The St. Johns River has been labeled with several different names during the past, starting with the River of Lakes named by the Timucuan Indians. None of these names included Lazy River, which would be most fitting as it drops less than 30 feet over its 310 mile journey to the Atlantic Ocean.
The Upper River Basin, located in the central portion of Florida, is fed mostly by rain water. Springtime drought slows the river to a dawdling pace, and water levels severely drop, exposing black mud banks. Later in the year, summertime's heavy thunderstorm runoff flows into the river and eventually spills out, over its banks. This flood plain area surrounding the river spreads out for miles, holding an unimaginable amount of water.
Here in this picture of the day, a lone ring-shaped ripple breaks the calm water. Cool morning temperatures create a thin mist, covering the watershed were the St. Johns River begins.