A couple of months ago we booked a stay in a cabin at the Suwanee River State Park. After that, I saw that USA Today readers had voted Madison Blue Spring the best swimming hole in the country. In the country! And it won by a large margin. I took a look and found out that Madison Blue Spring was about a half an hour from where we were going to be staying, so we made it part of our plans to check it out! Boy am I glad we did.

I can see why Madison Blue Spring State Park has been rated so highly. It's absolutely gorgeous! The spring is beautiful, has a lot to look at if you enjoy snorkeling (as I do), and it is surrounded by a beautiful nature setting that leads out to the river. The water is a wonderful 72 degrees that feels great on a hot day, and it's beautifully crystal clear, too. You can snorkel around to see the spring head, a wonderful cypress root system that is down in the water, rocks, lots of fish, and more. We even saw a turtle swimming right by us. I love when we can snorkel and can see a lot, and this place was perfect for it!

There are restrooms and a place to change there, as well as some picnic tables. This spring is off the beaten path and kind of in the middle of a bunch of farms in Lee, Fla., but it is so worth the trek to get there! It's a state park, so the fee to enter was $5 per vehicle. Diving is also allowed there. If you are taking small children, there are not a lot of shallow places for them. Once you leave the steps the spring it is quite deep. 

When we first arrived there were just a couple of people there, but they didn't stay long, and then for a while we had this beautiful spring all to ourselves. What a great time! While Salt Springs still remains my favorite spring, Madison Blue Spring State Park is a close second. Two thumbs up for this beautiful place!

- Jacqueline Bodnar

Here is a video and pictures from Madison Blue Spring:

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