50 Hikes in Central Florida

Third Edition

Diversity is the name of the game in Central Florida, a transition zone with some of the state’s longest stretches of trail and awesome rugged hikes in the Central Highlands. With its massive population centers, the region is also home to many short nature trails that enable urban dwellers to explore natural Florida in their own backyard. You can climb to the top of a fifty foot sandhill and survey the scrub as scrub-jays play in Lyonia Preserve, wade through coastal pine flatwoods on Merritt Island, walk the vast open prairies at Hal Scott Preserve, and clamber over the rocky rim of a giant sinkhole as you backpack the 43 mile circuit at the Citrus Tract of Withlacoochee State Forest. Explore these 50 sites for your hiking pleasure, from a one-mile loop around a sinkhole to a four-day backpacking trip.

My husband John Keatley and I revisited the trails we wanted to keep from the prior edition of this guidebook, discovering many changes and expanded trail systems. We switched out over a dozen hikes from the prior edition to encourage you to hike more of Central Florida.

Each chapter now includes other suggested hikes nearby as well as campgrounds and places to stay, enabling you to use our guidebook to find a weekend destination in Florida where you can tackle a bunch of hikes in one visit, just as we did.

Now, the most exciting part. The book is finally in full color, including the maps, and it’s a beauty! 347 pages, 51 maps.

Table of Contents

CENTRAL HIGHLANDS

1. Rainbow Springs State Park, Dunnellon
2. Holly Hammock Hiking Trail, Ross Prairie State Forest
3. Silver Springs State Park, Silver Springs
4. Trout Lake Nature Center, Eustis
5. Hidden Waters Preserve, Eustis
6. Flat Island Preserve, Leesburg
7. Circle B Bar Reserve, Lakeland
8. Lakeland Highlands Scrub, Lakeland

NATURE COAST

9. Johnson Pond Trail, Withlacoochee State Forest
10. Citrus Trail, Withlacoochee State Forest
11. Fort Cooper State Park, Inverness
12. Chinsegut WEA, Brooksville
13. Croom River Trail Loop, Withlacoochee State Forest
14. Withlacoochee River Park, Dade City
15. Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park, Port Richey
16. James E Grey Preserve, New Port Richey

ST JOHNS RIVER

17. De Leon Springs State Park, De Leon Springs
18. St. Francis Hiking Trail Ocala National Forest
19. Black Bear Wilderness Area, Sanford
20. Spring Hammock Preserve, Winter Springs
21. Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas

ORLANDO METRO

22. Lake Proctor Wilderness Area, Geneva
23. Geneva Wilderness Area, Geneva
24. Hal Scott Regional Preserve, Bithlo
25. Prairie Lakes Loop, Kenansville
26. Split Oak Forest WEA, Narcoosee
27. Tibet-Butler Preserve, Windermere
28. Disney Wilderness Preserve, Poinciana

LAKE WALES RIDGE

29. Crooked River Preserve, Clermont
30. Catfish Creek Preserve State Park, Haines City
31. Lake Kissimmee State Park, Lake Wales
32. Tiger Creek Preserve, Babson Park
33. Crooked Lake Prairie, Frostproof

TAMPA BAY

34. Hillsborough River State Park
35. Lettuce Lake Park, Tampa
36. Brooker Creek Preserve, Tarpon Springs
37. John C. Chesnut Sr. Park, Oldsmar
38. Honeymoon Island State Park, Dunedin
39. Eagle Lake Park, Largo
40. Weedon Island Preserve, St. Petersburg
41. Alafia Scrub Preserve, Riverview
42. Little Manatee River Trail, Little Manatee River State Park

ATLANTIC COAST

43. Tiger Bay State Forest, Daytona Beach
44. Ponce Preserve, Ponce Inlet
45. Doris Leeper Spruce Creek Preserve, New Smyrna Beach
46. Lyonia Preserve, Deltona
47. Merritt Island NWR, Titusville
48. Enchanted Forest Sanctuary, Titusville
49. Maritime Hammock Sanctuary, Melbourne Beach
50. Turkey Creek Sanctuary, Palm Bay

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