| Site Info | |
|---|---|
| Type | Cave |
| Coordinates | 30.127278, -83.130694 |
| Region | US South |
| Access via | Shore |
| Depth range | 45-175 ft |
Orange Grove is an offset sinkhole located within Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park, 16 miles southwest of Live Oak, Florida. It is a popular location for swimming, freediving, and cave diving.
When conditions are good, this can be a very rewarding site for open water divers. The sinkhole is large and the water is frequently crystal clear. Cave divers will find two entrances to the Peacock / Orange Grove cave system, the shallower of which has a brief cavern zone appropriate for cavern divers.
Details
Location
Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park is located a few miles east of Luraville, on 180th Street.[1]
Depth
Depth in the open water area is approximately 45 ft. The entrance to Upper Orange Grove is at ~80ft. The entrance to Lower Orange Grove is around 100ft. Depths within the lower Orange Grove system reach 175ft.
Topography
The spring pool measures about 44 ft (13.4 m) wide and 80 ft long.
Scalloped limestone crops out around the spring. The spring is within a forested area, and private land to the north rises gently to 15 ft (4.6 m) above the water.[2]
Conditions
Spring pool conditions vary widely. Sometimes the pool is covered with a layer of duckweed, sometimes duckweed covers only part of the surface and sometimes there's none at all. Sometimes the water is tannic down to the cavern entrance, sometimes crystal clear.
Conditions within the system are typically the same year round.
Facilities
In the Orange Grove parking lot you will find:
- Gear benches
- Picnic tables
- Changing areas
- Porta-potties
There are steps leading to the water's edge.
Cave
Orange Grove's basin is one of just two spots in the park where cavern diving is permissible. The basin's open water reaches depths of fifty to sixty feet, and the cavern zone starts on the downstream side, descending to a depth of one hundred feet. The upstream entrance is located seventy feet in, behind several fallen trees. About one hundred and fifty feet along this passage lies the main line. Depths in the main tunnel range from thirty to seventy feet, and the initial nine hundred feet of this tunnel are characterized by a low ceiling and the typical deep silt bottom of Peacock. The clearest water in the system is often found here, thanks to a water source tunnel (Distance Tunnel on the map) marked by the first right-hand jump, about nine hundred feet in.
Maps
-
Map of Peacock I and Orange Grove
Notes
- The Crypt was connected to Lower Orange Grove in 2020[3]; this is an extremely advanced no mount dive
Access
Enter the park and pay the iron ranger. Per vehicle fees are $4. Sign in on the diver sign in sheet.
Upon entering the park you will be in the parking lot for Orange Grove.
Do
See
When conditions are good, the basin can be a very beautiful dive. If duckweed is present be sure to look up towards the surface from depth for a beautiful view.
Life
- Fish inhabit the sinkhole
- Cave adapted crayfish may be found within the cave system
Safety
Hazards
Nearby
References