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Oklawaha River
(Marion &
Putnam counties):
The Oklawaha River originates at the north end
of Lake Griffin in Lake County. The river runs from
south to north through the center of Marion
County.
Ocala is found just to the west
of the center of the preserve and the Ocala National Forest is found along
much of its eastern boundary. Two of the main
access points to the river are at the Highway 40
near Silver Springs and the Highway 316
crossings near Eureka. The Oklawaha River
Aquatic Preserve is made up of roughly 30 miles
of the Oklawaha River system. The upper five
miles of river were widened and straightened to
some degree years ago to allow for navigation by
larger vessels. The now defunct Cross Florida Barge Canal would have
passed through these areas. About five miles
downriver of the start of the preserve, the
Oklawaha River meets the Silver River spring run. This run is
one of the largest spring runs in Florida
rivaling Rainbow Spring. It has an average
discharge of over 500 million gallons a day.
Over three miles of the roughly five-mile run
are part of the preserve. The headspring area is
a tourist attraction. The next twenty miles of
the Oklawaha River, downriver of this confluence
follows a narrow winding course. It is a black
water river with a swamp canopy along most of
its length. Intermittently high areas meet the
river forming sandy bluffs. The lock structure
that was intended to flood the river as part of
the Cross Florida Barge Canal still
remains at the northern end of the Preserve.
Oklawaha River catch largemouth bass fishing is
good using live shiners and plastic worms around
deepwater structures, while topwater lures are
productive near vegetation and brush. Channel
and white catfish are active downstream of
Rodman Dam in deep holes along bends of the
river and are being taken on worms and chicken
livers. Some crappies are being caught on
minnows around submerged brush.
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