The Waccasassa River is a small, isolated river in

Levy County, Florida Levy County is a county located on the Gulf coast and in the northern part of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,915. Its county seat is Bronson. History Levy County was created in 1845, after the Semino ...

, flowing through the Gulf Hammock wetlands and emptying into the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

. The river is long, and has a

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...

of . Three-quarters of the river is accessible only by

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

kayak A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word ''qajaq'' (). The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each se ...

. The average flow of the river near the town of Gulf Hammock during 1964–74 was 345 cubic feet/sec (/sec). Its tributaries include the

Wekiva River The Wekiva River (sometimes spelled Wekiwa, a Creek word meaning "spring of water") is a river in Central Florida, north of Orlando in the United States. It originates in Apopka and joins the St. Johns River, the longest river in the state, in ...

and Otter Creek. Cow Creek joins the Waccasassa River just before its mouth opens out into the Gulf. Blue Springs, on the upper reaches of the Waccasassa River near Bronson, accounted for about 2.5 percent of the water flow of the river in 1964–74. The river above Blue Springs does not flow year-round. Wekiva Springs, on the Wekiva River, provided about 16 percent of the water flow of the Waccasassa River in 1964–74. Water flow in the Waccasassa River is affected by tides to above the town of Gulf Hammock. The Waccasassa is one of the most underdeveloped rivers in Florida. For most of its length it is surrounded by state owned or paper company owned land. Paper companies are generally required to leave an unharvested border along navigable waterways. The mouth is protected by the Waccasassa Bay State Preserve Park.

References

Gallery

Image:Florida Waccasassa River bridge01.jpg, Bridge over the river on SR 24, between Bronson and

Cedar Key Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 702 at the 2010 census. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of islands near the mainland. Most of the developed area of the city has been on Way Key since the end of the 19th ...

Image:Florida Waccasassa River01.jpg, Image:Florida Waccasassa River02.jpg, Image:Florida Waccasassa River03.jpg, Image:Florida Waccasassa River04.jpg, Bodies of water of Levy County, Florida Rivers of Florida {{Florida-river-stub