As promised (albeit a little late), here’s a walk-through of the Florida Trail at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park. I did this with my friend Phyllis around New Years’ Day. We camped out and were rained on the night before; the forests were rather wet (where they weren’t smoking after a recent burn). Winter colors, a lot of muted shades and shadows, but the day brightened up as we finished up. Learn more about this section of trail on the main website.
The Big Shoals Trail is certainly one of the most spectacular short hikes in Florida when you catch it at the right time of year: say hiking season, when the Class III whitewater appears as the Suwannee River rushes through limestone formations. Check out this armchair tour hike based on my visit this February. While the easiest in-and-out walk is only 2.2 miles, you can explore much more of the state park on a variety of multi-use trails and forest roads. It’s Hike #4 in 50 Hikes in North Florida, and you’ll find more information about the trail here.
I’m trying a little content creation in parallel … a video of the Juniper Run Nature Trail at Juniper Springs in the Ocala National Forest, complete with video I shot last month on a hike and voiceover about the hike. I’m working on a podcast about the trail, too, but with the podcast, the words have to paint the pictures. Here’s the first part on my Florida Hikes YouTube channel: check it out and leave a rating!
