Blue Springs, Florida is a Great Summer Getaway

Located in Orange City, just 35 miles outside of Orlando sits a great vacation spot on the St. John's River. With it's crystal clear waters running a cool 73 degrees, Blue Springs State Park is perfect for a flash dip on a hot summer day.

The park is open from 8:00 am to sunset every day of the year. If you plan on going, I suggest getting there early. The park only allows so many vehicles in each day. When the parking lot is full, the gates are closed. More vehicles are permitted as others leave. As of this writing, 10:32am, they were already closing the gates.

Admission to the park is $5.00 per vehicle. Camping is also available for $20 plus tax. A cabin will run you $85 plus tax.

The park also offers boat tours from 10am to 1pm every day. The tours are $18 for adults and $12 for children. This two hour meander down the river shows off the natural wildlife. It allows visitors to view the beauty of Florida at a slow pace.

The concession stand at Blue Springs has a variety of food. The cool thing is they also offer canoe and raft rentals, along with inner tubes for floating along the spring.

The spring and all it's runs are closed from Nov 15th to March 1st for swimming, canoeing, snorkeling, and scuba diving. This is because Blue Springs is considered a Manatee refuge. The West Indian Manatees make it their home every winter because of the warm waters of the spring. As of this writing the park is recording 11 manatee in the waters.

There are many places in the park to picnic. Blue Springs State Park boasts 2 areas with covered pavilions and grills. One even has a BBQ pit you can reserve in advance.

The camping there is great. You have your choice of cabins, regular campsites or primitive camping. The cabins are two bedroom with one having a double bed. The other has a double bed plus a set of bunk beds. Regular campsites have electricity, water, a table and a grill. Primitive camping can be accessed with a 4 mile hike into the camping area. Food, water and trash must be carried in and out.

This is a pet friendly campgrounds. Common sense and respect goes hand in hand with taking your pet. Quiet times are observed from 11pm to 8am. You have to pick up after your animal. You must keep your pet on a leash or at least in your control. You also will need to provide rabies vaccine records for your pet. The park does warn that if your animal appears threatening or appears dangerous you will be asked to board your pet off the premises until you leave the park.

A unique feature to this campground is the Bedtime Story Camper Lending Library. Talk to a ranger about how to check out a book for your child ages 4-9. You will be able to further explain the great Florida wildlife with these books.

An historical house at the park makes for a perfect backdrop to a lazy day picnic. The house was built by Louis Thursby in 1872. At one time the area was populated by Native Americans. Thursby settled the area in 1856.

Thursby House can be toured freely by visitors. The rooms are still furnished with possessions of the Thursby family. It is the perfect step back into time.

Whether you want to get away for a day or the whole weekend, this is one of the most spectacular places I have been in Florida. The day was made picture perfect with no big crowds, fantastic wildlife, and a refreshing dip in the spring.