Ginnie Springs

My neighbor and I went to Ginnie Springs (on the Santa Fe River) on Saturday. It was a gorgeous day. I alternated between swimming in one of the springs and lying in the sun (protected by sunscreen, of course). After I exited the water (72 degrees year-round), my skin would vibrate for twenty minutes. It might be one of the best feelings in the world. I think I'm going to try to go to one spring or another every weekend possible this summer.


Florida has more freshwater springs than anywhere else in the world -- geologists estimate more than 700. They're literally windows into the aquifer (the glowing blue spot in the center of the above photograph is the Dogwood Springs cave). Under pressure from the many layers of limestone that emerged from the sea a long time ago, they pump out water constantly -- sometimes as much as 60 million gallons per day. When we overpump water from the aquifer (where do you think bottled water like Coca-Cola's Aquafina comes from? Yep, they have at least one plant along the Santa Fe River) or let fertilizer and pesticides leave our landscapes, the state's water supply is endangered and we risk losing our amazing springs.