The most obscure interpretive trail in the Ocala National Forest is well off the beaten path along the Ocklawaha River, accessed via a narrow dirt road. Why here? Location, location, location—in the … [Read more...]
National Forests
Hikes within one of our three National Forests in Florida - the Apalachicola (near Tallahassee), Osceola (between Jacksonville and Lake City), and Ocala (north of Orlando).
Florida Trail, Pat’s Island to Hidden Pond
One of the most popular hikes on the Florida Trail is also one of the most interesting. Hidden Pond is an oasis in the middle of the Juniper Prairie Wilderness, a designated wilderness area in the … [Read more...]
Yearling Trail
In the fall of 1876, Reuben and Sara Jane Long established a homestead on Pat’s Island, a high spot in the Big Scrub. Shaded by longleaf pine and turkey oak, they grew sugar cane and corn, peas, … [Read more...]
Osceola National Forest – Trampled Track Trail
Around 1875, barely a decade after the Union defeat at the hands of the Confederate Army at Olustee, retired Union Soldier Tom Russell and his business partner Isaac Eppinger bought up the land around … [Read more...]
Ocala National Forest – Timucuan Trail
In less than a mile, you experience all of the major habitats of the Ocala National Forest—and can cool off with a swim. Noted for its clarity, Alexander Springs gushes out of a subterranean crevice … [Read more...]
St. Francis Trail
It's hard to believe, as you walk under bowers of live oaks and cabbage palms, that a town once crowded the wharf where the St. Johns River turns away from the St. Francis Dead River, where growers … [Read more...]
Olustee Battlefield
Wind through the pines and step back in time to trace the unfolding of the Battle of Olustee near Lake City. The hike through Olustee Battlefield is short, but its historical significance is great. … [Read more...]
Leon Sinks Geological Area
In the Apalachicola National Forest just south of Tallahassee, Leon Sinks Geological Area offers a delightful introduction to the wonders of karst topography. Karst is a landscape that happens … [Read more...]
Lake Eaton Trail
Two trails, one trailhead. The Lake Eaton Trail is in the heart of the Big Scrub, part of the "Lake Eaton Trails" on the northeast side of Lake Eaton in the Ocala National Forest, halfway between Salt … [Read more...]
Lake Eaton Sinkhole Trail
In the heart of the Big Scrub of the Ocala National Forest, the Lake Eaton Sinkhole is a relatively young phenomenon compared to the other large sinkhole in the region, Devil’s Millhopper. It … [Read more...]
