Due to Hurricane Ian, and the damage on the Peace River, we have moved the location of our November trip. We will be staging our inaugural Santa Fe Springs Celebration - November 13-17, 2022. We have a few spots left and would love for you to join us for this springs Extravaganza! You will hear from springs experts in this fun, immersive, and educational experience. The Santa Fe boasts dozens of significant springs, including the celebrated paddleable Santa Fe tributary: the Ichetucknee River. Click for details

As a follow-up to our Green Initiative, we are introducing our 18 oz, insulated metal mugs for sale. They have the Paddle Florida logo and are designed to fit in your cup holder. These mugs would make great holiday gifts!

In this issue you will learn about the Santa Fe River from Doug Alderson, the challenges facing the Florida Springs, and it seems only fitting that we share a reminder of how to swim in our springs.

We hope you enjoy this issue.

The 75-mile Santa Fe River originates in Lake Santa Fe near Keystone Heights and flows north of Gainesville before doing what several other Florida rivers do—swirl underground. The phenomena were accurately described by J. R. Motte in 1837 while on duty as a surgeon in the Second Seminole War: “About eight miles from Newnansville we crossed the Santa-Fee [Santa Fe] river, over the natural bridge. Had we not been told by our guide at the moment, we should never have suspected that there was anything like a river in our vicinity. This spot exhibited another specimen of Nature’s freaks, which I have already noticed; but here it was on a much larger scale. The river, which a week previous had overflowed this spot to a swimming depth, and a width of half a mile, now passed quietly underground a distance of three miles, forming a natural bridge of that width; when it again emerges into daylight, and shows itself flowing in a broad and deep channel.”

The natural bridge had been used as a Native American trail for millennia since it bypassed the need for a river crossing. The Spanish followed it as well and used it as part of their east-west mission trail, also known as el Camino Real, the Royal Road. It ran from the Apalachee Province near present-day Tallahassee to St. Augustine. [Read more…]

Photo credit: Doug Alderson

People who live along or frequently visit a river often develop a personal relationship that is familial. But instead of thinking of the river as a child growing up or as an elder eventually passing from this earthly existence, the river spans innumerable generations. It is more like a living ancestor that will transcend any lifetime. We simply experience it for just a short time in

the geologic sense. Perhaps that is part of the attraction. In some ways, we are no different than the current generation of fish, birds, alligators, manatees and otters that frequent a river, the main difference being that our species has the power to destroy. That is why we need river advocates. [Read more…]

Support Paddle Florida and our GREEN dish program by purchasing our NEW Paddle Florida Coffee Mug for $30 (add $10 to have it shipped to you), or we can bring it to you on your next trip!

* Powder-coated finish, double-wall stainless steel 18oz tumbler that has a clear push-on acrylic lid.

* Vacuum insulation helps keep a drink hot or cold for hours.

How To: Swim in a Florida Spring
From Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute

This is an instructional video created by the Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute in order to show people how to protect Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (SAV) in Florida springs.

Click here for video.