Florida

Florida is located in the Southeastern United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. The state is a large peninsula with the Gulf of Mexico to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Caribbean to the south. The state is mostly lowland, the highest point is Britton Hill with only 105 m asl, which is the lowest highpoint of any U.S. state. Nevertheless, the whole state is heavily karstified and has more sinkholes than any other state in the nation. There are virtually hundreds of springs, most of them artesian and forming huge blue lakes. The cave systems are generally waterfilled, the state also has one of the longest underwater cave systems in the continental United States at Spring Peacock Springs.

Karstification, although an ongoing process, is actually reduced by the current sea level. During the last ice age the sea level was about 100 m lower than today. Florida was drained by a vast system of river caves which ended at the niveau of the sea level of that time. When the water level rose, the lower 100 m of the cave systems were filled by water. Many caves have speleothems like stalactites and stalagmites which were formed above the water and are now underwater. So today most caves of Florida are water-filled, and the most impressive karst features are sinkholes, loosing rivers, and karst springs.