A Lazy Day on the River

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I had no real plans to do anything over Memorial Day weekend, given that travel is still frowned upon due to coronavirus. However, in talking with a few of the girls at work, we got on the subject of our local springs and tubing on the river. It turns out a few of them have never been. So a lightbulb went off in my head and I invited them to go to the springs with me. Although there are numerous springs around the area, only two of them offer tubing down the river. One is a private facility on the Santa Fe River, and the other a state park on the Ichetucknee River. The private facility has better and more numerous springs to swim in, but the state park has a more scenic tubing experience. We opted to try for the private facility, but by the time we arrived they were already filled to capacity, so we made our way to the state park, which--surprisingly--was practically empty and devoid of people. I think most people have not realized the state parks have opened back up here in Florida. So we essentially had the entire place to ourselves! We spent the entire day tubing on the river. The Ichetucknee River is a spring-fed, pristine river in north Florida. The river is only 6 miles long (9.7 km) before merging into the bigger Suwannee River. The average width along the river is 20 feet (6.1 m) wide and the average depth is 5 feet (1.5 m). The water is crystal clear along the entire 6 mile journey. There are three access points along the river. If you get in at the spring head, it's about a 4.5 hour float down the river. The other access points are the midpoint landing (1.5 hour float trip), or Dampier's Landing (45 minute float trip). We opted to enter at the midpoint landing. From the exit point in the river, it's about a 20 minute walk back to the midpoint, or you can wait for a shuttle to drive you back (which can take up to 30 minutes waiting). Since it was such a beautiful day out, we opted to walk back each time. We were able to get in three tube runs on the river. We all had so much fun that we're planning to go again this upcoming Friday, this time with a bigger group of staff, and we're going to go earlier so we can get into the private facility. Have you ever been tubing or floating down a lazy river? It's a great way to spend a fun day out in nature!