FLORIDA · NOVEMBER · WES SKILES PEACOCK SPRINGS
You have already picked the springs: the cave-diving landmark near Luraville in Suwannee County, named for the late underwater explorer and filmmaker Wes Skiles. The open question is the date. November answers it with cool mornings, mild afternoons and a sunset at 5:36 p.m., early enough to shape a dive day or a walk around the sinks.
Our figures come from a weather station a short way off, and we name it below. They describe a month drier than both of its neighbors and cold enough at night to reach freezing a couple of times. Trails, sinks and the park at large live in our Peacock Springs guide. The pages for each month cover what the date changes.
NOVEMBER AT A GLANCE · PEACOCK SPRINGS
Go in November for dry, mild days in the mid-70s, and pack for mornings near 49°F and the odd frost.
NOAA NORMALS 1991–2020 · CROSS CITY STATION · DRIEST OF OCT–DEC
Go for: dive days and trail walks without summer heat, the fewest wet days of the autumn, and cool, bright afternoons.
Think twice before: tent camping with a summer sleeping bag, since an average November brings two nights at 32°F or below.
Climate: NOAA NCEI 1991–2020, Cross City · Light: sunrise-sunset.org · full sources at the end
On this page
- Weather in November74.4°F highs, 49.2°F lows, 3.4 wet days
- How cold the nights getTwo frost nights in an average November
- Crowds and prices in NovemberBooking, lodging tax and the one upgrade to buy
- Things to do in NovemberPeacock I, Orange Grove Sink and Troy Spring
- A one-day planSunrise at 6:56 a.m., out of the water by 5:36 p.m.
- October or December instead?82.2°F in October, 68.2°F in December
- Is November a good time to go?Yes for divers and hikers who bring a warm layer
Four weeks earlier, Peacock Springs in October runs warmer and slightly wetter. Florida’s statewide calendar is in our best-time guide, and the airport question for a trip to the Suwannee country is in our Florida flights guide. You will want a car for the last miles, as our getting-around guide explains.
Wes Skiles Peacock Springs weather in November: average highs, lows and rain days
| November normal | Value |
|---|---|
| Average high | 74.4°F |
| Average low | 49.2°F |
| Precipitation | 2.10 in |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 3.4 |
| Days with 1 in or more | 0.4 |
| Nights at 32°F or below | 2.0 |
| Daylight on Nov 15 | 10 h 41 min |
| Sunrise / sunset, Nov 15 | 6:56 a.m. / 5:36 p.m. EST |
NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information publish the 1991–2020 normals we use, measured at the Cross City station (USW00012833): an average November high of 74.4°F, a low of 49.2°F and 2.10 inches of precipitation. That is a real thermometer, not a grid-cell reanalysis. It stands at Cross City, and the same station serves Troy Spring on this reach of the Suwannee. Read the numbers as the area’s air, not a reading taken at the spring basin.
Rain measurable at 0.10 inch or more falls on 3.4 days in an average November, roughly one day in nine. In practice a four-day trip has a fair chance of staying dry from start to finish. When a wet day does come, expect a gray spell to wait out, then carry on with the dive or the walk.
A 25-degree swing separates the average low from the average high. The day bag therefore carries a fleece or light jacket for the start, a T-shirt for the afternoon, and for divers a warm towel and a dry change of clothes to put on at the car after the last exit. A hat and gloves cost nothing in space and matter on the two coldest mornings.
On November 15 the sun rises at 6:56 a.m. and sets at 5:36 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, for 10 hours 41 minutes of daylight. Daylight saving has ended by mid-month, so the light goes an hour earlier than it did in October evenings. Plan to be packed up and walking back to the car by about 5 p.m.
How warm is Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in November?
Warm by afternoon, cool at dawn: the average high reaches 74.4°F (23.6°C) and the average low drops to 49.2°F (9.6°C), a gap of 25.2°F within a single day. We could not verify a water-temperature reading for the springs themselves, so we print no number for the water. Florida State Parks can tell you what divers are seeing before you go.
Mornings call for long pants and a jacket over a base layer, especially if you gear up in the shade of the park’s hardwood forest. By early afternoon most people are down to a T-shirt. Divers and snorkelers should plan for the moment they climb out, when a wet body meets air that may still be in the 50s, and keep a warm layer within reach of the water.
An average November at Cross City brings 2.0 nights at 32°F or below. Freezing nights are few, but they are real, and they tend to follow a cold front. A campsite or an unheated cabin on one of those nights needs a sleeping bag rated well below freezing and a hot drink planned for the morning.
How busy is Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in November? Crowds and prices
November opens Florida’s dry season, which runs through April, and the Atlantic hurricane season officially closes on November 30, as our Florida overview sets out. We found no occupancy series or monthly room rates for the Suwannee County area, so we rank no month as cheaper or busier on price. Statewide cost tiers are in our Florida trip-cost guide.
We have no booking-window data for lodging near the park either. Our advice is practical: once your dive or walking dates are fixed, reserve a refundable room or campsite, and give a holiday weekend more lead time than an ordinary one. Florida State Parks takes campsite reservations through its own system. Check it first if you want to sleep inside a state park.
We could not verify the tourist development tax rate for Suwannee County lodging, so we give no percentage. Ask for the all-in nightly total, taxes included, when you book, and compare that figure rather than the advertised rate.
Spend the extra on warmth at night. With lows averaging 49.2°F and two nights at freezing in a typical November, a heated room or cabin changes the trip more than any upgrade to the day itself. For bases in the area, start with our Florida where-to-stay guide.
Things to do in Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in November
Highs of 74.4°F make November the month to carry tanks, walk the trail between sinks and linger at the water without the heat of October, whose average high is 82.2°F. It also has the fewest wet days of the three autumn months we compare, 3.4 against 3.7 in October and 4.6 in December.
Peacock I is the spring basin most visitors see first. Orange Grove Sink and Olsen Sink are sinkhole pools that open onto the same underwater cave system, and a nature trail links parts of the park through the forest. On this same reach of the Suwannee, Troy Spring State Park is read by the same Cross City thermometer. We could not verify fees, hours, parking capacity or the diving rules for either park, so read Florida State Parks’ pages before you pack tanks.
Florida spring vents hold a steady temperature through the year. November changes the air around them. On a 49°F morning the water can feel warmer than the bank, and mist sometimes lifts off the surface on the coldest dawns. By afternoon the air climbs back toward the mid-70s and the difference fades. Cold starts and comfortable surface intervals follow from that one gap.
We could not verify any free-entry day at the park in November, so we list none. For other free or low-cost ideas across the state, see our Florida things-to-do guide.
Wes Skiles Peacock Springs day trip in November
Sunrise comes at 6:56 a.m., with the air near its low. Eat breakfast and dress in layers before you drive, aiming for the park’s posted opening time (we could not verify November hours, so check them the day before). Arriving at opening gives you first pick of parking. Gear up and make the first dive or snorkel mid-morning, then take the surface interval in the sun around noon, when the air is climbing toward 74°F.
Early afternoon is the warmest window and the best time for a second dive or the forest trail. Keep the last entry early enough to be dry and dressed by about 5 p.m., ahead of the 5:36 p.m. sunset. If a front brings rain or a sharp drop in temperature, shorten the water time, walk the trail in a rain shell, or drive to Troy Spring for a look at the Suwannee before heading back to a warm room.
Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in November vs October and December
| Normal (NOAA, Cross City) | October | November | December |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average high | 82.2°F | 74.4°F | 68.2°F |
| Average low | 59.9°F | 49.2°F | 44.4°F |
| Precipitation | 2.23 in | 2.10 in | 2.95 in |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 3.7 | 3.4 | 4.6 |
October’s highs run 7.8°F warmer than November’s and its lows 10.7°F warmer, with 2.23 inches of rain on 3.7 days. December drops the high by another 6.2°F to 68.2°F and the low by 4.8°F to 44.4°F, while rain rises to 2.95 inches on 4.6 days. All three columns share the same 1991–2020 NOAA source.
Moving four weeks earlier buys warmer mornings and evenings near 60°F instead of 49°F, and you also get daylight saving time for the first part of October. You pay with afternoons in the low 80s. Moving four weeks later costs you about six degrees at midday and adds 1.2 wet days, and all you gain in return is the start of the winter holiday season.
Is November a good time to visit Wes Skiles Peacock Springs?
Yes for cave and cavern divers, snorkelers happy with a thick wetsuit, and anyone who wants to walk the forest trail in comfort. Afternoons average 74.4°F and wet days are few. It suits campers with cold-weather gear too. Anyone expecting warm air for a lazy swimming day, or planning to sleep in a tent with a summer bag, would be better served by another month.
If that describes you, choose October. Its lows average 59.9°F and its highs 82.2°F, so the air stays pleasant around the water from morning to dusk, at the cost of only 0.3 more wet day than November.
Of the three months, November alone pairs mid-70s afternoons with the fewest wet days and the least rain, 2.10 inches.
The last word
Book the dates, then book the warm bed. The water will be there all year, and November makes your dive days comfortable. Only the nights demand a plan. A soaking is also rare: a day with an inch of rain or more turns up just 0.4 time in an average November at Cross City, roughly two Novembers in five. Pack the rain shell anyway, set the alarm for the 6:56 a.m. sunrise, and be at the gate when it opens.
Sources & data for this guide
- November, October and December normals (highs, lows, precipitation, days at 0.10 in and 1 in, nights at 32°F) · NOAA NCEI monthly normals 1991–2020, station USW00012833, Cross City · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Station scope · the Cross City station also serves Troy Spring on the same reach of the Suwannee, and its readings are not taken at the springs · NOAA NCEI · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Daylight, sunrise and sunset on November 15 · sunrise-sunset.org, converted from UTC to Eastern Standard Time · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Florida dry season and hurricane season dates · our Florida overview, National Weather Service and NOAA National Hurricane Center · checked Sep 24, 2026
- What we could not verify: spring water temperature, park fees, hours, parking capacity, diving rules, free-entry days, lodging tax rate and room-rate trends. Check Florida State Parks and your lodging when you book.
To plan your stay
- Best Time to Visit Wes Skiles Peacock Springs: Weather, Rain and the Quiet Months
- Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in October: Weather, Rain Days, Daylight and Crowds
- Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in December: Weather, Frost Nights, Daylight and How It Compares
- Wes Skiles Peacock Springs in January: Weather, Rain Days, Frost Nights and Daylight