Can you bring your own kayak to Blue Springs?

You can enter Blue Spring State Park and launch from there. Keep in mind paddleboards, kayaks and canoes are only allowed in the swimming area before 11am and after 5pm. For park launches, we recommend driving past the first parking lot (on your right) to the one closer to the river.



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$6 per vehicle (two to eight people). $4 single-occupant vehicle. $2 pedestrians, bicyclists, extra passengers, passengers in vehicle with holder of Annual Individual Entrance Pass.

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Blue Spring offers swimming in a crystal-clear spring run. Swimming or diving with the manatees is not permitted. For the safety of visitors, climbing onto the spring banks or trees is prohibited.

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The ramp east of Woods Chapel Road is for canoes, kayaks, and other small boats.

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Tip: the best time to visit Blue Spring State Park is in the mid morning before the sun is fully up and warming the waters. As the day goes on, the manatees work their way back into the St Johns River. In the morning there are also smaller crowds, so it's much more pleasant.

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Kirby Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park has very high visitation on weekends and holidays and will close when capacity is reached. When this occurs, only registered campers will be allowed to enter. Cash and credit cards are accepted for entrance fee.

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No food or drinks allowed inside tubes. Food and drinks are allowed when kayaking. There are accessible covered pavilions with accessible grills. All pavilions are first come, first served.

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I loved this little park. I actually visited in two days in a row. The manatees were in the river along with a lot of other interesting wildlife.

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The water temperature at Gilchrist Blue Springs remains constant at 72 degrees Fahrenheit/22 degrees Celsius. Because the spring is 24 feet deep, it's possible to swim over and around it.

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The water temperature at Gilchrist Blue Springs remains constant at 72 degrees Fahrenheit/22 degrees Celsius. Because the spring is 24 feet deep, it's possible to swim over and around it.

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Ruth B. Kirby Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park is in the north central part of the state, an area well known for the many spectacular freshwater springs found along the Suwannee and Santa Fe rivers.

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