Water bodies, watersheds and storm water
Ginger Ale Springs main view
Ginger Ale Springs pool
Ginger Ale Springs
Location
Ginger Ale Springs is located about 3 miles northwest of Altamonte Springs. From the intersection of State Road 434 and Markham Woods Road, drive north on Markham Woods Road for 0.3 mile and turn left into a driveway at the edge of a wooded area. Park and walk about 400 feet south along Markham Woods Road, then go west about 50 feet to the spring. The spring is located on Seminole County property.
Latitude 28°41’33.57” N, Longitude 81°23’27.90” W
NE¼ SW¼ NW¼ sec. 2, T 21 S, R 29 E
Ginger Ale Springs run
Description
Ginger Ale Springs is a fifth-magnitude spring. The main pool of Ginger Ale Springs is enclosed within a 3.5-foot-high concrete, circular wall about 12 feet in diameter. A large sand boil is visible approximately 3 feet to 4 feet below the water's surface, with several more sand boils also visible. Seven mature palm trees surround the concrete pool. The pool discharges out of a rectangular opening in the side of the wall, then flows northwest in the sandy spring run about 550 feet long and 3 feet wide to the Little Wekiva River. Another vent is located on the west bank of the Little Wekiva River, with numerous other small sand boils in the river floodplain on the west side of the river.
Discharge
Ginger Ale Springs vent in Little Wekiva River
Discharge from Ginger Ale Springs, measured in 2005 by St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD), was 0.11 cubic feet per second.
Water quality
Ginger Ale Springs was sampled once by SJRWMD in 2005. Summary statistics of the water quality data for selected variables are shown in the table below.
Summary statistics of water quality and discharge
at Ginger Ale Springs
| Ginger Ale Springs | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Discharge, cfs | 0.11 | 2005 |
| Alkalinity, total, mg/L as CaCO3 | 89.9 | 2005 |
| Calcium, total, mg/L as Ca | 42.3 | 2005 |
| Chloride, total, mg/L as Cl | 16.5 | 2005 |
| Magnesium, total, mg/L as Mg | 10.4 | 2005 |
| Orthophosphate, total, mg/L as P | 0.04 | 2005 |
| pH, field | 7.57 | 2005 |
| Phosphorus, total, mg/L as P | 0.04 | 2005 |
| Potassium, total, mg/L as K | 1.1 | 2005 |
| Sodium, total, mg/L as Na | 9.0 | 2005 |
| Specific conductance, field, µmhos/cm at 25°C | 354 | 2005 |
| Specific conductance, lab, µmhos/cm at 25°C | 336 | 2005 |
| Sulfate, total, mg/L as SO4 | 48.9 | 2005 |
| Total dissolved solids, mg/L | 208 | 2005 |
| Water temperature, °C | 24.4 | 2005 |
mg/L = milligrams per liter
cfs = cubic feet per second
Age of discharge water
The age of water discharging from Ginger Ale Springs was determined by measuring the concentration of tritium, delta carbon-13, and carbon-14 in the spring discharge, which was measured in March 2005. Ginger Ale Springs had a tritium concentration of 0.16 tritium units, which suggests that the water is about 75 years old. Ginger Ale Springs had a delta carbon-13 value of –9.71 parts per thousand and a carbon-14 concentration of 23% modern carbon, which results from the reaction of rainfall with calcite, dolomite, and soil organic matter. The Fontes and Garnier (1979) carbon-14 age of Ginger Ale Springs is 4,334 years old.
