Alligator Rise is a Second Magnitude Spring in the Poe Springshed with a 15′ deep vent producing a prominent boil visible from the Columbia County boat ramp off of C.R. 27. If you happen to swim or paddle through it, you will find yourself spinning around, pushed out and away by the force of the water coming through the spring.
Alligator Siphon, which produces a significant portion of the rise, is upriver on the Columbia County side of the Santa Fe River. Accessible only by boat, you can hear the sound of rushing water like that of a waterfall, the water swirls and disappears down through the karst rock towards the rise downriver.
Allowing yourself to get pulled into this vortex can be a hazardous as the pull is strong and once inside, the spinning water pulls on you and won’t let go without a struggle. It is easy to bypass this feature altogether so going into the vortex is optional.
From ‘Santa Fe River Field Trip‘, 2014: ” The Alligator Siphon is located in a small cove, about 25 feet in diameter. It is in the right bank of the Santa Fe River about 5600 feet upstream of the Highway 27 bridge. It is prominently labeled on the USGS map as “Suck Hole”. A significant amount of the Santa Fe River is diverted into Alligator Rise Cave at this siphon.”
“The rise discharges from a large opening in the rocky bed of the Santa Fe River at a depth of about 20 feet. The water discharging here is river water that was diverted underground at the Alligator Siphon, which is located about 4900 feet upstream. The Alligator Rise cave averages about 100 feet deep. The cave passes under a small sinkhole about 200 feet upstream of the rise.”
Santa Fe River Field Trip, Alachua, Columbia, and Gilchrist Counties, Florida, June 8, 2014, Guidebook Number 61, The Southeastern Geological Society (SEGS), Edited by: Peter Butt, Samantha Andrews, P.G., Greg Mudd, P.G.
OSFR President Joanne Tremblay
joanne.tremblay@oursantaferiver.org
“Giving Our River A Voice”
Thanks for the great job you’re doing, Joanne!!!