide to paddle was going to be an out and back since we did not have a shuttle vehicle, tho shuttles and outfitting can be arranged, and is provided by Santa Fe River Outpost.
http://www.santaferiver.com/
We decide to put at the U.S. 27 bridge and paddle down stream towards State Road 47. There are numerous springs that can be found along this portion of the Santa Fe River. The book "A Canoeing and Kayaking Guide to Florida" has routes and descriptions of lots of places in Florida.
http://www.trails.com/catalog_product.asp?productfamilyid=10816
I recommend getting one, if you live in Florida or near Florida or are planning a trip here and want to paddle.
The US 27 put in is on the North side of the bridge 3 miles North of the city of High Springs. The US 27 put in has a large paved parking lot, cement ramp and has no user/parking fees.
But no facilities. :cry:
After putting we headed to the right and paddled under the US 27 bridge (that is the down stream direction)
The river is wide enough, but not to wide, and for the first mile and a half the water is fairly deep. The water is slightly tannic colored but still had good visibility, allowing you to see some very large bass and the lime stone rocks. Slight current, but that may depend on water levels.
At about 2 miles out we came to a portion where the river got pretty shallow and the bottom was all lime stone rock.
(This next one is for bearridge, because I know he like moving water :lol: )
My plastic boat scraped bottom on the rocks pretty good and got stopped once or twice with the low water. Once past here the water went back to being deep.
About 2.5 miles out you come to Poe Springs on your left, which is located in Poe Springs Park. Poe Spring Park has a canoe launch in the park, but it costs like $4 per person to enter the park thru the main gate. Cost to enter is free if you come by boat.
http://www.visitgainesville.com/photogallery/poesprings.htm
River entrance to Poe Spring. Nice swimming hole.
At 3 miles out you get to Lily Springs also on your left.
Just inside the run you will see this sign.
The sign at the bottom says The Home of "NAKED ED"
Now the land around Lily Spring is privately owned, by Naked Ed (Ed Watts). He has a small shack that he lives in with a boardwalk that over looks the springs. But he is gracious and hospitable to visitors. He provides a place to beach your boats and walk to the spring if the current is to strong. Has a rest room at the top of the hill that he allows visitors to use. Also has picnic table located around that visitors may also use.
This is NAKED ED on his boardwalk.
Is he naked? I didn't ask and didn't care if he was or wasn't. He is a very interesting character. It is said that he is always naked. His rest room is the one on the top of the hill, so there is a chance you may meet him walking to it.
Heres the spring outside of Naked Ed's house, his house is to the left.
Paddling away from Lily Spring.
The river starts to get alot more river grasses growing from the bottom after Poe Spring, kinda dismayed at the quantity of beer and soda cans at the bottom in some area, not many at the start of the paddle.
Farther along is you will come to Rum Island, stay to your right and you will paddle past a public park with a boat ramp/canoe launch. When you get to the end of the park Rum Island Spring will be on your right.
Way to many people for my tastes in swimming holes.
Just a note here, the only motorized boats we saw the entire day were just a few canoes and jon boat types. Made for a nice paddle. I think the rocks keep the bigger boats out.
At about the 5 mile mark, you start getting close to the Ginnie Springs area, a large private campground that provides access to the springs: Devil's Eye, Devil's Ear, July and Ginnie. The area is popular with cave divers and tubers. We passed by on a Sunday and the place was packed, lots of noise, radios, hooting and hollering, water balloon throwing and beer drinking. Which means lots of bottles and cans at the bottom and busted balloons and cigarette butts floating down stream.
Coming up on the tube launch at the park.
We stopped here for lunch (no cost to paddle up) and decide to turn around and head back. It was about 5.6 miles if I remember right.
This is July Spring across the river from the two Devil Springs, it was nice for swimming.
Paddling back, got a little ways past Rum Island and the wind kicked up, temperature must have dropped 20 degrees and thunder off in the distance. Started to rain with closer thunder so we poled up on to a bank and waited for the usual Florida summer storm to pass by. After about 15 minutes of light rain and no more thunder we headed off again. A few minutes later the skies opened up and dumped on us. It was a gully washer, turn your windshield wipers on high kinda rain.
Paddling in rain like that doesn't bother me, kinda enjoy it :twisted:
But my girl, sitting in an open boat, tends to get very cold when she gets wet. So as the rain was getting heavier, I told her that we were not far from Lily Spring, when we get there we will pull off the river and get shelter at Ed's covered table. So we got there, rain got harder and threw in some lightning just for kicks. So now soaking wet, not moving, my girl starts getting really cold, gave he my PFD to wear, run out in the rain to the boats to get a neoprene shirt from the boat for her. After about 30 minutes of watching it rain and lightning, we both get startled by a voice from behind us saying "looks like you to got a little stranded". There was Ed, drove up in his truck and neither of us heard it in the rain. He asked if we were ok, which way we were headed, if we were in rented boats and if he needed to call the outfitter for us. Told us he had a pole barn farther up the hill than the rest room, we could go there if things got worse. And if its gets dark he would drive us back to the bridge so we could get the van and then come back for the boats. We said thanks, we were ok, just waiting for the lightning to stop. Talked for abit (don't know if he was naked in his truck or not) and he drove on back to his shack. Like I said Ed was a nice guy. After another 20 minutes (it was now 5:45), the rain was just a drizzle and hadn't heard any lightning for awhile, we dumped the rain water out of our boats (alot of rain water) and headed the 3 miles back to the van.
Made it back and had the boats loaded and headed back th the campground a few minutes before 8:00. Total miles we paddled 11.6.
DM
http://www.floridastateparks.org/oleno/default.cfm
It follows subterranean passageways for 3 miles and re-emerges at River Rise State Preserve.
http://www.floridastateparks.org/riverrise/default.cfm
The portion we decide to paddle was going to be an out and back since we did not have a shuttle vehicle, tho shuttles and outfitting can be arranged, and is provided by Santa Fe River Outpost.
http://www.santaferiver.com/
We decide to put at the U.S. 27 bridge and paddle down stream towards State Road 47. There are numerous springs that can be found along this portion of the Santa Fe River. The book "A Canoeing and Kayaking Guide to Florida" has routes and descriptions of lots of places in Florida.
http://www.trails.com/catalog_product.asp?productfamilyid=10816
I recommend getting one, if you live in Florida or near Florida or are planning a trip here and want to paddle.
The US 27 put in is on the North side of the bridge 3 miles North of the city of High Springs. The US 27 put in has a large paved parking lot, cement ramp and has no user/parking fees.
But no facilities. :cry:
After putting we headed to the right and paddled under the US 27 bridge (that is the down stream direction)
The river is wide enough, but not to wide, and for the first mile and a half the water is fairly deep. The water is slightly tannic colored but still had good visibility, allowing you to see some very large bass and the lime stone rocks. Slight current, but that may depend on water levels.
At about 2 miles out we came to a portion where the river got pretty shallow and the bottom was all lime stone rock.
(This next one is for bearridge, because I know he like moving water :lol: )
My plastic boat scraped bottom on the rocks pretty good and got stopped once or twice with the low water. Once past here the water went back to being deep.
About 2.5 miles out you come to Poe Springs on your left, which is located in Poe Springs Park. Poe Spring Park has a canoe launch in the park, but it costs like $4 per person to enter the park thru the main gate. Cost to enter is free if you come by boat.
http://www.visitgainesville.com/photogallery/poesprings.htm
River entrance to Poe Spring. Nice swimming hole.
At 3 miles out you get to Lily Springs also on your left.
Just inside the run you will see this sign.
The sign at the bottom says The Home of "NAKED ED"
Now the land around Lily Spring is privately owned, by Naked Ed (Ed Watts). He has a small shack that he lives in with a boardwalk that over looks the springs. But he is gracious and hospitable to visitors. He provides a place to beach your boats and walk to the spring if the current is to strong. Has a rest room at the top of the hill that he allows visitors to use. Also has picnic table located around that visitors may also use.
This is NAKED ED on his boardwalk.
Is he naked? I didn't ask and didn't care if he was or wasn't. He is a very interesting character. It is said that he is always naked. His rest room is the one on the top of the hill, so there is a chance you may meet him walking to it.
Heres the spring outside of Naked Ed's house, his house is to the left.
Paddling away from Lily Spring.
The river starts to get alot more river grasses growing from the bottom after Poe Spring, kinda dismayed at the quantity of beer and soda cans at the bottom in some area, not many at the start of the paddle.
Farther along is you will come to Rum Island, stay to your right and you will paddle past a public park with a boat ramp/canoe launch. When you get to the end of the park Rum Island Spring will be on your right.
Way to many people for my tastes in swimming holes.
Just a note here, the only motorized boats we saw the entire day were just a few canoes and jon boat types. Made for a nice paddle. I think the rocks keep the bigger boats out.
At about the 5 mile mark, you start getting close to the Ginnie Springs area, a large private campground that provides access to the springs: Devil's Eye, Devil's Ear, July and Ginnie. The area is popular with cave divers and tubers. We passed by on a Sunday and the place was packed, lots of noise, radios, hooting and hollering, water balloon throwing and beer drinking. Which means lots of bottles and cans at the bottom and busted balloons and cigarette butts floating down stream.
Coming up on the tube launch at the park.
We stopped here for lunch (no cost to paddle up) and decide to turn around and head back. It was about 5.6 miles if I remember right.
This is July Spring across the river from the two Devil Springs, it was nice for swimming.
Paddling back, got a little ways past Rum Island and the wind kicked up, temperature must have dropped 20 degrees and thunder off in the distance. Started to rain with closer thunder so we poled up on to a bank and waited for the usual Florida summer storm to pass by. After about 15 minutes of light rain and no more thunder we headed off again. A few minutes later the skies opened up and dumped on us. It was a gully washer, turn your windshield wipers on high kinda rain.
Paddling in rain like that doesn't bother me, kinda enjoy it :twisted:
But my girl, sitting in an open boat, tends to get very cold when she gets wet. So as the rain was getting heavier, I told her that we were not far from Lily Spring, when we get there we will pull off the river and get shelter at Ed's covered table. So we got there, rain got harder and threw in some lightning just for kicks. So now soaking wet, not moving, my girl starts getting really cold, gave he my PFD to wear, run out in the rain to the boats to get a neoprene shirt from the boat for her. After about 30 minutes of watching it rain and lightning, we both get startled by a voice from behind us saying "looks like you to got a little stranded". There was Ed, drove up in his truck and neither of us heard it in the rain. He asked if we were ok, which way we were headed, if we were in rented boats and if he needed to call the outfitter for us. Told us he had a pole barn farther up the hill than the rest room, we could go there if things got worse. And if its gets dark he would drive us back to the bridge so we could get the van and then come back for the boats. We said thanks, we were ok, just waiting for the lightning to stop. Talked for abit (don't know if he was naked in his truck or not) and he drove on back to his shack. Like I said Ed was a nice guy. After another 20 minutes (it was now 5:45), the rain was just a drizzle and hadn't heard any lightning for awhile, we dumped the rain water out of our boats (alot of rain water) and headed the 3 miles back to the van.
Made it back and had the boats loaded and headed back th the campground a few minutes before 8:00. Total miles we paddled 11.6.
DM