Jackson Blue Spring cave

A first-magnitude spring cave east of Marianna, feeding Merritt's Mill Pond; the head spring is leased by Jackson County, which describes limited scuba training and exploration there. Diving rules are not published by the county.

Jackson Blue Spring rises in Blue Springs Recreation Area, about five miles east of Marianna, and feeds Merritt's Mill Pond, a 202-acre reservoir. Jackson County has leased the head spring from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for more than 20 years and runs it as a swimming and recreation park, with day-to-day operations handled by a private concession.

The spring opens into a cave complex that the county says is home to two rare cave-dwelling animals, the Georgia blind salamander and the Dougherty Plain cave crayfish. The county describes its management of the site as including limited scuba training and exploration, but its pages publish no diving rules, fees or permit procedure.

The Northwest Florida Water Management District lists Jackson Blue as a first-magnitude spring. No published survey length or maximum depth for the cave was found in sources that could be checked for this record.

A first-magnitude spring (64.6 million gallons a day or more, by the water management district's definition) that supplies Merritt's Mill Pond.

Habitat for the Georgia blind salamander and the Dougherty Plain cave crayfish, according to Jackson County.

The park operator describes the water as 72°F (22°C) year-round. The county announced revised park hours starting 2026-03-21.

نطاقات اعتيادية من مصادر منشورة، لا ظروف آنية.

The head spring in Blue Springs Recreation Area is the documented entrance. Other springs feed Merritt's Mill Pond, but their cave connections are not described in the sources read.