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Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

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Paddling Withlacoochee River

Florida’s Adventure Coast

Spanning from the Gulf of Mexico to the Withlacoochee River, Florida’s Adventure Coast stakes its claim with outdoor activities to choose from in every season.


Resources

Resources for exploring the area
Florida Trail Hikes book cover The Florida Trail Guide book cover 50 Hikes in Central Florida Central Florida Orlando Explorers Guide book cover Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover Paddlers Guide Florida  
Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy these through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.


Exploring Florida’s Adventure Coast

A Florida Hikes Regional Guide

Centered on Brooksville, Florida’s Adventure Coast is a big region with an outstanding amount of hiking, paddling, and bicycling opportunities.

The Florida Trail follows the Withlacoochee River for a long stretch through Withlacoochee State Forest, with both lengthy linear sections and loop trails suitable for backpacking in both the Richloam and Croom Tracts.

The trail has connectivity through Perry Oldenberg WEA and Chinsegut WEA north towards Inverness as well as south through Richloam towards Dade City. Campers will appreciate being able to choose between nicely developed sites or primitive sites in the state forest.

Three major bike paths – the state-spanning Coast to Coast Trail, the Suncoast Trail, and the Withlacoochee State Trail – all cross Brooksville. Along the coast, Chassahowitzka WMA and neighboring public lands provide thousands of acres of wildlife habitat crisscrossed with hiking and biking trails.


Go Local

Look for outdoor recreation and travel destinations in the towns and small communities of Florida’s Adventure Coast. Each of these has a charm and character all its own.

Lake with tree reflections Brooksville Brooksville is the county seat of Hernando County, in Central Florida. It is the heart of Florida’s Adventure Coast.
Broad riverfront with people fishing on seawall Hernando Beach There is no beach at Hernando Beach except a man-made one along Jenkins Creek. But this coastal community offers paddling, swimming, hiking, and biking along its trails.
Blue hues underwater in massive spring Weeki Wachee With tens of thousands of acres of conservation land along the Gulf Coast, Weeki Wachee is a central launch point for adventure on the water and in the woods.

ALSO INCLUDES: Bayport, Nobleton, Ridge Manor, Spring Hill.


Featured Itineraries

Destination: Adventure Biking, paddling, and even a bit of hiking were in the plans as we explored Florida's Adventure Coast - Hernando County - for activities we could enjoy during warm weather.
Good Neighbor Trail Biking the Good Neighbor Trail A morning of exploration allowed us to experience the not-quite-open-yet Good Neighbor Trail and its historic context during our visit to Brooksville this September.
Lunchtime underwater at Weeki Wachee Three Days of Nature Coast Springs Between New Port Richey and Crystal River, explore a variety of springs along the Nature Coast that provide splashing fun in summer and manatee watching in winter.

Favorite Destinations

Our very favorite destinations along Florida’s Adventure Coast.

Chinsegut Conservation Center Tract Discover the beauty of May's Prairie at the heart of the Chinsegut Conservation Center Tract
Fickett Hammock Fickett Hammock Preserve Delving deep into a hardwood hammock with towering trees, the loop trail at Fickett Hammock Preserve quickly immerses you into a shady forest of botanical beauty.
Ribbon of blue river between forested banks Florida Trail, Croom River Trail A pleasant ramble on bluffs above the Withlacoochee River, the Croom River Trail segment of the Florida Trail tunnels through oak hammocks and slips around cypress swamps along its 6.3-mile journey.
Florida Trail, Cypress Lakes Preserve At Cypress Lakes Preserve, a 1.7-mile segment of the Florida Trail follows the edge of a series of cypress-lined lakes where ancient trees have survived the ages
Sandra cycling into a pine forest on elevated paved trail Good Neighbor Trail An important link in the Florida Coast to Coast Trail, the Good Neighbor Trail stretches 10.1 miles from downtown Brooksville to the Withlacoochee State Trail
Hog Island Nature Trail For a dip into primordial wilderness along the Withlacoochee River, walk the Hog Island Nature Trail at Hog Island Recreation Area in Withlacoochee State Forest
Oriental Tea Garden at Nature Coast Botanical Gardens Nature Coast Botanical Gardens An oasis of serenity in Spring Hill, several acres of compact garden rooms make up the Nature Coast Botanical Gardens. Each delights the senses with an ever-changing array of blooms and colors.
Weeki Wachee River Paddling the Weeki Wachee River One of Florida's most beautiful paddling trips, the Weeki Wachee River rises from first magnitude Weeki Wachee Springs and winds through lush floodplain forests as it is fed by hundreds of smaller springs along this 5.5-mile paddling run.

ALL Destinations


NEARBY: Bushnell, Crystal River, Dade City, Inverness, New Port Richey | PART OF: Central Florida

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The Florida Trail Guide
Florida Trail Hikes 2nd edition cover
50 Hikes in Central Florida 3rd edition
Explorer's Guide North Florida & The Panhandle guidebook
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Farout GuidesFarout Guides Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the
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Apalachicola. Apalachicola National Forest. Blackwater River State Forest. Blountstown. Bonifay. Bristol. Cape San Blas. Carrabelle. Chattahoochee. Chipley. Crawfordville. Crestview. DeFuniak Springs. Destin. Ebro. Eglin Air Force Base. Fort Walton Beach. Freeport. Gulf Islands National Seashore. Madison. Marianna. Milton. Monticello. Mossy Head. Navarre Beach . Niceville. Panama City Beach. Pensacola. Ponce De Leon. Port St. Joe. Quincy. Sopchoppy. South Walton. St. Marks. St. Marks River. St. Marks NWR. Tallahassee. Vernon. Wakulla. Wewahitchka

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Bradenton . Charlotte Harbor. Ding Darling NWR. Englewood. Estero. Fort Myers. Immokalee. Naples. Pine Island. Port Charlotte. Punta Gorda. Sanibel Island. Sarasota. Venice

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