Gornto Springs Preserve
Dixie County, Florida⁞212± ACRES
High-fenced Recreational and Social Storm™ Property with all the Amenities Ready to Step In, and Enjoy
- 212+/- acre high-quality Social Storm™ high-fence sporting property in Dixie County, Florida
- 150+/- Whitetail deer with improved genetics
- 10-12+/- Axis
- 3+/- Fallow deer
- 8+/- Black Buck
- 2+/- acre transition pen
- Three 1k mineral feeders and 7 Texas feeders
- 6 deer stands (3 Muddies, 3 Rednecks)
- 1/4 acre stocked catfish pond
- New build (2023) 1BR/1BA log-sided cabin/agricultural office
- Built up for viewing the wildlife
- Tongue & groove walls
- LVT flooring
- Granite countertops
- Stone fireplace hearth
- Wraparound porches
- Great road system
- Equipment barn
- State-of-the-art processing facility (automatic cranks, meat grinder, deep freezer for 20 deer, built-in drainage, etc.)
- 3/2 mobile home just outside of high-fence provides long-term rental income
- 2.5 miles of Perimeter fencing
- Strong Spring Osceola Wild Turkey population
- The property is well thought out and both meticulously maintained and improved
For only $1.65M, it's going to be difficult to replicate the outdoor experiences and wildlife offered by this property
Gornto Springs Preserve is a 212+/-acre high-quality High Fence and Social Storm™ property in Dixie County, Florida. This property is well thought out and both meticulously maintained and improved. From the gated entrance to the brand-new cabin and top-of-the-line processing facility, the improvements are exceptional. Whitetail deer with some of the best of modern genetics are stocked on the property. The diverse, mostly upland habitats provide very good cover and give this property a feeling of being much larger than the deed shows. Everything about Gornto Springs Preserve was planned and managed in exceptional detail by the current landowner.
"Quite frankly, I'm a little surprised that the landowner decided to sell. I've been watching this place being improved, heard about the genetics he brought in here, and have just heard great things for quite some time. I know how much work and time it took to turn this into a dream place." - Jon Kohler
The 2.5-mile perimeter is a very well-constructed high-fence with portions of windscreen/privacy cover around the street-view perimeter providing for the ultimate in privacy and wildlife. The fence is primarily there to allow the deer to mature, for superior genetics and for a few exotics to make it truly a year-round hunting property. Those include Axis, Fallow Deer, and Black Buck. The whitetail herd is estimated to be around 150 with superior genetics from the greats in the industry. Having bucks that score well into the 200 B&C range is not uncommon, something never seen in free-range properties.
While technically in a high-fence setting, these deer are not encountered easily. They are wild and have more than 210 +/- acres of ground cover, and native Florida flora to retreat to. The bedding grounds and habitat here are ideal. There is a 2+/- acre transition pen but otherwise, this is a recreational hunting property, not a breeding operation.
"Some folks erroneously believe a high fence means a deer pen. We filmed, shot drone footage, and ran UTVs across the property for hours during the middle of the day and just saw glimpses of a few whitetails. This is great habitat. The owner has bucks in here that can go a year without showing up on camera." - Jon Kohler
Further contributing to the management of the herd are three 1-k mineral feeders, seven Texas feeders, and a 2-acre transition pen. In all, there are six stands scattered throughout the property, 3 Muddies and 3 Rednecks. Six hunters can hunt at once without interfering with the other in any way. The road system is also exceptional.
The spring turkey hunting is amazing with pure Osceola subspecies. The spring Osceola Wild Turkey population here is very strong as this is a major nesting area for hens coming out of the nearby Suwannee Swamp. "Essentially what happens is this property offers the best brooding habitat for miles around. The hens need this and flock here to nest bringing with them a seemingly limitless number of gobblers coming from the adjacent Suwannee River Swamp. The neighboring hammocks remind me of an island off the coast of South Carolina. It's great winter habitat and full of turkeys but two weeks before Spring Gobbler season the hens leave to find suitable nesting cover and two weeks later there isn't a turkey on the entire island. A place like this is where they go." - Jon Kohler
A 1/4+/- acre pond with a dock and feeder is loaded with massive catfish. The fishing here is fantastic. Additional water sources include some wetlands and creek bottom.
There is a large equipment barn and the Grade-A processing facility - equipped to store up to 40 deer in the freezer - comes fully equipped with automatic cranks, a hamburger/sausage grinder, and more. The processing facility is fully lit and cooled with stainless steel equipment/sinks/counters, and a built-in floor drainage system for easy cleanup.
Brand new to the property is a beautiful log cabin/agricultural office. The cabin built in 2023, was purposely built up on stilts to provide for viewing opportunities of the abundant wildlife on its grand wraparound porches. Inside features tongue and groove walls, LVT floors, granite countertops, and a gorgeous stone fireplace hearth, one bedroom, one bath and one kitchen. The lodge is the perfect place to rest one's head and unwind after an afternoon harvest/night processing.
Lending itself to 6 hunters at a time, a landowner could completely offset operating costs with paid hunts if one chose to. There is also a three-bedroom, two-bathroom mobile home fenced separately from the preserve that generates $800-$1,000 per month in rental income.
Gornto Spring's Social Storm™ Property Attributes are highly ranked. This Social Storm™ property belongs to a unique asset class with key property attributes that investors gravitate to for safety in bad times and buy for a recreation reward in good times.
Lending to its namesake, Gornto Springs Park is just around the corner. Also known as Guaranto Springs, Gornto Springs is a 2nd magnitude spring located on the banks of the Suwannee River. The site is perfect for cooling off in its deep clear swimming hole and is perfect for picnicking with friends and family.
The property is located 30 minutes to High Springs, Florida, 43 minutes to Alachua, 43 minutes to the coastal waters of Steinhatchee, one hour to Gainesville, one hour and 45 minutes to Jacksonville, Florida, and two hours to the state Capitol.
This is a rare opportunity on a high-fence preserve with all the amenities ready to step in and enjoy and entertain.
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From murky farm ponds to pristine glacier-cut lakes and everything in between, Knox Daniels’ expertise stems from a lifelong fascination of water and the creatures that live in and around it. He recognizes and helps clients appreciate the value water features bring to a property. “My goal is to help buyers realize and sellers maximize the value different water bodies bring to a property, not only in a recreational sense, but also for social storm reasons.” After extensively traveling the country for collegiate BASS fishing tournaments, Knox graduated and worked for the Southeast’s finest fisheries and wildlife biologist, Greg Grimes. With Grimes’ company, AES, Knox managed many of the southeast’s finest private lake estate/impoundment properties, and learned the intricacies of upscale property management. Learning from Greg and other biologists, Knox honed in on the specific conditions and habitat needed for optimal gamefish growth in private lakes. He has also worked as a property manager on several thousand acres and for a commercial developer, facilitating the dirt work and builds of several apartment complexes, but his true passion has always been in the outdoors. “I’ve always had an insatiable fascination with ponds/lakes and am grateful to be able to help to place clients on the properties of their dreams and make their personal fisheries/wildlife goals reality with JKA.” – Knox Daniels
Jason has been assisting landowners for the last 28 years in Georgia and South Carolina obtain achievements the owners did not realize were possible. His degree in Biology from Georgia Southern stemmed from the desire to know how things in nature work. His plantation roots began at just 16 years old outside of Albany, GA and the last 20 years were spent in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. His entire career has been spent developing a global approach to plantation management. That plan included sales. Sales is in Jason’s blood- his mom had a 45-year career as a real estate broker. After college, he chose to pursue his passion of making properties great. In 2011, Jason sold his first plantation. Since then, he has assisted buyers and sellers with over $20 million in sales while most of that time working as a full-time General Manager of a large Lowcountry plantation. Today, he is committed to using his unique skill set and experience to guide landowners through the many challenges of plantation ownership.
Bruce Ratliff is a retired elected official (Property Appraiser Taylor County). Bruce brings years of experience in ad valorem tax knowledge. His property tax background gives JKA Associates & clients a unique insight into the complicated tax process. Bruce held several positions in the Florida Association of Property Appraisers, including member of the Board of Directors, President, Vice-President and Secretary, and served on the Agricultural & Legislative Committees for the Association. The real estate business has been part of Bruce’s life since childhood. His mother, Shirley Ratliff owned Professional Realty of Perry, Florida and his father, Buster owned Ratliff Land Surveying which Bruce was General Manager of before his political career.
Hailing from a long line of outdoorsmen, Tim learned a great deal from his father and grandfather. He saw first-hand what it means to be a good land steward. He believes land is so much more than a place to hunt, fish, and grow timber or crops. “It’s an identity, a resting place, a safe haven and a way of life, said Tim.” Tim’s family ties to Alabama run deep. During his grandfather’s first term, Governor James was responsible for signing into law Alabama’s first state duck stamp which helped to ensure funding for the procurement, development, and preservation of wetlands for migratory waterfowl habitat. He also established Alabama’s lifetime hunting license, so it is no surprise that Tim is an avid outdoorsman with a keen eye as to how best to improve habitat for the greater good of its wildlife.
With Madison County roots, Lori grew up on her family farm at Pettis Springs along the historic Aucilla River. A love of the land was instilled in Lori very early on by her father who was a local farmer. Lori understands the importance of good land stewardship and has witnessed first-hand how her own father, a former 2-term member of the Florida House of Representatives whose district encompassed many rural counties of the Red Hills Plantation Region, with a little bit of sweat equity, so lovingly worked their own family land. These are core values she carries with her today, and nothing gives her more personal satisfaction than to represent some of the south’s best land stewards.
Cole’s dedication to land management lies in his family roots. As a fourth-generation timber expert, Cole’s earliest memories were spent with his father managing timber investments. With a degree in Food Resource Economics from the University of Florida, Cole is the epitome of an up-and-coming leader. He grew up with a hands-on approach to learning land management and conservation and has spent the last 15 years learning every angle of the real estate and forest industry. Cole is a member of the Florida Forestry Association, Red Hills Quail Forever, Southeastern Wood Producers Association and he uses this platform as an advocate for landowners and their land investments. His family has dedicated the past 60 years to providing landowners in North Florida and South Georgia with professional land management services focused on improving and protecting one’s forestland and wildlife investment. In fact, their family business, M.A. Rigoni, Inc., was one of the first to introduce whole tree chipping to the Red Hills Region.
As a landowner of his own family farm, Lick Skillet, along with family land that has been passed down and enjoyed together at Keaton Beach for 40 years, Jon knows what it means to be a steward of the last best places. As a third-generation land broker with more than 30 years of experience in advising landowners in this niche, Jon is known for his innate ability to harvest a land’s unique intrinsic value. Touting several notable sales under his belt, Jon personally closed Rock Creek/Molpus – 124,000 acres of premium timberland at $142,000,000 – which was known as the largest timberland land sale in the Southeast for eight years running. He is a co-founding member of LandLeader and achieved the real estate industry’s highest honor, “2022 National Broker of the Year – Recreational Land Sales,” by the Realtors® Land Institute.