Note: This is an Earthcache. There is no physical cache to find. Logging this Earthcache requires that you undertake an educational task relating to the specific Earth Science at the site.
Prior to logging this cache, click on Message this owner, or send an email with answers to the following questions:
- What color is the water?
- What is your estimated diameter of the swimming area?
- What can you do to prevent the pollution of this important resource?
- Required to log this cache: Please provide a photo of yourself or a personal item in the picture to prove you visited the site. Upload the photo with your log.
Ichetucknee Springs State Park
Ichetucknee Springs is a state park and requires an entrance fee. This cache is accessible from the North Entrance to the park. Follow the trail to the Head Spring and GZ.
North Central Florida has hundreds of springs due to the abundance of rainfall and a karst landform. Karst landforms are created when the limestone bedrock is dissolved by the natural carbonic acid present in rainwater and ground water. This creates underground channels, caves and sinkholes.
The Ichetucknee River begins with the Ichetucknee Head Spring and is fed by eight other major springs, and numerous smaller unnamed spring vents. The crystal-clear water maintains a year round temperature of 72° F. This group of springs has an average daily flow of 212 million gallons. The US Department of the Interior declared Ichetucknee Springs a National Natural Landmark in 1972.
The Floridan Aquifer is the source of the springs’ water and also the source of our drinking water. The aquifer is constantly recharged by the percolation of rainfall and runoff. The Ichetucknee Springs Basin directly recharges these springs. The basin collects rainfall and runoff from 300 square miles. Fertilizers, pesticides and stormwater runoff also percolate into the aquifer and can eventually show up in the springs and our drinking water.
The Ichetucknee Trace runs through the basin, extending from Alligator Lake in Lake City, past several sink holes, and finally to the Ichetucknee Head Spring. The Trace is the old riverbed where the river historically flowed over ground.
Source: FloridaSprings.org
In addition to logging this EarthCache, enjoy a cool dip in the springs or a tube run down the river on a hot summer day. In the winter, enjoy the river by hiking one of the trails or canoeing the mostly deserted river. Otters, sunbathing turtles, deer, turkey and many species of birds can be observed. This is the REAL Florida!
