Centrally located in North Central Florida, Ocala is surrounded by more than 200 miles of hiking trails, including two large segments of the Florida Trail along the Cross Florida Greenway and through the Ocala National Forest. It is one of the most ideal jumping-off-points for hikers looking to enjoy a flurry of day hikes or a week or more worth of backpacking.
Bear Swamp Trail
Little known except to those who frequent this beautiful campground in the Salt Springs Recreation Area in the Ocala National Forest, the Bear Swamp Trail provides a glimpse into the ancient forest that undoubtedly crowded the shores of Salt Springs when botanist and explorer William Bartram visited the “amazing crystal fountain” in 1774. The easy… [Continue Reading]
Carney Island Park
The breeze carries the scent of orange blossoms, from some of the northernmost remaining commercial groves in Florida. Lake Weir is a palatable presence, more than 5,800 acres of wet shallows favored by anglers and paddlers. At Carney Island Park, a county park in southern Marion County, the hikers get to play, too. As a… [Continue Reading]
Clearwater Lake Loop
Most hikers headed for Clearwater Lake in the Ocala National Forest are looking for the Florida Trail, which starts its northbound journey of 70 unbroken miles just north of SR 42 in Paisley. But the original segment of the Florida Trail blazed by Florida Trail Association founder Jim Kern and his first work crew in… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Baseline to Marshall Swamp
Along this woodland in Ocala, enjoy a swath of true urban wilderness, a mile-wide corridor edged on both sides by subdivisions and strip malls. Both remain gratefully out of sight and sound as you walk along the Florida Trail in the Baseline section of the Cross Florida Greenway. Now I’m not a fan of paved… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Buckman Lock to Rodman Dam
Paralleling a segment of the failed Cross Florida Barge Canal, this mostly linear section of the Florida Trail sticks to a high berm created when the canal was dug. Nicely shaded for much of its route, it’s a gentle walk with the occasional scenic view of the waterway and the forests on its north side.… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Hopkins Prairie to Juniper Springs
Long referred to as the “jewel of the Florida Trail,” Juniper Prairie Wilderness in the Ocala National Forest is a complex mosaic of ancient scrub forests, pine islands, and broad, open prairies where wildlife thrives. The heart of the world’s largest sand pine scrub is also one of the state’s most flammable habitats, and, unfortunately,… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Hopkins Prairie to Salt Springs
While the Ocala National Forest is best known for having the largest expanse of scrub forest in the world, a lesser known facet of the forest – unless you hike the Florida Trail – are its wide, open prairies fringed with scrub forest. Here, sandhill cranes gather in groups, kingfishers buzz above small ponds, and… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Juniper Springs to Farles Lake
For a real blast, hike south on the Florida Trail from Juniper Springs in the Ocala National Forest. Back in the 1940s, Jimmy Doolittle and his squadron trained here for their bombing runs on Japan; today, you’re still likely to see or hear low-flying bombers on their practice runs throughout the bombing range that this… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Lake Delancy to The 88 Store
An immersion in both sandhills and scrub awaits on a walk along the Florida Trail between Lake Delancy and Lake Kerr. Amid the tall longleaf pines of Riverside Island and the diminutive oaks of the Big Scrub you’ll find a parade of wildlife. Florida black bear sightings are most common along this segment, and plenty… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Land Bridge Trailhead to Santos
As the Cross Florida Greenway sweeps through Ocala and along the edge of Belleview, it provides access to a series of forests broken by unobtrusive road crossings in the heart of horse country, canopied roads that are a joy to drive between the two trailheads. Bordered by horse farms, this section of the Florida Trail… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Marshall Swamp
Tarzan’s signature cry once echoed along the crystalline Silver River less than a mile from this section of the Florida Trail, which leads you through a dense, dark floodplain forest beneath a canopy of deep green palm fronds and ancient live oaks. Between 1932 and 1942, Johnny Weissmuller swung from tree to tree for the… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Pruitt to Ross Prairie
As a protected corridor south of Ocala, this section of the Florida Trail is the westernmost segment on the Cross Florida Greenway, showing off the unusual terrain created during construction of the Cross Florida Ship Canal in the 1930s. It’s one of the few places in Central Florida you’ll find switchbacks along a hike, and… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Rodman to Lake Delancy
One of the most awe-inspiring sections of the Florida Trail, the segment between the Rodman Dam (more properly known as the George Kirkpatrick Dam) and Lake Delancy immerses you into longleaf pine forests that seem to go on forever. Providing a fine balance between the Big Scrub habitats and the breathtaking old-growth longleaf pines, it’s… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Ross Prairie to SW 49th Ave
As a protected corridor south of Ocala, this section of the Florida Trail on the Cross Florida Greenway offers delights you just can’t imagine from the roads that bisect it—CR 484 and SW 49th Avenue. It may look like your typical forest of scrubby-looking turkey oaks, but once you get inside it, what a surprise.… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Salt Springs to The 88 Store
Amid a patchwork of scrub ridges and longleaf pine islands, the Florida Trail makes its way northwest around the vastness of Lake Kerr on this 10.1 mile section. It’s accessible to day hikers via two connector trails – blazed in blue – that attach at Salt Springs and from behind The 88 Store, a popular… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, Santos to Baseline
In its mile-wide sweep across a swath of Central Florida, the Cross Florida Greenway hits an interruption just a few miles to the north of Belleview. The community of Santos was “in the way” during the construction of the Cross Florida Ship Canal in the 1930s, and emptied of its African-American residents; only the name… [Continue Reading]
Florida Trail, SW 49th Ave to Land Bridge Trailhead
This short segment of the Florida Trail on the Cross Florida Greenway offers easy access to one of its most popular destinations—the Land Bridge over Interstate 75. From the highway, it looks somewhat odd, topped with trees, and is certainly a notable landmark for visitors driving south through Ocala. But the nation’s first Land Bridge… [Continue Reading]
Holly Hammock Hiking Trail
At the Ross Prairie Trailhead of the Cross Florida Greenway, there are two loop trails you can access – and this is the shorter of the two, taking you on a journey into the quiet woods of Ross Prairie State Forest, just south of the Greenway. The grasslands of Ross Prairie sprawl in arms and… [Continue Reading]
Johnson Pond Trail
One of my favorites for many years, the Johnson Pond Trail is Hike #3 in 50 Hikes in Central Florida. Although it combines elements of hikes I’m not fond of – shared use in a couple places, plus blazed forest roads used by vehicles – its beauty spots are such that it’s still worth visiting… [Continue Reading]
Juniper Springs
Experience crystalline waters emerging from the midst of the world’s largest scrub forest—hike an easy nature trail and boardwalk in the Ocala National Forest. Surrounded by the dryness of the Big Scrub, the world’s largest scrub forest, Juniper Springs is a playground of hydrological wonders, the center of a jungle-like oasis of riotous growth. At… [Continue Reading]
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 punctured the ancient dunes with a massive collapse, which, when stabilized, formed a cool bowl in which a hardwood forest took root.… [Continue Reading]
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 Springs and Nuby’s Corner along CR 314. From the air (or satellite photo) you can see Lake Eaton… [Continue Reading]
Ocklawaha Prairie Restoration Area
Winding northward from Lake Griffin, the Ocklawaha River was once a meandering river through vast marshes, cypress swamps, and floodplain forests as it worked its way towards the St. Johns River near Palatka. But channelization by the Army Corps of Engineers radically altered its flow in many places, including around Moss Bluff. There are two… [Continue Reading]
Oxbow Trail
A lesser-known part of Withlacoochee State Forest, the Oxbow Trail is on the northernmost tract of the forest along the Withlacoochee River, the trails and campsites all Eagle Scout projects. While the easy-to-follow big loop trail is a popular circuit for families and folks taking their dogs on a walk, the tougher-to-follow but more visually… [Continue Reading]
Rainbow Springs State Park – Sandhill Trail
More than a century ago, the forests surrounding first-magnitude Rainbow Springs were a beehive of activity as miners dug pits in the limestone to find nuggets that made Dunnellon a boomtown—phosphate. This area was the first place where phosphate was commercially mined in Florida. The deep pits and spoil piles left behind were recovered by… [Continue Reading]
Ross Prairie Loop
Starting at the Ross Prairie Trailhead, the 3.5-mile Ross Prairie Loop offers an overview of Ross Prairie, a sprawling complex of grasslands and ponds nearly three miles long. Edged by sand pine scrub, longleaf pine forests and oak hammocks lush with ferns and orchids, this unique ecosystem is a highlight of a visit to the… [Continue Reading]
Salt Springs Loop
Resources Overview Location: Salt Springs Length: 1.9 miles Lat-Long: 29.340072, -81.728832 Type: Loop with spur to boardwalk Fees / Permits: None Difficulty: easy to moderate Bug factor: low to moderate Restroom: None Directions From Ocala, take I-75 exit 352 and drive east on SR 40 through downtown Ocala and Silver Springs en route to the… [Continue Reading]
Silver River Connector
Gushing more than 550 million gallons of water out of a cluster of springs each day, Silver Springs is the birthplace of the Silver River, a wild and scenic waterway that my paddler friends like to describe as “6 miles upstream and 1 mile downstream.” A tangled jungle of floodplain forest edges the meandering waterway… [Continue Reading]
Silver River State Park – River Trails
Silver River State Park has plenty of hiking, and these two trails are probably the most popular of the bunch. Walk under the “River Trails” arch to start your adventure into the cypress swamps and floodplain forests of the Silver River basin along two very different trails. The Swamp Trail offers a round-trip and loop… [Continue Reading]
Silver River State Park – Sandhill Nature Trail
Back in the 1980s, when I first heard that land had been acquired near Silver Springs for a state park, I was thrilled. Having grown up nearby, it bothered me that the Silver Springs attraction no longer let you roam the gardens for free, and I knew there would now be a way to walk… [Continue Reading]
Silver River State Park – Sinkhole Trail
Take a hike around a giant sinkhole and explore the uplands above the Silver River at Silver River State Park. Near the environmental education center and Pioneer Village, start at the Sinkhole Trail archway for this 2.5-mile loop through sandhills, sand pine scrub, and oak hammocks surrounding a giant sinkhole. This trail offers both diversity… [Continue Reading]
Silver Springs Conservation Area
It’s been a long time coming – Marion County’s first conservation area is now open for hikers to enjoy. Tucked between residential and business areas in Silver Springs across from Silver River State Park, this slice of sandhills and scrub is a crucial upland recharge area for the nearby first-magnitude spring. As rain falls on… [Continue Reading]
Sunnyhill Restoration Area – Levee Trail
A 4,405-acre swath of public land in the Ocklawaha River floodplain, Sunnyhill Conservation Area offers five different trailheads for hikers, bicyclists, and equestrians to roam its vast network of forest roads and levees. I’ve ducked into several of them over the years, but found the trail surface a bit too soft for my taste until… [Continue Reading]
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 to quickly form a broad waterway, Alexander Run. Down near the headspring, your adventure begins. Although it’s short, the Timucuan… [Continue Reading]
Yearling Trail
Walk the landscape and discover the history that inspired Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Yearling in 1938, on Pat’s Island in the Ocala National Forest. 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… [Continue Reading]
