Spring Day Packing List: What Actually Gets Used (and What Gets Left in the Car)
A Florida spring day has a learning curve. Too much stuff is as bad as too little — and the wrong stuff ruins the trip. This is the list built from experience, stripped of anything that doesn't earn its space in the dry bag.
The One Rule
If you can't get it into two bags — one for the kayak or tube, one for the car — you have too much stuff. Springs are not car-to-beach setups. There's often a paddle in, a walk along a bank, a tube rental run. Gear you haul to the spring is gear you haul back.
What Goes In the Dry Bag (The Non-Negotiables)
Water shoes
Limestone entry points and spring vents are sharp. Flip-flops slip on wet rock and float away. Keens, Tevas with straps, or any closed-toe water shoe with rubber soles. Non-negotiable.
UV-protective rashguard or swim shirt
A Florida spring day is a 6-hour UV exposure event. The water reflects. The sun is directly overhead most of the year. A UPF 50+ rashguard eliminates one of the few ways a spring day can go bad. Pack it. Wear it.
Reusable water bottle — insulated
Spring water is 68–72°F. The air in July is 95°F. You will be cold in the water and burning up the moment you get out. Drink constantly. Our Slow Mornings Tumbler holds 20oz and keeps water cold for 12+ hours — it was designed for exactly this use case.
Waterproof dry bag
Phone, keys, and wallet go in a waterproof dry bag. There is no "I'll just leave them in the car" — you need your phone for photos and emergencies. A 5L roll-top dry bag clips to a kayak seat or ties to a tube handle. Get one and use it every single time.
Snorkel mask
Even if you're planning to float, bring a mask. Spring clarity runs 20–30 feet on good days. There will be fish you didn't expect. There will be a cave entrance you want to look into. A mask weighs nothing and opens up the entire underwater dimension of the trip.
What Goes In the Car (The Secondary Pack)
Change of dry clothes
Not an optional nice-to-have. The drive home in wet swimwear on a 95°F July afternoon is unpleasant enough that most people don't repeat it. A dry shirt and shorts go in the car, not the dry bag.
Sunscreen — spray or stick
Apply before you enter the water. Reapply every time you come out. Water-resistant SPF 50+ only. Note: many Florida springs are ecologically sensitive — reef-safe and mineral-based sunscreens are strongly preferred near spring vents where the water enters sensitive aquifer systems.
Cash
Several county springs charge entrance fees that are cash-only. State parks accept cards but the nearby tube rental outfitters often don't. Keep $40 in small bills in the car at all times during spring season.
Cooler with actual food
Spring days run long. Facilities at most springs are minimal — a concession stand if you're lucky, porta-potties if you're average. Real food in a cooler means you stay longer and feel better doing it. Sandwiches, fruit, electrolyte drinks. Not chips that disintegrate in the humidity.
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What to Leave in the Car (or At Home)
Large coolers at the spring head
Many springs prohibit glass. Most have limited space at the water's edge. Leave the full cooler in the car and carry a smaller soft cooler or hydration pack to the water.
Inflatable pool floats
They block spring vents. They drift into other swimmers. They're hard to control in current. Rent a proper tube from an outfitter at the park or bring your own hard-shell kayak.
Fancy electronics
A waterproof camera or a GoPro is excellent. Your new iPhone in a "water resistant" case is a risk. Water resistance is not waterproofing. Springs involve submersion, current, and being dropped on limestone. Bring a dedicated waterproof camera or use a GoPro you're prepared to replace. See our Gear Guide for waterproof camera picks.
The One Item Most People Forget
A dry towel in a separate bag that stays in the car, never touches the spring, and is therefore still dry when you get back. The towel you bring to the water is wet in ten minutes. The towel that lives in the trunk is the one you want after the trip.
The Printable Version
We turned this list into a single-page printable PDF organized into three sections: in the kayak, in the dry bag, in the car. It's lamination-friendly, checklist-formatted, and takes 30 seconds to run through before any trip.
