Prairies
Florida's prairies come in two flavors: dry and wet. Prairies are treeless, open grasslands, many of which are seasonally inundated with water.
Scrub
Florida's desert, the scrub, forms on well-drained, loose “sugar sand” deposited along ancient shorelines, hosting Florida’s oldest plant communities.
Wetlands
Florida has numerous wetland habitats - forests, prairies, and swamps - that are flooded or seasonally inundated during the summer months or rainier years.
How to Pack for a Florida Hike
The Ten Essentials and More: a checklist for items to bring when day hiking and backpacking in Florida, to plan for the differences you'll encounter in Florida's unique conditions.
Why we hike Florida
Why do we hike Florida? It's in the details, the natural wonder we find by following trails across lands preserved for future generations.
Why Hike in Florida?
Why hike in Florida? It's not about the challenge of mountains, but the incredible natural diversity in habitats and flora found across the sweep of our state.
Hiking Basics for Florida
How to hike in Florida - the basics of what you need to know for hiking in Florida, whether you're day hiking or backpacking.
Tent Camping in Florida
What should you do when you're tent camping in Florida? Here's a how-to checklist to get prepared and make sure you have a comfortable time.
Day hikes near Sea World and Universal Studios
Hikes near Orlando theme parks, by reader request. The area between Sea World and Universal Studios is both heavily populated and commercial, so you have to drive beyond the Orlando International Airport to find the wild places.
How to Identify a Coral Snake
Coral snake or king snake? Their coloration is similar so it's tough to tell, but remember the rhyme, "red touch yellow, kill a fellow." Don't pick snakes up!
Bear Safety in Florida
Tips from Florida Fish & Wildlife on how best to manage encounters with Florida black bears, which are becoming more common in certain parts of Florida.
Just Bearly
As I discovered later, bear sightings are common at Kelly Park. But this bear certainly surprised me at the end of my research hike for Five Star Trails Orlando.