Cave diving in North Florida

• State parks (Peacock, Madison Blue, Lafayette Blue, Manatee, Ichetucknee, Troy, Blue Spring): show proof of certification or leave it visible on the dashboard (Blue Spring: no digital copies), sign in or register, dive within your certification, min. 2 divers (no solo), finish 1 hour before sunset. Open-water divers may not carry lights. Instructors need a commercial dive permit. Scooters banned at Peacock, Lafayette Blue, Ichetucknee and Blue Spring (and at Madison Blue according to Dive Outpost); allowed at Ginnie, Little River and Manatee (Dive Outpost). Entry $4–6 per vehicle. • Private and other sites: Ginnie Springs — register by 5 pm (4 pm in winter), waiver, $28 per day for full cave divers and $36 for other certified divers, annual pass $440; intro-to-cave and above from age 18; no diving on some holiday weekends; night dives until midnight after a daylight dive; personal compressors banned. Blue Grotto, Devil's Den (reservations) and Vortex Spring ($25) are commercial dive parks. Cow Springs: NSS-CDS members only (gate code). Eagle's Nest: FWC registration plus a WMA permit. Jackson Blue: pass via Cave Adventurers. • Why 'no lights': cave-diving deaths peaked at 26 in 1974. The NSS-CDS (founded 1973) put 'grim reaper' signs at cave entrances to warn untrained divers, and Sheck Exley's 'Blueprint for Survival' (1979) became the basis of the safety rules; by the early 1980s deaths had fallen below 5 a year. The light ban for open-water divers is meant to keep untrained divers out of the overhead; grates close off the most dangerous parts (Ginnie Ballroom, Vortex). • Rivers and 'blackwater': after heavy rain the Suwannee and Santa Fe rise and brown, tannic river water flows into the river caves. Telford is 'first to blow, last to clear'; the Peacock caves are often dark in the wet winter; Cow Springs gets backflow; a brown layer often lies over Devil's Ear. Troy Spring closes when visibility is poor. Least affected: Ginnie Ballroom, Manatee, Blue Grotto and Devil's Den; the Marianna caves are fairly flood-resistant, the Tallahassee caves very sensitive (Wet Rocks). River levels: USGS gauges Santa Fe River near Fort White (02322500), Suwannee River at Branford (02320500) and at Luraville (02320000). • Season and water: spring water ~22 °C year-round around High Springs and Luraville; 19–21 °C around Marianna (17–18 °C deeper). April–September busy with swimmers and campers; December–January quietest (Divernet). Manatees: Blue Spring (Orange City) is closed from 15 November to 15 March; the Manatee Springs main spring closes to divers in winter when manatees are present; keep 15 m (50 ft) away everywhere. • Fills and rentals: trimix and O₂ in High Springs (Extreme Exposure, Cave Country Dive Shop), Fort White (Amigos), Luraville (Dive Outpost) and Marianna (Cave Adventurers; order trimix in advance). Scooters for rent at Extreme Exposure, Cave Country (SUEX, $85/day) and Cave Adventurers. Lodging: camping at Ginnie Springs, cabins and campsites at Dive Outpost, houses via Cave Excursions (Luraville), Karst Kottages via Cave Adventurers. • Emergency: call 911. DAN emergency line +1 919 684 9111 (24 h) arranges the nearest available chamber. UF Health Shands Hospital, 1600 SW Archer Rd, Gainesville FL 32608 (+1 352 265 0111): monoplace chambers, with 24/7 emergency access according to a 2025 overview; the UF Health Wound Care and Hyperbaric Center (Magnolia Parke, +1 352 265 4450) lists only Mon–Fri 8 am–5 pm — let DAN confirm. Panhandle: few options; an undated FAU list names Bay Medical Center Panama City (+1 850 747 6950), but the 2025 overview says hospitals there now do wound care only. • Eagle's Nest lies in a hunting area (Chassahowitzka WMA): wear fluorescent orange on hunt days and check the FWC hunt calendar (FWC +1 850 488 4676). • Rest day: Troy Spring (wreck of the Madison, open water only), Devil's Den, the Ginnie Ballroom or Blue Grotto.