Encompassing nearly 31,000 acres of wetlands and woodlands west of the St. Johns River, Tosohatchee WMA is home to one of the earliest pieces of the Florida Trail.
As it was originally designed as a backpacking loop when Tosohatchee was a state park, there are several loop hike possibilities using the White and Yellow Trails.
Pine-palm flatwoods make up much of the preserveThe traverse of the preserve usually involves some wading, as wetlands overflow and the St. Johns River tributaries are prone to rise into the palm hammocks.
One of the state’s oldest slash pine forests and a virgin cypress strand at Jim Creek are among the botanical delights you’ll find hiking this route.
Look up as well as down when hiking at TosohatcheeResources
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Overview
Location: Christmas
Length: 11.2 mile linear
Trailhead: 28.498500, -80.996750 (Parking Area 8)
Fees: $4 per person
Restroom: Vault toilets at reserve entrance and at Youth Camp
Land manager: Florida Fish & Wildlife
Phone: 407-568-5893
Leashed dogs welcome. Mosquitoes and wading highly likely. Do not attempt this hike when the St. Johns River is in flood stage.
There are no trailheads at the entrance and exit of this Florida Trail segment. Day hikers / overnight backpackers, Parking Area 8 on Powerline Rd provides easy trail access.
FWC permits seasonal hunting. Be aware of hunt dates and wear blaze orange clothing during hunts. Camping restrictions may apply during hunts.
Directions
From Interstate 95 in Titusville, follow SR 50 for 10 miles west into Christmas. Turn south on Taylor Creek Rd. The entrance is 2.9 miles south on the left. Pick up a map and drive to the parking area that best fits your day hike plans. To hike end to end, you’ll need to either be dropped off or stage cars outside the preserve. Limited day parking is possible near the Yates Rd access on the south end, but no parking is possible near the north gate. The nearest trailhead is a mile north at Seminole Ranch on the north side of SR 50.
Hike
A short walk down a wooden corridor at the end of Yates Rd leads to the gate into Tosohatchee WMA. The trail makes a sharp left.
Follow the orange blazes north along a broad, marshy utility clearing. Showy blooms of water-loving plants like duck potato and blue flag iris indicate wading is likely.
South gate at the end of Yates RdBeyond a ditch where water may be available, the trail reaches high ground under tall pines.
Turning east, it parallels one of the preserve’s many sand roads before crossing unpaved Fish Hole Road after 1.1 miles.
Crossing Fish Hole RdWinding through a pine-palm flatwoods with expansive skies above, the trail crosses a forest road in a quarter mile.
Many more forest roads will be encountered and crossed. Those with connecting trails to parking areas are signposted.
The thru-trail cornerTwo miles into the hike is a trail junction signposted “Thru Trail” in two directions. This junction marks the south end of the White Loop, the longest hiking loop in Tosohatchee.
If you’ve encountered flooding thus far, the white blazes offer a drier route well west of the floodplain the Florida Trail stays along.
Drier habitats characterize the White TrailStay with the orange blazed thru trail otherwise, crossing scrubby flatwoods where blueberries abound in late spring.
Immediately after a forest road crossing is the turnoff for Tiger Branch Camp, a quarter mile north of the White Trail junction.
Blue flag iris in bloomSituated among the pines at the end of a short blue blaze, it has both picnic benches and benches surrounding a fire ring.
A pitcher pump and tent platforms round out the ample amenities.
Fire ring at Tiger Branch CampThe next mile and a half of hiking involves some crowded, often damp portions of floodplain with a forest floor covered in ferns.
These are punctuated with higher, drier segments of pine flatwoods. Reach the junction with the Yellow Loop at 3.6 miles.
Lush growth pressing against the trail corridorLike the White Loop, the Yellow Loop stays farther west of the floodplain than the Florida Trail. Using it to reconnect at the Swamp Spur junction shaves a quarter mile off the hike.
However, it has its own unique challenges such as other interconnecting blazed trails, a drainage area that can flood, and a great deal of poison ivy.
Yellow Loop junctionStaying with the orange blazes, enter the first of a series of hammocks where ancient trees reign supreme. Live oaks, cedars, and enormous slash pines create a near-unbroken canopy.
A dense thicket of saw palmetto claims the understory. The trail crosses a couple of drainages it may be necessary to step or leap over.
Dense palm and oak hammockAt 5.2 miles, the Swamp Spur provides an optional quarter mile round-trip into the Jim Creek floodplain to see ancient cypress trees up close.
The Yellow Trail comes in from the left. Continue north along the orange blazes through another series of palm hammocks.
Junction of Yellow Trail and Swamp SpurA long, sturdy bridge over a deep ditch brings the trail to its crossing of Powerline Rd in another half mile.
After crossing this east-west access road through the preserve, the trail makes a sharp curve westbound to parallel it in palm hammocks north of the road.
Landmark bridge as seen from Powerline RdA short blue blaze to the largest trailhead parking area along Powerline Rd comes up at 6.5 miles.
The trail continues through a series of lush palm hammocks, dense with ferns and frequently mucky underfoot.
Traverse of a sometimes-wet forest floorThe short blue blaze to Parking Area 8 is at 7.2 miles. The trail immediately plunges into a series of showy palm hammocks. These continue for nearly two miles.
If you only have time to do a portion of the Florida Trail in Tosohatchee, the 5.2-mile round-trip between Parking Area 8 and Tootoosohatchee Creek is well worth the hike.
The palm and oak hammocks are very showyReaching a junction with an equestrian trail at a forest road, the Florida Trail turns left onto it.
This straightaway continues for a quarter mile up to the northern junction of the White Loop.
North junction with White LoopTurn right to stay on the orange blazes northbound. After the next stretch of dense forest, a blue blaze peels off to the left at a trail junction.
It follows the south side of the creek to Parking Area 6 and also provides access to the Tosohatchee Youth Camp, which has a privy.
Tootoosohatchee Creek bridgeAt 9.7 miles, cross the bridge over Tootoosohatchee Creek immediately after the junction. Easier water access is up ahead.
Another blue blaze soon after leads to Hoot Owl Camp, the second primitive site for hikers. The trail itself follows the showy floodplain basin. Get water here.
Tootoosohatchee CreekFollow the footpath as it works its way out of the floodplain and into the drier pine flatwoods, winding between saw palmetto.
Making a turn onto an old forest road, the trail comes up to the north gate of Tosohatchee WMA at 11.2 miles.
Pine flatwoods just south of the gateChristmas Roadwalk connector
Thru hikers and section hikers continue north on a roadwalk through Christmas for one mile, crossing one high-speed four-lane highway along the way.
On the stretch of St. Nicholas Rd immediately outside the gate, hikers have encountered both loose dogs and unfriendly residents. Do not trespass in yards or approach houses.
Exit the north gate of Tosohatchee onto St. Nicholas RdReaching SR 50 after 0.8 mile, a convenience store and post office are west within a half mile. Full services are in Titusville, 9 miles east.
Cross SR 50 and pass Christmas RV Park (no tent camping) to the end of the road past the RV park, completing the 1 mile roadwalk at the gate into Seminole Ranch.
The closest parking to Tosohatchee north gate is this small area outside the Seminole Ranch gateNORTHBOUND: Seminole Ranch
SOUTHBOUND: Deseret Roadwalk
Trail Map
Explore More!
Learn more about Tosohatchee Reserve
Tosohatchee WMA
Protecting more than 30,000 acres of the St. Johns River floodplain near Christmas, Tosohatchee WMA is a place to immerse yourself in the grandeur of old Florida and its bounty of botanical beauty.
These trails interconnect with and overlay part of the Florida Trail, enabling loop hikes.
Tosohatchee White Loop
A botanically-rich immersion into Tosohatchee WMA, the White Loop combines the Florida Trail and the White Trail for a hike of nearly 11 miles.
Tosohatchee Yellow Loop
A scenic immersion into palm hammocks in Tosohatchee WMA, the Yellow Loop provides perspective on ancient trees near the Jim Creek floodplain.
Slideshow
See our photos of the Florida Trail at Tosohatchee
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Florida Trail, Seminole Ranch
At Seminole Ranch Conservation Area in Christmas, the Florida Trail follows a linear 4.9 mile route through a string of hydric hammocks in the St. Johns River floodplain
Orlando Wetlands Park
For a hike filled with the flutter and squawk of birds about their daily routines, Orlando Wetlands Park is one of the best birding spots in the state. This 5-mile loop showcases our favorite route
Canaveral Marshes
Hike up to 5 miles on levees through the marshes of the St. Johns River at Canaveral Marshes Conservation Area between Orlando and Titusville.
Savage Christmas Creek Preserve
Protecting more than a thousand acres, Savage Christmas Creek Preserve east of Orlando has more than 8 miles of trails through panoramic prairie and pine flatwoods landscapes