Our Florida Springs Adventure-Part 1: Wekiwa Springs

We made it to our first spring as part of our Florida Springs Adventure! I know, I know…FINALLY!

Wekiwa Springs State Park

We got up at 7:00 AM to be in line by 8:30. Upon pulling in we noticed there wasn’t a single car waiting to get in the park. Not only that, but we were half an hour late from the time they opened! WHAT?! The day before we went I had told Kevin that they open at 9:00 AM so he suggested we be in line by 8:30. Not only were they open at 8:00 AM but they closed at 7:30 PM. I’m not sure what website I saw that they were open from 9-5, but from here on out I plan to call the parks to find out their hours instead of just going by what a website says.

The road leading up to the front office.

Pricing:

• $6.00 – per vehicle. (Limit 2-8 people per vehicle.)
• $4.00 – single occupant vehicle
• $2.00 – pedestrians, bicyclists, extra passengers, passengers in vehicle with holder of annual individual entrance pass

For camping fees please visit: https://www.floridastateparks.org/hours-and-fees/Wekiwa-Springs

There were plenty of open parking spaces, but we figured during the summer and on a hot sunny day, this popular spring would pack out. We however, went on a dreary Saturday morning. It was overcast all day and rained off and on for what seemed like every couple of minutes. This spring stays at a constant 72 degree temperature, so you can imagine with it being overcast and rainy that it felt colder than usual.

This is the walkway from the parking lot down to the springs.

You can tell the squirrels are used to people because they kept coming up to Kevin and I with no hesitation whatsoever.

While we did not see an alligator, black bear, or snake like they warn everybody, there were lots of birds, lizards, and of course squirrels. 

This is your view upon walking down the walkway shown above. When it’s busy, you will typically see loads of people suntanning on this grassy hill.

Keep walking down and around the “swimming hole” and you’ll see all the canoes and kayaks! We thought about taking one out down the Wekiwa River, but the rain would sometimes decide to down pour just hard enough that we decided we’d rather not get stuck in the river with rainwater flooding our canoe. EEEK!

Canoe Fee

Canoes & Kayaks

This is the non-swimming area where you could take your canoe or kayak down the Wekiwa River.

If you walked just a little farther up there is a gift shop/convenience store that had all types of stuff you might need or want during your visit.

This was some of the important information they had listed in front of the store.

If you look closely at the picture above, you’ll see the October-May 9 AM – 5 PM hours. Hmmmmm….I’m not sure why their hours that day were 8 AM – 7:30 PM. Also, if you look at the picture I posted even further above it says there’s a canoe fee of $2 per person, yet on this sign the prices are significantly different. This was something that I thought was incredibly confusing and if we had planned on going out on the river or the store was open while we were there, we would have asked.

They had a really neat nature learning area that had snakes, turtles, a baby alligator, lizards, etc. There were certain times during the day where an expert would come out and teach everybody a little bit about the animals and nature surrounding us.

Nature Center

Baby Alligator

Do you want to know about animal poop? I didn’t, but Kevin sure thought it was funny! 🙂

There were two nature trails that Kevin and I had found. One was almost like a bridge throughout the whole thing, which I loved because I felt out of the way of the swampy roughage that was surrounding us (aka snakes).

The bridge-like pathway into the nature trail.

Well shaded and well built. Even when it rained we couldn’t feel it due to the amount of trees, we just heard it. It was absolutely peaceful. (Watch out for cobwebs! Kevin almost walked through one.)

This sign was posted right before a different walking/jogging trail. We didn’t walk this one as we were in flip flops and had our bathing suits on. Not the greatest attire for hiking through dirt. 

They have a handicap area which I thought was pretty neat. 

Wekiwa Springs. (Don’t mind the rain and overcast weather.)

Kevin ended up getting jumping in the spring water. Needless to say, he was shivering. There were a lot of people in wet suits, which was a brilliant idea. I might have gone in if I was wearing one of those. If it was a hot and “sunshiny day” then I would have more than likely jumped in, but I decided it was way too cold for that. I stayed all bundled up in my towel.

All in all, it was a fun day. We spent about three hours discovering and learning about Wekiwa Springs. Not much has changed since I went there about 5 years ago. The water is still crystal clear and it’s a beautiful place to take a hike or cool off in the spring during our typical sweltering Florida days. Who knew that local traveling could be enjoyable?!

Have you been to Wekiwa Springs? What did you do? What did you learn? Have you been down the Wekiwa River, if so, what was it like? Let me know! 🙂