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Pine savanna with trail

Florida Trail, Prairie Lakes

8.1 miles. Traversing the heart of the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, the Florida Trail at Prairie Lakes is one of Central Florida’s oldest and most scenic hiking destinations.

Florida Trail, Kissimmee  |  Kenansville
( 27.88577, -81.17503 )      8.1 miles

112 shares

Alternating between moss-draped oak hammocks and the wide open prairies, the Florida Trail at Prairie Lakes has been a compelling hiking destination since its inception.

Built across what was then a state park, it is the backbone of a larger figure-8 loop called the Prairie Lakes Loop.

Blaze on palm beyond a curved oak limb Following a berm in Prairie Lakes


Many hikers focus on the loop experience, and with good reason: it’s double the beauty, and easier for day hiking and overnight logistics.

But the diagonal of orange blazes offers its own gentle immersion in botanical wonders for those tackling the Florida Trail in linear sections.

Footbridge over greenish water Footbridge along the footpath


Resources

Resources for exploring the area

Florida Trail Hikes book cover The Florida Trail Guide book cover Florida Trail small coffee table book Central Florida Orlando Explorers Guide book cover

Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy these through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.


Overview

Location: Kenansville
Length: 8.1 miles linear
Trailhead: 27.927929, -81.122952
Address: 1702 Prairie Lakes Rd, Kenansville
Fees: $3 per person
Restroom: Vault toilets at Lake Jackson and Group Camp
Land manager: Florida Fish & Wildlife
Phone: 352-732-1225

Open sunrise to sunset unless camping. Leashed dogs permitted.

All campsites (including the group campsite) in the Prairie Lakes Unit must be reserved in advance by calling FWC at the above number.

This is a popular destination for deer and turkey hunters with many deer stands visible along the trail. Check on hunt dates before planning your hike and wear bright orange during hunts.

Aisle through tall grass to tree


Directions

 
From US 441 and SR 60 in Yeehaw Junction, follow US 441 north 14.1 miles to Kenansville. Turn left on Canoe Creek Rd at the Kenansville Country Store. Continue 9.5 miles north, passing Lake Marian Paradise and Sunset Ranch, to reach the entrance to Prairie Lakes. The Prairie Lakes trailhead is on the right just inside the gates. It is the ending point for this hike.
 
To reach the starting point, drive another 4.6 miles on this dirt road, passing several turnoffs, including one to Lake Jackson. The start of this hike is at a stile over the fence between Three Lakes South and Prairie Lakes. Pulloff parking may be difficult. If so, drive another half mile to reach the Lake Jackson Tower trailhead as an alternative starting point, and add a half mile backtracking the road to your start point or use the tower connector route as shown on the trail map.

Hike

The Florida Trail enters the Prairie Lakes Unit over a stile over a barbed wire fence. Although Prairie Lakes is a part of Three Lakes WMA, it is managed differently.

Cross Road 16 and continue into an oak hammock on the other side. Watch for blazes as the trail makes its way through the shade.

Sign with trail information in woods Side trail to Lake Jackson Tower


After a little more than a half mile, the trail emerges into a more open, scrubby area before reaching a fenceline.

At a break in it, a blue blazed side trail heads west from a sign for the Lake Jackson Observation Tower.

Fenceline with blazed posts Following a fenceline


Taking this side trip adds 1.2 miles to your hike, but offers excellent views of the lake from a tower several stories tall.

Beyond the junction, blazes lead you along the fence and along a string of oak hammocks for the next mile.

You emerge at Road 18. This provides an access point with limited pulloff space for parking.

Oak tree with blaze and sand road in distance Approaching Road 18


At 1.8 miles, at a bench under the oaks with a white-blazed bridge stretching over an ephemeral waterway on the right, you’re at the south junction of the South Loop.

Do not cross the bridge. Painted on oaks draped in Spanish moss, the orange blazes lead north along the berm from the bench.

FNST sign in woods next to bench South Loop junction


In a quarter mile, at the next bench along the berm, the trail now crosses it on a footbridge over an often-flowing waterway.

Curving left, the footpath leads into a grand hammock of cabbage palms and ancient live oaks. Orange blazes lead you through this natural maze.

Dense palm and oak hammock Walking through the hammock is like finding your way through a maze


A bench sits in the shade above a trickle of a tributary at 2.3 miles. At the edge of the hammock, it’s almost a shock to emerge from the woods.

The trail makes a beeline across a tallgrass prairie with a lone oak in its middle. At the north side of that prairie, keep alert for signage for Dry Pond campsite.

Orange prairie grasses surround oak tree The dominant oak in a tallgrass prairie


This backpacker’s campsite is at 3.4 miles. True to its name, this shady flat expanse under the live oaks has a view across a prairie beyond.

A picnic table provides a place to take a break. There is a pitcher pump, but it often stops working.

Flat area for camping A great spot to pitch tents under the oaks


It’s a quarter mile more to the Lake Jackson campground; the trail passes right behind Campsite #3. Car campers have access to these sites, which must be reserved.

Closer to the lake there’s a vault toilet and a very large parking area. If you’re backpacking and in need of water, the lake is a viable source to filter.

Car with kayaks parked at lake Boat ramp at Lake Jackson


Leaving the campground, the trail emerges on the entrance road to Lake Jackson and follows it briefly before rejoining the woods on the far side.

Walk down a corridor where marsh fern occupies the wetland beneath the loblolly bay trees. The trail veers left after the straightaway to enter the next oak and palm hammock.

Saw palmetto and oaks Ancient saw palmetto and dense oak hammock


After zigzagging through this lush forest, the footpath joins a dirt road to cross a culvert over a waterway. It follows the south edge of North Canal.

The steep-sided manmade waterway that connects Lake Jackson and Lake Marian. Meet the north junction of the South Loop at 4.7 miles.

Brownish waterway in deep ditch North Canal


The junction is at the south end of a footbridge over the canal. Predictably, the south junction of the North Loop is on the north side of North Canal.

Parker Hammock campsite is just 0.2 miles west along the white blazes. However, to stay on the Florida Trail, turn right to track the orange blazes up to Prairie Lakes Rd.

Trail leading towards a highway bridge Follow the orange blazes away from Parker Hammock


Benches facing the canal are on both sides of the canal at the trail / road intersection. Continue across the road and the trail curves left into an oak hammock.

This brief traverse through the oak hammock ends when the trail enters an expanse of pine flatwoods that will surround you for most of the remainder of the hike.

Scattered pines and tall grass prairie Pine savanna with fire tower in the distance


Tall longleaf pines dominate the pine savanna, with prairie grasses and saw palmetto as the dominant understory.

Pass through one island of oak hammock and emerge into another vista of pine savanna within sight of a fire tower.

Trail between pines and palms In the pine savanna


The wall of trees up ahead is a cypress strand known as Pole Cypress Ponds, and the trail leads you right into it.

To cross this often-wet cypress swamp, a boardwalk winds through it, with a bench atop it at 6.4 miles.

Boardwalk between cypress Boardwalk across Pole Cypress Ponds


On the north side of the slough is more pine savanna, sometimes damp underfoot. Look for glistening crimson sundews, carnivorous plants that thrive in this acidic habitat.

There are fewer pines and more prairie grasses, and no buffer from traffic noise along Canoe Creek Road, which is not very distant.

Cypress dome in distance of mowed path Hiking the open savanna


A mowed path curves through the prairie and parallels Prairie Lakes Rd briefly before crossing it to reach the Prairie Lakes trailhead at 8 miles.

This is also the north end of the North Loop. If you are hiking through, continue a tenth of a mile to Canoe Creek Rd for this 8.1 mile section.

Sunset in the pines Sunset at the Prairie Lakes trailhead


It is where the Kissimmee, Orlando, and Western Corridor sections of the Florida Trail meet. The Kissimmee section ends, and the Orlando section picks up north of the road.

The Western Corridor follows the road north into St. Cloud for a combination of roadwalk, sidewalk, and bike path leading to the Green Swamp well west of Orlando.

Fence line in woods with white dirt road leading away The entrance gate at Prairie Lakes is a long distance hiker’s decision point


Trail Map

Prairie Lakes Loop Trail Map
Red: Florida Trail route described. Yellow: White blazed side of loop. Orange: Florida Trail connections. Blue: side trails.

Explore More!

Learn more about the full route of the Florida Trail through Three Lakes

Vast expanse of prairie with blaze post

Florida Trail, Three Lakes WMA

At Three Lakes WMA / Prairie Lakes Unit, the Florida Trail traverses one of the largest expanses of open prairie in the Southeast, the Kissimmee Prairie.


Slideshow

See our photos of the Florida Trail at Prairie Lakes


Nearby Adventures

More worth exploring while you’re in this area.

Mown path thrown scrubby palmetto

Florida Trail, Three Lakes South

8.5 miles. Winding through picturesque prairies and primordial oak hammocks, the Florida Trail showcases the best of Three Lakes WMA south of the Prairie Lakes Unit.

White blazed post in pine savanna

Prairie Lakes Loop

Enjoy the counterpoint of moss-draped oak hammocks and expansive prairies at Prairie Lakes along one of the older and more beloved pieces of the Florida Trail.

Large oak in shady forest

Sunset Ranch Trail

The 2.2-mile Sunset Ranch Trail at the Prairie Lakes Unit of Three Lakes WMA provides an easy day hike for birding near Lake Marian.

FT KICCO North curve

Florida Trail, KICCO North

3.4 miles. Take in a panorama of marshes busy with birds in the Kissimmee River floodplain at River Ranch along the northernmost reaches of the Kissimmee River

Trail Map (PDF) Hunt Dates Official Website

Category: Backpacking, Central Florida, Day Hikes, Florida Trail, Hikes, TrailsTag: Best Dog Hikes, Big Trees, Birding, Dog-friendly, Florida Trail, FT Kissimmee, Kenansville, Primitive Camping, St. Cloud, Three Lakes WMA, Wildflowers, Wildlife Viewing

Have an update? Contact us.

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The Florida Trail GuideThe comprehensive mile-by-mile guidebook to planning section and thru-hikes along the entire length of the Florida Trail. 356 pages, $19.95 + tax and shipping.

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Florida Trail Hikes

Florida Trail HikesFifty of the best day hikes, overnights, and weekend trips on the Florida Trail, plus nine of the best section hikes. Full hike descriptions and maps, full color. 376 pages. $24.95 + tax and shipping.

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Discovering the Florida Trail

Florida Trail mini coffee table book cover of trail into palm hammock
Our virtual walk along the length of the Florida Trail, covering more than 1,500 miles from the Everglades to Pensacola Beach. Hardcover, 196 pages. $24.95 + tax and shipping.

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The Florida Trail

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Our history of the first 50 years of the Florida Trail, from its founding in 1966 to becoming a National Scenic Trail to volunteer efforts today.

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The Florida Trail App

Comprehensive logistics and offline maps all in one: The Florida Trail Guide is now also an interactive map-based mile-by-mile app by Guthook Guides.

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Florida Trail Updates


Get periodic recaps of changes to the Florida Trail, which we accumulate between editions of our guidebook. Find all official Trail Closures & Notices here.

Hiking the Florida Trail

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Florida Trail by Section

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Florida Trail, Big Bend

Florida Trail, Big Bend
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Florida Trail, Big Cypress

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Florida Trail, Eglin
Florida Trail Kissimmee

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Florida Trail, Kissimmee
Florida Trail at Rice Creek

Florida Trail, Northeast Florida

Florida Trail, Northeast Florida
Juniper Prairie Wilderness

Florida Trail, Ocala

Florida Trail, Ocala
Ocean to Lake Hiking Trail

Ocean to Lake Hiking Trail

Ocean to Lake Hiking Trail
Florida Trail, Okeechobee

Florida Trail, Okeechobee

Florida Trail, Okeechobee
Florida Trail at Forever Florida

Florida Trail, Orlando

Florida Trail, Orlando
Florida Trail Seashore Dunes

Florida Trail, Seashore

Florida Trail, Seashore
Florida Trail along a canal south of Clewiston

Florida Trail, Seminole

Florida Trail, Seminole
No Name Creek

Florida Trail, Suwannee

Florida Trail, Suwannee
Cypress Lakes Preserve

Florida Trail, Western Corridor

Florida Trail, Western Corridor

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