The Wekiva River has been designated an Outstanding Florida Water, a State Canoe Trail, and is currently under review for inclusion in the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers program.

Florida State Parks Geography Lower Wekiva River State Preserve is comprised of almost 18,000 acres of environmentally significant land bordering six miles of the St. Johns River and the lower four miles of the Wekiva River and Black Water Creek. Almost 5,000 acres of the preserve was purchased by the state of Florida in 1976 to protect portions of the Lower Wekiva River while allowing recreational use. Additional purchases in 1994 and 1995 have formed a wildlife corridor along the Wekiva and St. Johns Rivers connecting to the Ocala National Forest.

Wekiwa Springs State Park comprises approximately 7,000 acres of wild scenery that offers an opportunity to see how areas of central Florida looked when the Timucuan Indians speared fish in the spring-fed creeks and stalked the uplands. They left a number of mounds that are still visible today. The main spring pumps approximately 42 million gallons of water each day. Wekiwa Springs, for which the park is named, is one of the region's familiar and popular geologic features.

The spring's name is derived from the Creek Indian word "Wekiwa" meaning "spring of water" or "bubbling water." Wekiwa Springs is the headwaters for the Wekiva River. "Wekiva" means "flowing water." Springs commonly occur along each side of Florida central ridge. The streams created by two such springs form the northern and eastern park boundaries. Rock Springs Run and Wekiwa Springs Run merge to form the Wekiva River, which flows into the St. Johns River fifteen miles to the northeast. Witherington Springs, located near the center of the park, forms Mill Creek, which flows into the swamp bordering Rock Springs Run.