Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
With some of the state’s largest population centers and easiest access by air, Central Florida is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts in the know.
The 0.4 mile Barrier Free Trail at Fort De Soto Park has a graded path wide enough for two wheelchairs to pass and six touch-activated interpretive speakers along the path.
Home to a gentle 1-mile loop hike through coastal habitats, Barrier Island Sanctuary is a gateway to Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, with an informative oceanfront coastal biology center.
Where the highway ends, Bayport Park begins. Perched on the edge of the estuary where the Weeki Wachee River meets the Gulf of Mexico, it offers spectacular sunset views along with its water access.
Following the Bayport-Linda Pedersen Paddling Trail for 1.7 miles through mazes of needlerush along Florida’s Adventure Coast, you’re immersed in the sights and sounds of a coastal estuary.
A patch of wild in a sea of suburbia, Bear Creek provides nearly a mile’s worth of exploration atop sandy bluffs in a shady creekside hammock in Winter Springs.
As Florida black bears become active in late winter and spring, the chances of a bear encounter go up significantly if you leave food unsecured outdoors – whether in your campsite or at home.
Little known except to those who frequent Salt Springs Recreation Area in the Ocala National Forest, the Bear Swamp Trail provides a walk into an ancient forest.
The Bear-N-Oak Trail at Indian Lake State Forest provides a fascinating look at habitat diversity centered on Indian Lake, a sinkhole lake that connects to the aquifer
Weaving through scrubby habitats on an oasis of natural land surrounded by development, Bell Creek Nature Preserve provides a window to Florida’s vanishing landscapes.
With the Cross Florida Greenway hugging its northern boundary and the famed Santos Trails for mountain bikers, Belleview is a destination for outdoor recreation.
Traversing sandhill, pine flatwoods, and bayhead habitats, the Big Bay Trail offers a one mile loop with an optional 1.7-mile spur trail featuring two primitive campsites.
While the iconic Senator is no more, Big Tree Park continues to fascinate visitors with its enormous cypress trees, including Lady Liberty. The park provides access to the Cross Seminole Trail.
