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Alexander Springs Recreation Area

Photo: apasciuto / CC BY 2.0 · source

Springs

Alexander Springs Recreation Area

Altoona, FL · North Central Florida$$14.50 per person; $20 vehicle reservation on summer weekends

About

Alexander Springs sits deep in the Ocala National Forest, a first-magnitude spring that pushes about 70 million gallons a day up through a cluster of vents and into a wide, sand-bottomed pool that holds a steady 72 degrees all year. The southwest bank slopes in like a beach, so you can wade in from the shallows or snorkel out over the boil to watch fish hang in the current, and it is the one spot in the forest where divers can drop down to the vent. Rent a canoe and you can paddle Alexander Run downstream into the wilderness, past cypress knees and turtles, then work your way back to the swim beach.

Highlights

First-magnitude spring discharging about 70 million gallons a day at a constant 72 degreesGently sloping sand beach that wades into a wide, open swimming basinSnorkeling over the boil and the only scuba diving allowed in the Ocala National ForestCanoe and kayak rentals for paddling Alexander Run into the wildernessCamping, picnicking, and the Timucuan and Florida Trail hiking nearby

Getting there

49525 CR 445, Altoona, FL 32702

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Every spring on this list stays between 68 and 74 degrees all year, and from mid-November through March the manatees move into Blue Spring and Three Sisters. You watch them from the boardwalk.