Part of the Florida State Forests Trailwalker program, the Bear-N-Oak Trail circles Indian Lake, a major karst feature in the Ocala Limestone.
The lake connects to the Floridan Aquifer, and through it, to Silver Springs, which is why Indian Lake State Forest protects natural habitats for rainfall reaching the spring.
Indian LakeAmid the 4,440 acres of sandhills and pine flatwoods north of Silver Springs, a commercial campground once edged Indian Lake.
In recent years, the state forest has added a nicely shaded campground and permanently shifted the trailhead for the Bear-N-Oak Trail to its day use area, closing the original one.
New trailhead kiosk at the day use areaResources
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Overview
Location: Silver Springs
Length: 1.4 mile loop
Trailhead: 29.275294, -82.050059
Address: 8675 NE 58th Ave, Ocala
Fees: $2 per vehicle
Restroom: Vault toilet
Land manager: Florida State Forests
Phone: 352-732-1779
Open sunrise to sunset. Leashed dogs welcome; pick up after your pet.
Directions
From Interstate 75 in Ocala, take SR 40 east to Silver Springs. Follow CR 35 (Baseline Road) north 4.4 miles to the Indian Lake Recreation Area sign. Turn in at the gate on the right and follow the road nearly a half mile to the day use parking area just before the entrance gate to the campground.
Hike
From the day use parking area, walk beneath a showy canopy of live oaks to the trail kiosk near Indian Lake. Start your hike clockwise by making a right.
Picnic benches adjoin the lake, and a couple of swinging benches are hung in the live oak trees. Pond cypress, ancient and wizened, rise from the shoreline.
Swinging bench along the waterfrontDespite the expanse of open water, Indian Lake is a not a true lake, but a karst window, 85 feet deep in the middle.
It is not fed by streams. The water levels rise and fall depending on the amount of water in the aquifer below.
Flood shadow in the cypress strand along the loopKeep that in mind as you note the height of the watermarks on the trees: extreme near the lake, persistent even through the forests above it.
During Hurricane Milton, the aquifer rose high enough to fill everything circled by this loop, emerging not just from the lake but from all of the sinkholes surrounding it.
Archway under the oaksLeaving the shoreline, blue hiker markers continue under the low canopy of live oak limbs.
Swaddled in resurrection fern, these oaks create a picturesque spot by arching over the footpath.
Cypress strand boardwalkTurn to cross a long boardwalk through the cypress strand along the east end of Indian Lake.
There is always a flood shadow on these trees, their knees bristling below. Exiting the boardwalk, walk downslope towards the lake following the footpath.
Walking among the cypressA trail with an orange hiker marker splits off in a sandy spot; bear right to stay along the blue markers.
Before the cypress swamp ends, turn left at a quarter mile onto a narrow footpath into the hardwood hammock.
The “Hobbit Hole”Walk beneath a grandly arching live oak trunk with a gaping hobbit hole in the earthen mound below it. Vines drape from the high canopy.
Descend to Indian Lake to take in its full sweep of shoreline from a broad sandy beach. Bear left to climb into the woods, circling a sinkhole filled with cypress knees.
Descent to the lakeshoreIn winter, with the leaves off the oaks, it’s easiest to see reflections off water from the sinkholes flanking the trail.
They appear to follow a line indicating an underground stream below them. When it cradles water, the showiest creates a mirror on this side of the shoreline of Indian Lake
Mirror effect in sinkholeThe orange trail returns at this spot. Follow the blue markers to the shoreline, skirting it on a return to the woods at a half mile. Walk a straightaway under a showy alley of live oaks.
As it ends, views of Indian Lake Prairie open up. Broad-based skinny hatrack pond cypresses line this normally dry north end of the basin.
Trio of “hatrack” cypresses on the prairieOn the descent, a deep sinkhole yawns beneath the saw palmettos at the rim of the hammock.
Turning left sharply before reaching the cypresses, leave the prairie behind for another archway of live oaks.
Deep sinkhole at forest edgeA splatter of fallen oaks leads to a little confusion: walk through the cut in a downed trunk and slip between them to find the next blue marker.
Climb into the nicely canopied hardwood hammock, stepping over saw palmetto trunks laid out like speed bumps on the leafy footpath.
Thread your way between the trunksPalmetto fronds hide swales and sinkholes most easily determined by the rise and fall of the landscape.
Both oaks and pines grow massive here, and cabbage palms dot the forest.
Even on this high ground, watermarks circle the trees, especially near the deepest sinkhole basin on the left.
Deep sinkhole hidden just off the trailPast an enormous live oak, slip through the middle of a cluster of sand live oak trunks.
Rounding a curve past a side path under the power lines (to the original Bear-N-Oak trailhead on Baseline Rd, now closed off) make a sharp right at 0.8 mile.
Descend through a tangled section of forest where climax sandhill and hammock meet.
The former trailhead turnoff under the power linesA mile into the hike, enter an open area where cypress trees loom along the west end of Indian Lake Prairie.
Ignore the side trails and continue straight ahead across the white sand to the hardwood forest beyond, climbing a hill.
Blue marker points the way uphillTurning sharply, tunnel through scrubby flatwoods before emerging into a deeply shaded climax sandhill forest dominated by laurel oak.
At 1.2 miles, the picnic pavilion within sight through the live oaks, the next curve points towards the lake.
Picnic pavilion aheadJogging around a massive live oak, join the shoreline of Indian Lake one last time to walk past the pavilion.
Completing the 1.4 mile loop by reaching the trail kiosk, continue under the live oak canopy to the parking area.
Return to the day use areaTrail Map
Explore More!
Learn more about Indian Lake State Forest
Indian Lake State Forest Purchased to protect an uplands recharge area for one of Florida's largest springs, Indian Lake State Forest centers around a deep sinkhole lake called Indian Lake.Video
Hiking the Bear-N-Oak Trail
Slideshow
See our photos from Indian Lake State Forest
Nearby Adventures
Silver Springs State Park One of the world's largest and deepest springs, Silver Springs pours out more than 550 million gallons of water daily, forming the Silver River.
Silver Springs Conservation Area Silver Springs Conservation Area protects upland habitats crucial to recharge of Silver Springs. Two stacked loop trails (with a cross-trail on the upper loop) provide several options for hiking.
Florida Trail, Marshall Swamp 3 miles. Marvel at towering trees in an ancient forest along this Florida Trail segment on the Cross Florida Greenway.
Ocala National Forest Established in 1908 as the first National Forest east of the Mississippi, the Ocala National Forest is a mecca for hikers and campers, and the birthplace of the Florida Trail.Forest Map (PDF) Reserve Campsite Official Website
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