DeLand

Exploring Deland

Thanks to a string of state parks, county parks, and Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge along the St. Johns River, DeLand has a lot of trails.

West Volusia County has a nice variety of hikes, bike rides, and paddling trips to keep you busy for days.

Many of them are connected together by the Spring-to-Spring Trail, a paved bicycle path that starts at Green Spring in Enterprise.

Through DeLand, there are segments of the path between Blue Spring State Park and Lake Beresford Park.

Another extent of completed trail runs from Glenwood area up to Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge and reaches De Leon Springs State Park.

Just across the St. Johns River is the southeastern corner of the Ocala National Forest, with the St. Francis Trail and a long segment of the statewide Florida Trail accessible from Paisley.

Trails and Parks Near DeLand

Audubon Park In 60 acres of green space that gently reclaims stormwater through a series of marshes, Audubon Park lets birders and hikers enjoy a quiet walk adjoining a beauty spot along the East Central Regional Rail Trail.

Bartram Gardens & Trail Along the St. Johns River at Lake Beresford, discover the river anew through William Bartram's eyes as he recorded his observations of alligators, fish, and flora in 1774.

Black Bear Wilderness Area North of Orlando, Black Bear Wilderness Area in Sanford offers some of the best wildlife watching in the region on its loop along the St. Johns River.

Blue Spring Boardwalk If you've never seen manatees by the dozens, let alone a hundred or more, there is no better place to watch these gentle giants than the Blue Spring Boardwalk in the wintertime

Blue Spring Pine Island Trail Showcasing habitat diversity along the St. Johns River basin, the Pine Island Trail treats you to ancient oaks, open scrub, and the bank of the river itself

Blue Spring State Park Blue Spring State Park is well acclaimed for being the best place in Florida to see manatees in the wild, and we don’t mean a dozen or two. Think hundreds.

Bluffton Nature Trail South of Astor along the St. Johns River, the Bluffton Recreation Area in Lake George State Forest paints a picture of Florida's prehistoric past, leading you through uplands habitats above the river basin.

Buncombe Hill Hiking Trail At Tiger Bay State Forest near Daytona Beach, the 2.1-mile Buncombe Hill Hiking Trail interprets habitats at the location of one of Central Florida's first Boy Scout camps.

Cassadaga Fairy Trail Let your imagination take wing on one of Florida's most unusual footpaths, a walk in the woods blending art, enchantment, and nature.

Chuck Lennon Hiking Trail A hiker-focused addition to Chuck Lennon Park, the Chuck Lennon Hiking Trail mimics the famous mountain bike trails but at a hiker's size.

Chuck Lennon Park A top Florida destination for singletrack riders, Chuck Lennon Park also serves as a trailhead for the northern terminus of Volusia County's Spring to Spring Trail in De Leon Springs.

Clearwater Lake Recreation Area With a campground and lakeside day use area at the southeast corner of the Ocala National Forest, Clearwater Lake Recreation Area offers an easy loop hike and access to the Florida Trail.

De Leon Springs State Park While pancakes and De Leon Springs go hand-in-hand thanks to the popular Old Spanish Sugar Mill Restaurant, the natural beauty of De Leon Springs is the reason to visit.

De Leon Springs Wild Persimmon Trail At De Leon Springs State Park, the Wild Persimmon Trail is a 4.4 mile wild walk along the edge of habitats in the floodplain forest created by the springs.

Deep Creek Preserve Restoring a ranch back to natural habitats takes time, but brings to life the natural beauty of these soggy habitats in the Deep Creek basin near Lake Ashby.

Florida Trail, Alexander Springs to Farles Prairie 8.6 miles. Dive deep into the world's largest sand pine scrub forest on this hike through the Big Scrub.

Florida Trail, Cassia 14.2 miles. Traversing miles of endangered desert-like scrub habitat through Seminole State Forest, the Cassia section of the Florida Trail offers unique natural observations amongst sparse shade.

Florida Trail, Clearwater Lake to Alexander Springs 10.5 miles. Hike the original miles blazed by Florida Trail Association trailblazers in 1966 along one of the most beautiful sections of the Florida Trail in the Ocala National Forest.

Florida Trail, Orlando Between the prairies of Osceola County and the Ocala National Forest, this 150 mile section of the Florida Trail slips through suburbs of the Orlando metro.

Florida Trail, Seminole State Forest 7.5 miles. Walk through vast, open spaces that you’d never imagine existed so close to Orlando.

Gemini Springs Addition Protecting nearly 950 acres of lush oak hammocks, palm hammocks, and wetlands along the rim of Lake Monroe, Gemini Springs Addition has many options for hikers

Gemini Springs Park With nearly 5 miles of gentle woodland paths and paved trails, playgrounds, picnic area, paddling trail and a dog park, Gemini Springs Park is a popular, well-connected getaway

Green Springs Park An unearthly glowing bowl in shades of green, the centerpiece of an ancient forest at Green Springs is surrounded by gurgling streams and the trails that follow them.

Hammock Hiking Nature Trail On Hontoon Island in the St. Johns River, walk in the footsteps of the Timucua through an ancient forest to a midden topped with an enormous live oak tree.

Hontoon Island State Park Criss-crossed by a network of trails, this island in the St. Johns River is worth the short ferryboat trip to explore a landscape with ancient echoes of a past civilization.

Lake Ashby Park Explore the cypress-lined shore of Lake Ashby on a gentle trail system consisting of a boardwalk and easy pathways beneath deep shade along the lakeshore.

Lake Beresford Park Offering gentle trails for family fun and miles of paved bike paths to explore, Lake Beresford Park provides far more than just a peek at its namesake lake.

Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge Six miles of trails meander through wide open spaces preserved for wintering waterfowl at 21,500-acre Lake Woodruff NWR along the St. Johns River.

Longleaf Pine Preserve A series of connected loop trails immerse hikers within a large, seasonally wet pine flatwood habitat, featuring boardwalks and a group campground.

Lower Wekiva River Preserve State Park Paddle, hike, or ride your horse within this massive riverine preserve on the edge of the Orlando metro, where the Wekiva River and St. Johns River mingle.

Lyonia Preserve Florida's best place to see a Florida scrub-jay up close is Lyonia Preserve, with 2.1 miles of loops through the highest ground in Volusia County.

Palm Bluff Conservation Area Discover a parade of habitats in the Deep Creek basin on three loop hikes within 3,300 acres east of Deltona.

Pershing Highway Interpretive Trail Tunneling into a vast swamp forest now protected as Tiger Bay State Forest, a mile-long strip of preserved brick highway from 1917 provides a peek into early Florida auto travel.

Red Trail, Palm Bluff Conservation Area Crossing open pine savannas, pasturelands, and tracing a blackwater creek floodplain, the 7.6-mile Red Trail at Palm Bluff Conservation Area provides a quiet hike east of DeLand.

Seminole State Forest With nearly 50 miles of trails and roads for hiking, biking, and equestrian use, Seminole State Forest offers surprising panoramas and bubbling springs north of Orlando.

Spring to Spring Trail A paved bike path to link Volusia County's major springs, the Spring to Spring Trail provides a growing network of trail and park connectivity.

Spring to Spring Trail Central Ride this surprisingly hilly bike path through tunnels of live oaks and Florida scrub-jay habitat while marveling at the beauty of the St. Johns River bluffs near Blue Spring.

Spring to Spring Trail North Paralleling the St. Johns River basin, the northernmost segment of the Spring to Spring Trail is a hilly and often canopied ride through historic communities.

Spring to Spring Trail South Linking Green Springs to Gemini Springs to Lake Monroe, the southern portion of the Spring to Spring Trail is also an important link in the Florida Coast to Coast Trail.

St. Francis Trail One of Central Florida's most scenic and easy-to-follow day hikes, the St. Francis Trail leads to a ghost town within the St. Johns River floodplain.

Sulphur Island Loop A short distance from the bustling metropolis of Orlando, the Sulphur Island Loop Trail explores one of Florida’s endangered ecosystems, the scrub.

Tiger Bay State Forest Surrounding more than 42 square miles of the Tomoka River watershed, Tiger Bay State Forest provides nearly 20 miles of interpretive and multiuse trails between Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach, and DeLand.

Timucuan Trail While less than a mile long, the Timucuan Trail at Alexander Springs Recreation Area is the best place to sample the Big Scrub habitats of the Ocala National Forest while enjoying lush habitats along a spring run.

White Trail, Palm Bluff Conservation Area An easy sample of habitats found across the 3,300 acres of Palm Bluff Conservation Area, the White Trail offers a short loop through the Deep Creek floodplain.

Related Articles

Connecting the Spring to Spring Trail (10/5/2020) With a goal of connecting all three segments of the Spring to Spring Trail together using roads in between, John rides from Lake Monroe Park to De Leon Springs on a 25.6 mile route.

The new 50 Hikes in Central Florida (10/5/2018) We launched a new full-color edition of 50 Hikes in Central Florida at the National Trails Festival in Deland the first weekend of October. Take a peek inside.