The good and the bad of Alexander Springs - Florida
It was a beautiful day, so we loaded up the kids and headed off into the Ocala National Forest. My wife and kids are suckers for the cold water springs, and who am I kidding, so am I. I had never been to Alexander Springs before, and I like to try new things, so we headed north. The drive up 19 was nice. We saw some wild turkeys, and this interesting place. I love spiders, but talk about a let down, not one spider. They sell nothing of the sort.
When we got to the springs, the lady at the Ranger booth charged us 22 big ones just to park the car. This must be some kind of place, I thought. It was pretty and the water was nice, but for the price, I prefer Rainbow, Wekiwa and Rock springs. The pancakes at Deleon are pretty good too. A better approach to this would be to take a kayak and park your car on the road by the river. Yea, I'm cheap, but if I was local that's what I'd do. The hiking area is better than Wekiwa's, but make sure you give yourself a thorough inspection afterwards. I pulled off two ticks and then had to have my wife assist with one I couldn't see. Ouch!
While its no Blue Springs or Three Sisters, it is a fun place with the Ocala forest surrounding it. I enjoyed the drive, the swim and the hike. It's going to be a great summer, so tune in next time, for more outdoor fun and follies.