Wakulla Springs, Florida

"The principal reason for visiting Wakulla Springs is to enjoy the scenery and to appreciate a part of Florida that remains pristine after hundred of years." - The Rough Guide to Florida

Fifteen miles south of Tallahassee, Wakulla Springs State Park is a 6,000 acre wildlife sanctuary quietly hidden in Spanish moss-draped Florida woodlands. The heart of the park is the world famous Wakulla Springs, which is believed to be one of the biggest and deepest natural springs in the world, pumping up 1/2 million gallons of crystal-clear pure water from the bowels of the earth every day. In addition, the Wakulla Springs Lodge, styled in Spanish architecture and completed in 1937, provides a quiet retreat from the modern world.

Note: "Wakulla" means "river of crying bird" or "strange and mysterious waters." A number of films have been shot here, including several of the early Tarzan movies and parts of The Creature from the Black Lagoon.

One of Wakulla Springs' main attractions is the guided boat tours that operate 365 days a year, depending on the weather. The 45-minute river cruise glides under moss-draped bald cypress trees and past an array of creatures, including precious manatees, massive alligators, tribes of turtles, and graceful wading birds, such as anhingas, green herons and white ibeses, up close.

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Below is a slide show of the photos we took on our visit to the Wakulla Springs on 31 Dec 2009.

For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land - a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig-trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills - Deuteronomy 8:7-9

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source: The Rough Guide to Florida, Lonely Planet Florida, & Florida State Parks' brochure.