No Ordinary Walk In The Park: Clear Water Flows From This Underground Prehistoric Florida Cave
What was once a privately-owned resort and swimming hole is now a prized public park in Palm Harbor, Florida, a small town on the Gulf Coast near Tampa. Walls Springs Park is a free experience for visitors who are looking for an outdoor adventure. A boardwalk over Walls Springs is a terrific place to observe water fowl, fish, turtles, and other creatures in the crystal clear waters. You can see down into the spring's head, where water rises to the surface from the underground labyrinth limestone cave known as the Florida aquifer. The aquifer supplies most of Florida's fresh water. The temperature in the springs is a constant 72-degrees.
In the 1920's, Walls Springs was touted nationally for its healing powers, which were promoted by its owner to boost visitors to the park. Those powers were eventually debunked as myths. Still, people flocked there to enjoy the recreational benefits until the owners could no longer afford to keep the perk open. Pinellas County then stepped-in to buy the property, closed the springs to swimming, and reopened as a free public nature park, which includes paved and dirt walking, biking, and hiking trails, a playground, fishing piers, picnic shelters, restrooms, and more recently, a very large wooden observation tower giving visitors a panoramic view of the area and intracoastal waterway.
Walls Springs Park is also conveniently located next to the Pinellas Trial, of the most scenic and longest bikeways in the United States.