Observer Name: Jarrod Jablonski and Casey McKinlay
Observation Start Time: June 19, 10:00
Observation End Time: June 20, 06:00
Weather Conditions: Clear skies in A.M. with strong thunderstorms in the afternoon and early evening.
Depth of Observations (indicate meters or feet): 0-300'
Water Visibility (high, medium, low):approximately 50'to as low as 15'.
Water Turbidity (high, medium, low):medium
Water Current Direction: SSE
Water Current Speed (high, medium, low):medium
Water Temperature (indicate C or F):68F
Notable Flora: Normally strong hydrilla content in basin is very limited due to recent herbicide treatment.
Notable Fauna: mullet, fresh water flounder, catfish, brim. In cave numerous large crayfish are prominent.
Other Observer Comments: Basin visibility appears roughly 50' with notable cloudiness in the afternoon. The strong thunderstorms may be impacting this fact or visibility may be in flux. A distinct whitish hue is evident in the basin visibility.
Cave conditions as follows:
A tunnel vis about 50’ with patchy cloudiness past B-tunnel junction. Entrance to O-Tunnel has visibility of approximately 40ft with pockets of clear water mixing. O-Tunnel visibility is 20-30ft between 5500ft and the A-Tunnel junction with stratification and dirty water on the ceiling in certain spots. At the junctions with M-Tunnel there is clear water coming through on the floor but not enough to clear out the main tunnel. At A-Tunnel junction there appears to be a significant influence of clear water coming from the west but not enough to push clear water past the 10,000ft drop. Between 10,000ft and 12,000ft the visibility drops to about 20ft and P-Tunnel visibility is around 15-20ft. We were able to confirm that water is siphoning past 10,000ft so it seems in the process of clearing with the system apparently pulling clear water from Leon and Wakulla into the cave and toward the Gulf. Siphon is noticeable past 10k/at Q tunnel junction and could be termed moderate.
