Truly Unique

Peering out of a trailside cave big enough to walk into

What will you see along the Citrus Hiking Trail? “I see deer and turkey,” said Jackson, “and from time to time a hog to the south on the D Loop” Visitors day-hiking the A Loop out of Holder Mine Campground encounter scrub habitat and remnants of the turpentine era, like clay cups and catfaces on the longleaf pines. On the west side of the D Loop, hikers round Lizzie Hart Sink, a deep sinkhole surrounded by many caves; the trail traverses a rocky landscape reminiscent of the Appalachians. Recent biological surveys in the area have uncovered rare and unusual species of spleenwort ferns, which thrive around cavern openings. A new side trail points hikers to a cluster of interesting caves near CR 491. Stage Pond, at the southeast end of the loop, was a watering hole for stagecoaches during the 1800s. But Jackson’s favorite spot in the forest is Mansfield Pond, near the B-C Cross Trail. “It’s an interesting area to hike around and through,” said Jackson. The dense oak hammock on the edge of the prairie pond includes a massive live oak split by age, still growing.

Part of the Florida State Forests Trailwalker Program, the 8.5-mile Loop A starts at the “FT” sign and kiosk at the Holder Mine Campground off TR-10, 2 miles west of CR 581 south of Inverness. Follow the blue blazes through bright white sand beneath the tall sand pines as you experience the desert-like scrub habitat en route to the “Loop A” sign. The orange-blazed outer loop, which leads through pine forests with a vast open understory, where quail explode from the wiregrass, and climbs up a series of sandhills that are some of the highest in Central Florida. Use the blue-blazed connector trail at the “Loop A-B” sign to make a loop back to the main orange trail and back out again. If you’re out on a multi-day backpacking trip, continue along the outer orange blazes to walk the full 43.3 miles, or plot out a shorter overnight loop using the Loop B-C or C-D crossovers to enjoy the full range of habitats found in the Citrus Tract of Withlacoochee State Forest.