Florida Hikes
Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
Hiking, biking, camping, paddling and other outdoor recreation throughout North Florida, including along the Suwannee River and the St. Johns River between Palatka and Jacksonville.
Learning how botanists William and John Bartram traveled along the St. Johns River in the 1700s, I followed an experienced river guide for a look at part of the Bartram National Recreation Trail from the water on our Bartram Adventure Tour in Palatka.
On a mellow paddling trip down the Santa Fe River, John discovers several swimming springs, thousands of turtles, and miles of quiet waterway.
With a delightful riverfront on the St. Johns River, Palatka is just east of the Florida Trail and 15 minutes from the Ocala National Forest, providing a gateway to outdoor adventures.
Re-imagined to showcase the beauty of the St. Johns River, Palatka Riverfront Park offers a quarter-mile riverfront walk with panoramic views.
On the grounds of the Water Works Environmental Education Center, explore the historic Palatka Water Works and a short interpretive trail dedicated to William Bartram's travels as Puc Puggy, the Flower Hunter.
With a corridor spanning nearly 50 miles through North Florida, the Palatka-Lake Butler State Trail provides paved trail for riders and an unpaved corridor used by the Florida Trail
A city park, Linear Park is centrally located yet hidden within an ancient hardwood hammock bounded by the eastbound and westbound sides of Palm Coast Parkway.
On bluffs along the west shore of the Intracoastal Waterway, a sunny ribbon of paved path provides scenic views on a 1.9-mile round trip connected to a larger loop of 3.7 miles.
Along the Lake Trail at Paynes Prairie Preserve, Lake Wauberg and the wildlife that lives in it is the star attraction.
Protecting a massive natural basin of prairie between Micanopy and Gainesville, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park combines panoramic views with wildlife watching along its trails.
A natural landform between Gainesville and Micanopy, Paynes Prairie is an immense and ever-changing basin.
Long the heart of Florida's timber industry, Perry is the county seat of Taylor County along Florida's Big Bend, set within a coastal puzzle of swamp forests and estuary.
