Between the Devils Ear and Ichetucknee Springsheds lie a couple of spring clusters spaced fairly well apart. The first cluster is dominated by the Siphon Creek Cave System. Siphon Creek Rise qualifies as a First Magnitude resurgent spring. Big Awesome, Little Awesome, and Myrtles Fissure are also part of this cave system.
Big Awesome swallets “is the most upstream of the Siphon Creek Cave System.” Accessible by boat, on the right side of the river heading downstream, after the shoals, marked by a large cypress, jog into a canopied space beside an island, and is dominated by a big circular pool. The hole is surrounded by a ledge. SRWMD once estimated that Big Awesome swallet takes in about 150 cfs.
In 2021, Alachua Conservation Trust purchased a 195 acre tract of land on the Santa Fe River and called it Little Awesome Preserve. The name Little Awesome refers to a feature on the Santa Fe River that is only accesible by boat and not always visible. Recently it has been covered by a large tree trunk and hidden from view. Other times it is covered in vegetation. When the river is high enough to submerge this circular ‘portal,’ it emits the rushing sound of water swirling down a drain. When I first encountered Little Awesome, I feared it. The force of the water rushing down this circular chimney appeared like it could pull my canoe down. After a time I realized it was safe to canoe over it, even allowing myself to submerge into it and allowing the siphon to spin me around.
Little Awesome Suck, also on the right is higher on the bank and the only one that will become isolated from river inflow during periods of very low water levels and is often obscured by fallen vegetation. Surrounded by sharp karst rocks it forms a nearly circular hole that sometimes forms a whirlpool. “The SRWMD once estimated that Little Awesome Suck was taking in about 50 cfs.”
Myrtles Fissure churns out water with the energy of a waterfall or becomes a deep, narrow, stagnant slit of water on the upper banks of the Santa Fe. The fissure is not visible from the river and can the sharp slippery run can be accessed by boat, or through a hike along the riverside through the ACT’s Little Awesome Preserve. The fissure runs parallel to the river, is about 120′ from the river, is around 75′ long, 4′ wide. The shallow run of sharp karst is slippery. During high water, water gushes like a waterfall from the fissure and down the run to the river. One hears it before seeing it. When the river is low, water stagnates in the crack and the run is coated with algae.
The list of springs in this cluster and more going downstream include:
- Col1012971 (Columbia) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Col1012972 (Columbia) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Siphon Creek Rise (Gilchrist County) basin.
- Gil1012971 (Gilchrist) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Siphon Creek Rise (Gilchrist County) basin.
- Gil1012972 (Gilchrist) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Siphon Creek Rise (Gilchrist County) basin
- Siphon Creek Rise (Gilchrist) is a 1st magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Siphon Creek Rise (Gilchrist County) basin.
- Myrtles Fissure Spring (Gilchrist) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Gil1012974 (Gilchrist) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County at the 47 bridge.
- Gil928972 (Gilchrist) is a 4th or higher magnitude spring inland from the river about 50 yards in an area of deep floodplain forest.
- Col928971 (Columbia) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Wilson Spring (Columbia) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Unnamed Spring (Gilchrist) is a 4th or higher magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Gil99974 (Gilchrist) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Col917971 (Columbia) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Jamison Springs (Columbia) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Sunbeam Spring (Columbia) is a 2nd magnitude spring in Columbia County in the Santa Fe River basin.
- Oasis Spring (Gilchrist) is a 3rd magnitude spring in Gilchrist County in the Santa Fe River basin.
The health of our springs depend on all of us reducing wasteful water use.
You can help by:
Reducing water usage in home and on the landscape
Minimize fertilizer use: don’t apply during rainy periods.
Maintain Septic tank: pump out every 10 yrs or upgrade
For a deeper dive, be sure to read:
Blueprint For Restoring Springs On The Santa Fe River, Florida Springs Institute, 2021, https://floridaspringsinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Santa-Fe-River-and-Springs-Restoration-Blueprint-01_27_21.pdf, accessed online 5/25/25
Florida Springs Conservation Plan, Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute, https://floridaspringsinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Springs-Conservation-Plan-final-draft-FINAL.pdf accessed online 7/15/25
Interactive Florida Springs Map, Howard T Odum Florida Springs Institute, https://floridaspringsinstitute.org/springs-map-2-0/accessed online 5/25/25.
Santa Fe River Field Trip, Alachua, Columbia, and Gilchrist Counties, Florida, June 2014, Guidebook Number 61, The Southeastern Geological Society (SEGS), Edited by: Peter Butt, Samantha Andrews, P.G., Greg Mudd, P.G. https://segs.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Microsoft_Word__Sante_Fe_SEGS_Guidebook_No_61_FINAL.pdf, accessed online 5/25/25.
Springs Fever: A Field and Recreation Guide to Florida Springs. Follman, J., and Buchanan, R. (n.d.). April 19, 2025, http://thespringsfever.com/xxSantaFeChapter.html, accessed online 5/25/25.
Springs of Florida (FGS : Bulletin 66), USGS, 2004, https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00094032/00001/images/493, accessed online 5/25/25.
Springs 101, Howard T Odum Florida Springs Institute, 2024, https://floridasprings.org/springs-101/, accessed online 5/25/25.
Springsheds of the Santa Fe River Basin, by S.B. Upchurch, 2008, https://www.alachuacounty.us/Depts/EPD/Documents/WaterResources/Springsheds%20presentation.pdf, accessed online 7/14/25
Water Conservation and Best Management Practices, SRWMD, https://www.mysuwanneeriver.com/294/Water-Conservation
The health of our springs depend on all of us reducing wasteful water use.
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