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Florida Hikes!

Your guide to Florida's outdoors, by Sandra Friend, Florida's hiking expert, and her co-author John Keatley, covering the Florida Trail and other trails throughout Florida.

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Hiking articles

Articles on hiking, including gear recommendations, hike planning, where to hike in an area, and how to get the most out of your hike.

A Walk at Wekiwa

February 17, 2006 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

A Walk at Wekiwa

It was a cold, cold morning last Sunday when I took a stroll from the Sand Lake trailhead at Wekiwa Springs State Park into the open pine scrub. Good thing that the canopy is relatively open as you head out on the hiking loop, although it’s disappointing that the main trail (blazed white) is still […]

Filed Under: Articles, Hiking Tagged With: Apopka, Wekiwa Springs SP

Adding to the Life List

July 21, 2015 by John Keatley Leave a Comment

Adding to the Life List

Although John is a native Floridian, our research trip to South Florida became an opportunity for him to see many natural “firsts” in Florida that most people have on their life lists.

Filed Under: Articles, Hiking, South Florida, Southeast Florida, Southwest Florida, Travel, Wildlife Encounters Tagged With: Big Cypress National Preserve, Collier-Seminole State Park, Corkscrew, Everglades National Park, Fakahatchee SP, Florida Keys, Jupiter, Miami, Naples

Around Okeechobee

December 6, 2018 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Around Okeechobee

Our 2018 update of the state of the Florida Trail around Lake Okeechobee. Thru-hikers should continue to use Okeechobee West as their route around the lake. We provide full details on why.

Filed Under: Articles, Featured Posts, Hiking Tagged With: Clewiston, Florida Trail, FT Okeechobee, Lake Okeechobee, Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, Lakeport, Moore Haven, Okeechobee, Pahokee, South Bay

Back to the Hammock

June 11, 2015 by John Keatley Leave a Comment

Back to the Hammock

Hiking the Hammock Trails in Merritt Island NWR this weekend brought back memories of hiking and camping in these woods as a young Boy Scout in the 1960s and 70s

Filed Under: Articles, Central Florida, Hiking Tagged With: Merritt Island, Merritt Island NWR, Scouting, Titusville

Big O: Pounding Pavement in Pahokee

November 19, 2011 by Sandra Friend 1 Comment

Last night at our well-attended prep meeting for today’s hike, I finally got the answer I’d been waiting for: where the heck are we hiking? Not the dike, after all. In 2004, we saw the horrific effects of that summer’s foursome of hurricanes on this tiny western outpost of Palm Beach County. In 2006, the […]

Filed Under: Articles, Hiking Tagged With: Big O Hike, Big O Hike 2011

Botanically rich hikes along the Florida Trail

February 6, 2018 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Botanically rich hikes along the Florida Trail

With more than 1,400 miles of hiking statewide, the Florida Trail provides a gateway to grand landscapes for botanical beauty. Here are our top suggestions for fascinating botanical destinations along the Florida Trail.

Filed Under: Articles, Central Florida, Hiking, North Florida, Northwest Florida, South Florida, Southeast Florida, Southwest Florida Tagged With: Botanical, Florida Trail

Calhoun, Chipola, and the Altha Trail

April 8, 2013 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Calhoun, Chipola, and the Altha Trail

About a decade ago, I was in Blountstown for the grand opening of the brand-new Blountstown Greenway, a project that, it seemed, the whole town rallied around. They showed up in droves for the grand opening to celebrate the first-ever public pathway in Calhoun County, one of Florida’s more rural spots about an hour west […]

Filed Under: Articles, Florida Trail, Hiking, Travels with Primrose, Treks Tagged With: Blountstown, Chipola River, Florida Trail, FT Altha, Marianna

Changes at Spring Hammock Preserve

March 6, 2018 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Changes at Spring Hammock Preserve

When we revisited Spring Hammock Preserve in December 2017 for research for our third edition of 50 Hikes in Central Florida, we discovered radical changes to the trail system that needed explanation. Here’s what’s up at one of our favorite preserves.

Filed Under: Articles, Central Florida, Hiking Tagged With: Longwood, Winter Springs

Circling Central Florida on the Florida Trail

September 12, 2015 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Circling Central Florida on the Florida Trail

East vs. West: which is best? I hiked both as a loop, so here’s a rundown of how the two corridors of the Florida Trail compare through Central Florida – and a little trail history.

Filed Under: Articles, Florida Trail, Hiking, History, Treks Tagged With: Florida Trail, FT Ocala West, FT Western Corridor

Closing the Florida Trail Big Bend Gap

April 28, 2017 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Closing the Florida Trail Big Bend Gap

How do we close the gap in the Florida Trail between the Suwannee and Aucilla Rivers? Learn the history of how the trail was developed and routed through that region, the discussions going on now, and a potential solution for future protection of the trail corridor.

Filed Under: Articles, Conservation, Hiking, History Tagged With: Aucilla River, Florida Trail, Florida Trail Association, FT Big Bend, Suwannee River

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Updates on Florida’s outdoors

Hiking Guidebooks for Florida

Guthook GuidesGuthook Guides Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the Florida National Scenic Trail.


Florida Trail Guide 50 Hikes in Central Florida Five Star Trails Orlando Five Star Trails Gainesville & Ocala Hiker's Guide to the Sunshine State 50 Hikes in South Florida

The Florida Trail


A comprehensive history of the Florida National Scenic Trail. Full color limited edition coffee table book, 228 pages.

Order Now

Get Outdoors!

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FLORIDA TRAIL. NATURE TRAILS. DAY HIKING . LOOP HIKES. BACKPACKING. ACCESSIBLE. WITH DOGS. WITH KIDS. BEACH WALKS. SWAMP WALKS. WILDFLOWERS. BOTANICAL. GEOLOGIC. HISTORIC. SCENIC.

STATE PARKS. STATE FORESTS. NATIONAL PARKS. NATIONAL FORESTS. NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES. COUNTY PARKS. NATURAL LANDS. CITY PARKS. WATER MANAGEMENT AREAS. WILDLIFE & ENVIRONMENTAL AREAS. WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREAS.

Hiking Resources

  • ALDHA
  • American Hiking Society
  • Florida Trail Association
  • Two Heel Drive

Find your way

NORTHWEST FLORIDA
Apalachicola . Apalachicola National Forest . Apalachicola River . Blackwater River State Forest . Blountstown . Crawfordville. Crestview . DeFuniak Springs . Destin . Fort Walton Beach . Ebro . Freeport . Gulf Islands National Seashore . Madison . Marianna . Milton . Navarre . Niceville . Panama City Beach . Pensacola . Ponce De Leon . Port St. Joe . Sopchoppy . St. Marks . St. Marks NWR . Tallahassee

NORTH FLORIDA
Amelia Island . Cedar Key . Chiefland . Fernandina Beach . Flagler Beach . Gainesville .High Springs . Jacksonville . Lake City . Live Oak . Mayo . Micanopy . Osceola National Forest . Palatka . Perry . Salt Springs . St. Augustine . Steinhatchee . Suwannee River Wilderness Trail . Trenton . White Springs

CENTRAL FLORIDA
Apopka . Belleview . Brandon . Brooksville . Bushnell . Canaveral National Seashore . Christmas . Clearwater Beach . Clermont . Coast to Coast Trail . Cocoa Beach . Cross Florida Greenway . Crystal River . Dade City . Daytona Beach . Deland . Deltona . Dunnellon . Frostproof . Geneva . Inverness . Kissimmee . Lakeland . Lake Wales . Leesburg . Melbourne . Merritt Island NWR . Mount Dora . New Port Richey . New Smyrna Beach . Ocala . Ocala National Forest .Orlando . Ormond Beach . Oviedo . Sanford . Silver Springs . St. Cloud . St. Petersburg . Tampa . Tarpon Springs . Titusville . Walt Disney World . Withlacoochee State Forest . Withlacoochee State Trail . Yeehaw Junction

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
Bradenton . Charlotte Harbor . Ding Darling NWR . Englewood . Estero . Fort Myers . Naples . Pine Island . Punta Gorda . Sanibel Island . Sarasota . Venice

SOUTH FLORIDA
Arcadia . Big Cypress . Big Cypress National Preserve . Clewiston . Everglades City . Everglades National Park . Fisheating Creek . Lake Okeechobee . Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail . Lake Placid . Moore Haven . Okeechobee . Sebring

SOUTHEAST FLORIDA
Biscayne Bay . Biscayne National Park . Boca Raton . Coral Gables . Everglades National Park . Florida Keys . Fort Lauderdale . Fort Pierce . Hobe Sound . Homestead . Jupiter . Key Biscayne . Miami . Ocean to Lake . Palm Beach . Port St. Lucie . Sebastian . Stuart . Vero Beach . West Palm Beach

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