05/22/2026
Sparkly Tour de Springs! I think I’m going to sparkly tour de springs on foot. How many springs are in Florida? More than 1,000!!!
One of the deepest freshwater springs on Earth is sitting in the Florida panhandle. Most Floridians have never heard of it. 🌊
Wakulla Springs, located 14 miles south of Tallahassee, plunges 185 feet into the Florida aquifer. In the 1930s, divers recovered the bones of mastodons and giant sloths from its floor. The spring was so clear that glass-bottom boats could see the bottom without any assistance.
In 1934, Edward Ball, the powerful DuPont family trustee and one of Florida's most influential corporate figures, acquired the land and built the Wakulla Springs Lodge. For decades, it was a private retreat for the powerful. Today it's a state park, but it draws a fraction of the visitors that Silver Springs or Ichetucknee attract.
The spring pumps 400,000 gallons of 68-degree water per minute. It was used as a filming location for the original Tarzan movies and the 1954 creature feature Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Most Floridians drive right past it on the way to the beach. That's exactly how some people prefer it.
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