Wakulla Springs State Park: Tallahassee’s Hidden Gem

Tallahassee is a bit of an anomaly. It’s the capital city of Florida but sometimes feels as if it hasn’t quite evolved like it should have. It also seems as if it didn’t prepare for expansion. It’s a cramped city with a terrible layout and not much to do compared to the other, more popular Florida cities. My cousin (a Tallahassee native) once referred to it as the arm pit of Florida and I just can’t forget that. We spent a year in Tallahassee and I was determined to find some fun things to do. One such thing was Wakulla Springs State Park.

I didn’t really have expectations but I was on a mission to see more of Tallahassee and more of the state parks in Florida. And I just have to say, this is a hidden gem. I loved coming here and ended up going back several times when we had visitors in town.

Florida is home to quite a few natural springs–in the hundreds actually, if not reaching 1,000. These springs are home to Florida’s wildlife and visitors can often spot alligators, manatees, various birds and fish. While a lot of these springs are in central Florida, you’ll find quite a few natural springs in north Florida as well.

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About Wakulla Springs State Park:

Wakulla Springs is about 25 minutes south of Tallahassee and is technically called Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park. Edward Ball bought the lot in 1931 and put a lodge on the property, right next to the spring. The lodge is now a hotel that you can stay at and includes a gift shop/snack area.

The spring is actually the largest and deepest freshwater spring in the WORLD. The spring is surrounded by a cypress swamp and to me, it’s a bizarre combination of ecosystems. I don’t really think of freshwater and manatees mixing with alligators and swampy waters, but that’s exactly what it is.

The cypress trees are dripping with moss and it’s not quite the swampy water situation you might think of. It’s incredibly scenic. You do take some smaller paths through the water where the trees and foliage get much thicker.

These areas are definitely more swamp-like and have actually been the location for several movies. The Creature from the Black Lagoon was filmed here as was the early 1941 Tarzan.

Our guide gave us some interesting facts about filming including what it was like as the ‘creature’ to film scenes here in the water. After all the wildlife we spotted, it was a big no for me.

It also has an extensive cave system underneath the spring–over 32 miles–that works like conduits. Over 250 million gallons of water flow from the spring per day.

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What to do:

Like a lot of the other springs and state parks in Florida, the activities revolve around water and wildlife. Wakulla Springs State Park is no exception. It’s a place to enjoy nature, get out on the water or just walk around and explore.

Take a boat tour

The boat tour is hands down THE thing you need to do at Wakulla Springs. It starts on the edge of the spring and takes you through the cypress swamp. It’s a beautiful, scenic ride where you’ll see unique, moss-covered trees and an abundance of wildlife.

The guides give you great information about the spring while you look for and count alligators. It’s a fun and entertaining tour and each time I’ve done it, I’ve seen loads of wildlife. Different kinds of birds, snakes (could’ve done without seeing those), etc. We saw about 25 alligators the first time!

And if you take the boat tour, you’ll also get the chance to possibly see manatees! In the winter months, the manatees swim into the springs because the water temperatures stay warmer. Usually around 70 degrees. They don’t guarantee that you’ll see manatees, but I’ve seen them each time I’ve gone.

It’s quite exciting to see them if you never have and they swim right up next to the boat! The guides have you shout out whenever you see something so they can draw attention to it for the rest of the boat and my grown, 30-year old friend was yelling louder than the kids! It was a blast.

The boat ride is an extra $8 per person ($5 for kids 3-12, free for under 3) but a lengthy ride that lasts about 45-55 minutes. So worth it!

They also recently replaced their boats and now have another option called “The Blue Heron”. It has a hybrid-electric engine which causes the propulsion to be nearly silent–great for wildlife viewing!

Go for a swim

At the end of the boat tour, they drive you through the spring and right past the swimming platform where kids jump off. It’s crazy to come off of a boat tour through the swamp, round a corner where you’ve just seen alligators and then witness kids swimming just beyond. The alligators are not that far away!

However, I’m assuming either the water changes and keeps them away or they don’t like to venture over the deep hole. Whatever the case, they obviously do not get into the swimming area or else they wouldn’t let people swim there.

There’s also a little beach area to hang out at near the shore. There’s a grassy area just beyond it where people lay out their towels. The two-tiered platform that people can jump off of is just at the end of the beach area.

Check out the lodge

The lodge/hotel is a good place to take a break from the heat. You can walk around the grounds and explore or simply check out the gift shop which has plenty of cute manatee and alligator gifts. They also have a snack bar inside the gift shop and the hotel part has a dining room to sit down for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Go Hiking

If you want to explore the area more, there are a few hiking trails you can take in the park:

• Nature Trail–Located in the main park and has 9 miles of trails that goes through Southern hardwood forests. Trails are easy to moderate.
• Cherokee Sink Trail–This trail is located off of highway 61. It’s a 1.4 mile trail that takes you to an 80-ft-deep sinkhole lake.
• Bob Rose Trail–Currently closed, but it’s route follows the cave system.

Scuba Dive

I’m always surprised that that there are diving options available at some of Florida’s parks because it’s just not what I first think of. But Cherokee Sink (the 80-ft deep sinkhole lake above) is an area that you can also dive in if you have your Open Water certification.

There’s also cave diving available (for those with proper certification) at Emerald Sink and Clearcut Sink.

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Things to Know:

• Glass Bottom Boat rides: These are shown on their website as an option but they are only used if the springs visibility is past a certain point, which is very rare! I think they told me they had only done it once the previous year or something like that. Even so, the normal boat ride is awesome.
• Boat Reservations: Make sure to head down to the boat office as soon as you arrive if you’re planning on taking a boat tour. Some of the boat times fill up and you may not be able to get on the tour you want. If you are going only for the boat ride, make sure you get there early. I don’t think they were taking reservations at the time I went, but that has been updated.

Check out their website for updates and reservation status!

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Like I said before, you absolutely must go on the boat ride. It’s the best thing to do there and the only way to see that part of the park. It’s a beautiful ride and let’s you see a different type of Florida. Armpit or not, there are some beautiful places to see in Tallahassee.

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