Explore the Beautiful St. Johns River

-
The St. Johns River at Sunset
Photo by Donna Kaluzniak

Every time I cross over the St. Johns River and see the sun glinting off the water's surface, I'm still amazed at the power and beauty of the river. I wanted to highlight the St. Johns and show it some much deserved appreciation in my blog.

Florida's St. Johns River meanders lazily for 310 miles from Blue Cypress Lake in Indian River County to the Atlantic Ocean at Jacksonville. Designated an American Heritage River, it is one of the few rivers in the world that flows north. Three basins comprise the river:

The upper (south) basin is one of open marshes, connected shallow lakes, reservoirs and canals. A string of major connected lakes - including Lakes Harney, Jesup, and Monroe form the middle basin. And the lower range of the St. Johns River, partially fed by numerous springs, hosts Florida's 2nd largest lake - Lake George. With the added flows from its tributaries and springs, the river flows faster through the middle and lower basins to meet the Atlantic Ocean.

Photo by Allen Kaluzniak
The St. Johns River Water Management District's website hosts a multi-part virtual tour of the river with videos, photos, and maps. The tour also includes descriptions of some of the major projects and conservation areas, such as the Upper Basin Project. 

Also, discover the river in the movie Water's Journey: The River Returns, including a dive through its underground springs and even a trek through a storm system that drains to the river . And this video on the St. Johns River Blueway explores the varied sections of river through paddling, boating, fishing and more. 

Enjoy reading river adventures? One of my favorite books is River of Lakes A Journey on Florida's St. Johns River by Bill Belleville. Belleville boats, kayaks, and hikes the length of the river and even dives some of the springs that feed it. Along the way he speaks with scientists, fishermen, and historians as he weaves together the rivers physical, ecological and historical significance with his lyrical writing. 

Photo by Donna Kaluzniak



If you want to travel along the river, the River of Lakes Heritage Corridor is a National Scenic Byway where you can explore history, arts and culture, natural and recreational areas. William Bartram Scenic and Historic Highway (State Road 13) also follows the river along the lower basin.






The St. Johns River Alliance supported eco-heritage tourism on the river, with multiple videos on their YouTube Channel.

Photo by Donna Kaluzniak

Learn about the river's health by checking out the St. Johns River Report Card. And if you want to get involved with the river, the St. Johns Riverkeeper provides education and opportunities to help protect the river.

Photo by Allen Kaluzniak



The St. Johns River is a Florida jewel!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Extracting Water from the Moon

-
Image
  Photo by Allen Kaluzniak I've always found space exploration fascinating. I still remember the excitement when hearing about our first attempts to orbit the earth, our challenge to reach the moon. I still feel my family's amazement as Neil Armstrong took his first steps there in 1969.  The moon is garnering new interest lately. NASA's Artemis Mission will establish a long-term presence on the moon to continue scientific discovery and technology innovation. As such, they plan to implement  sustainable infrastructure using in-situ resources .  Understanding the critical importance of water, NASA's astronauts will collect and remove large amounts of water and icy regolith, a loose rocky soil layer, from an area near the moon's south pole. To find the best way to accomplish this, NASA opened the Break the Ice Lunar Challenge  in November 2020.  On August 18, 2021 NASA awarded $500,000 in prizes to the winners of Phase 1 . In this phase, teams designed a system to col
Read more

A Setback for Cleaning the Ocean of Plastic

-
Image
Dolphin at Marineland, FL Photo by Donna Kaluzniak My last blog post was about The Ocean Cleanup , a massive project for removing plastic debris from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP). After successfully completing Pacific trials in September 2018, the long trip to the GPGP began. On October 16, 2018 System 001, nicknamed "Wilson," was deployed. After tweaking and testing Wilson through November and December, it appeared the system was attracting and concentrating plastic, but could not retain it. At the end of December, the crew found that an 18-meter end-section of the system became detached. The December 31, 2018 Project Update noted the crew planned to return to port earlier than planned, and as soon as weather permitted. This allows them to make necessary upgrades to the system. Even with the malfunction, Wilson and the crew are bringing back 2,000 kilograms of plastic recovered by the system and from ghost net fishing. Some setbacks are to be exp
Read more

The Most Ambitious Project To Rid The World's Ocean Of Plastic--An Update

-
Image
Photo Courtesy of Pixabay  I've talked about The Ocean Cleanup before on this blog. The Ocean Cleanup is the most ambitious project of its kind. The goal is to clean up 50 percent of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), the largest accumulation of ocean plastic in the world. Located between California and Hawaii, it's one of five gyres (circular systems of ocean currents) that accumulate plastic garbage. Once the plastic is retrieved, it's hoped that most of it can be recycled. The GPGP is twice the size of Texas and contains an estimated 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic with a total weight of about 80,000 tons. The Ocean Cleanup technology includes passive floating barriers to concentrate and capture the debris. Natural ocean forces are used to capture the debris. Electronics used for monitoring and controlling the system are all solar powered. The system is modular, allowing improvements to be made based on experience and funding. What's Been Comp
Read more