Gores Landing-Camping with Juniper Springs Paddle

We will camp Friday and Saturday night at Gores Landing.

**You DO NOT have to camp to paddle** Watch the meetup for the time to meet at Juniper!

Gores Landing is located in northeast Marion County & offers primitive camping, a boat ramp, restroom and picnic tables on the Ocklawaha River. The site contains 12 camping spots that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Cost is
$7 per vehicle
Additional $10 per site/per night camping fee
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Saturday we will paddle Juniper Springs Run!
26701 E Highway 40, Silver Springs

There is a cost of $14.00 to get into the park.

Private launches are permitted for 10 vessels maximum during the times of:

• 8:00-8:30 a.m.
• 9:00-9:30 a.m.
• 10:00-10:30 a.m.

There are NO Disposable containers allowed on the river. They will search the kayaks.

SUPS are NOT recommended

Named one of the top 25 canoe runs in America by ReserveAmerica and typically a high point of a visit to Florida, Juniper Run is a narrow, winding waterway set under a dense canopy of old-growth forest and few places solid enough to get out of your canoe. The seven-mile journey starts just below the springs and follows the spring run through the heart of the Juniper Prairie Wilderness to a take-out off SR 19, well before the run empties into the St. Johns River at Lake George. Juniper Run is popular year-round. Please keep in mind that temperatures may be cool in the winter and afternoon thunderstorms may be frequent in the summer.
Boating

• Canoeing and kayaking are the only permitted activities along Juniper Run.
• The waterway varies greatly in depth and width and passes under many low-hanging trees in the first several miles. Pull-off and take-out points are very limited due to the narrow channel and the nature of the surrounding terrain.

** IMPORTANT:

• ***Visitors planning to use their own kayaks/canoes ***to paddle Juniper Run, must arrive and launch before 1 p.m. daily. If using personal motorized vehicles to shuttle between locations, the vehicles must be staged before launching.
• Inflatable items including rafts, johnboats, inner tubes and inflatable kayaks are not permitted. This is for public safety, to protect the environment and provide visitors a more pleasant wilderness experience.

Wildlife Viewing

• The dense, jungle-like forests surrounding Juniper Springs and Juniper Run - as well as the waterway itself - are home to wildlife that you might not commonly see elsewhere. Among the more interesting residents of our natural communities are the albino gray squirrels seen near the Mill House, the otters that play along the edges of the spring run, and the American eels that migrate out to the Sargasso Sea to spawn, returning to Juniper Springs to live. Just before the take-out point near SR 19, the waterway broadens to encompass wetlands teeming with wading birds and wildlife, providing a different perspective on paddling in Florida.

We will have additional options to paddle on Sunday if we choose to.

Let's take advantage of the cooler weather that we have been having and get out and play.