Ichetucknee Springs – A History and Culture of a Florida Spring – my latest project offers a glimpse into one of Florida’s natural gems. In north Florida less than an hour from the University of Florida, the Ichetucknee River is formed from the first-magnitude flow from eight-named springs.

I originally wrote this book in 2003 as Old Timers Remember – Ichetucknee Springs under the direction of Jim Stevenson, then chief biologist with Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection and expert on the springs of Florida.

For the past several years, I’ve wanted to update the book but could not find the digital copy used to print the book. I was the only one with those files. When someone approached me about the book, I decided it was time to redo the whole thing. So I digitized, edited, researched, and redid the whole thing and now to support the organizations who work tirelessly to protect the Ichetucknee and the other springs of Florida, I am offering the ebook version for free downloads.

Here’s a sampling from the book.

So, discovering the three rivers near where I had moved outside of High Springs came as a revelation. The slow-moving Santa Fe River was nothing like the fast and twisty rivers of the north. The wide Suwannee River with its dark tannic color and sandy banks—sometimes almost cliff-like—provided another surprise. But perhaps the lifesaver and most surprising came when I tubed down the Ichetucknee River on a hot August day my first summer in the south. Just when I began wondering how I would ever survive living in heat and humidity like nothing I’d ever experienced, I jumped into an innertube at the north entrance of the state park and melted into the 72-degree water and forgot all about leaving the south. It then became the ritual of summer for my family and me and gave us at least one day of respite while enjoying the unparalleled beauty of the clear water, eel grass, and sunning turtles of the Ichetucknee.

And then I met Wes Skiles, a cave diving pioneer, explorer, and underwater cinematographer, who also lived in High Springs. His sense of wonder and respect for the waters of my new home inspired me. I was in awe of the dude and all he did. Yes, he was known nationally and internationally for his photography and filmmaking and underwater discoveries, but he also never lost his loyalty and passion for the first springs he ever visited as a young child. He loved them so much that he moved from Jacksonville to High Springs and raised his family near the Ichetucknee and Santa Fe rivers. He located his business, Karst Productions, in High Springs.

I worked for a decade as a reporter for several local publications. I often wrote about the rivers and springs in the area, and without fail, Wes never turned me down for an interview. He would even provide me with photos if I wrote about the ecology and conservation of his beloved springs. I last interviewed him in 2010 a few months before he died.

He described for me the course his life took. “The springs were the first truly magical place I explored as a child,” Skiles said. “We first went to Ginnie Springs [on the Santa Fe River], and I was totally mesmerized and consumed. I never had any doubt—even at that young age—that I was going to do everything in my power to keep coming back to the springs.”[1]

In 2003, Wes Skiles approached me about writing a book for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Jim Stevenson, then chief biologist with FDEP, wanted to pull together all the oral and written histories he’d been collecting from a group called the Old Timers, consisting of folks who had lived near and enjoyed Ichetucknee Springs before it became a state park in 1970. Under Stevenson’s direction, I wrote Old Timers Remember – Ichetucknee Springs in 2003, using audio tapes and letters from this group. I then researched the history, geography, ecology, and cultural aspects of the Ichetucknee to round out the book. The little book that I wrote and published, with Stevenson’s direct input and editorial assistance, was sold at the state park. We printed a limited number of copies. I only have one myself and one printer’s proof.

When I was approached recently to provide an electronic copy of the book, I realized that in the twenty-two years since I pulled this project together that the copies on the old zip drive disks no longer existed. I had no files electronically anywhere of the manuscript or photos. When I looked back over my copy of Old Timers Remember, I realized it really needed to be updated and edited.

As a result, I present Ichetucknee Springs – A History and Culture of a Florida Spring. I was able to scan the maps drawn by Larry Behnke for the first book. Thank you, Larry.

A debt of gratitude to the work and dedication of Jim Stevenson. His love of the rivers and springs of Florida has helped bring awareness and has pointed the way for all residents to be wise stewards of the place where we live. His book, published in 2014, My Journey in Florida’s State Parks: A Naturalist’s Memoir, chronicles his experiences with the state park system in Florida from 1965 onward. Thank you, Jim.

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[1] Patricia Behnke [AKA P.C. Zick]. “Saving Florida’s springs one drop at a time.” Florida Wildlife. July/August 2010.