Florida Hikes

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

Large round pond edged by small cypress trees

Trail of Lakes

Using a portion of the Florida Trail to make a loop, the 9.5 mile Trail of Lakes circles wildflower-filled pine flatwoods, sandhills, and titi swamps, connecting two backpacker campsites near Camel Lake.

Connecting to the Florida Trail at each end, the blue-blazed Trail of Lakes provides an option to hike a large loop within the largest National Forest in Florida.

The easiest way to access the trail is from Camel Lake Recreation Area, a day use area on the lake next to Camel Lake Campground.

FNST sign and lush forest with orange blaze The Florida Trail makes up two-thirds of this loop

The loop explores a mix of wet and dry natural communities, crossing scenic forest landscapes, flatwood ponds, and Big Gully Creek, a tributary of the Apalachicola River.

Pitcher plants bloom in low soggy areas in the spring, and the flatwoods are filled with colorful blooms of chaffheads, blazing stars, goldenrod, and asters in the fall.

Orange blaze on pine with turkey oaks nearby Sandhill habitat

Resources

Resources for exploring the area
Florida Trail Hikes book cover The Florida Trail Guide book cover North Florida Panhandle Explorers Guide book cover Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover Paddlers Guide Florida
 
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Overview

Location: Bristol
Length: 9.5 miles
Trailhead: 30.276639, -84.985417
Address: FR 105, Bristol
Fees: $5 per vehicle
Restrooms: At Camel Lake Recreation Area
Land manager: National Forests in Florida
Phone: 850-523-8500

Camel Lake Recreation Area is open 9 AM – 4 PM summer, 8 AM – 6 PM winter. Leashed dogs permitted. Those camping at Camel Lake have access to the trail outside day use hours.

Except during hunting season, random camping is permitted anywhere you can find a dry spot along the trail outside of the Recreation Area.

Consult the FWC website for hunting seasons and dress in bright orange if you plan to hike while hunters are in the woods.

Directions


 
From the intersection of CR 12 and SR 20 in Bristol, head south on CR 12 for 11.5 miles before turning on Forest Rd 105, a sometimes-rough dirt road. Continue for 2 miles. Camel Lake Recreation Area day use parking area is on the right. Pay the entrance fee and park in the lot on the right near the picnic area.

Hike

From the day use parking at Camel Lake Recreation area, exit to FR 105 and turn right. Within less than a tenth of the mile the trail crossing is marked with a Florida Trail sign.

Turn right, walking along the edge of the Camel Lake Campground. Orange blazes through a sandhill forest with plentiful turkey oaks, pines, and tufts of wiregrass.

FNST marker next to footpath Florida Trail marker

Crossing a forest road, the trail descends gently sloping terrain towards a cedar swamp. Plank bridges carry you across a cool drainage beneath tall cedars.

Enter a titi swamp a half mile into the hike. A series of boardwalks cross over the lowest areas where green walls of titi flank the trail on both sides.

Bridge over creek Bridge over creek in titi swamp

Emerging from the wetlands into a sandhill community with a thick groundcover of shrubs and saw palmettos, follow the well-worn path to a bridge crossing over Big Gully Creek.

At 1.8 miles, join the forest road for a few hundred feet to cross the large blackwater creek before delving back into the woods.

Culvert over dark creek Big Gully Creek

The trail curves into a long straight stretch through the sandhills, with turkey oaks dominating the landscape.

Circle around a large dry sinkhole around 2.4 miles, a swale in the landscape edged by dirt roads, before more immersion in the sandhills.

Small longleaf pines next to straight run of trail Sandhill straightaway

By 3.5 miles the trail passes Bonnet Pond Camp, a pleasant backpacking campsite with benches and a stone fire ring.

Continuing east, look for a spur trail to a small bench perched on the cypress-lined shore of Bonnet Pond, a good place to filter water.

Campsite with benches Bonnet Pond Camp side trail

Reaching a junction marked with signs at the 3.8 mile mark, turn left to begin the Trail of Lakes connector.

Blue blazes lead down a forest road for a short stretch before turning northward, crossing a thin band of wetlands on slippery wooden walkways.

Junction sign Trail junction

A chorus of frogs rings through the forest around 5 miles on the approach to Sheep Island Lake.

Although the lake is barely visible through the trees, an access road provides a very short detour to the water’s edge for a view of water lilies and the pristine far shoreline.

Lake with lilies Sheep Island Lake

In a quarter mile, the trail dives into the Big Gully Creek floodplain, this time crossing the creek on a series of beamlike bridges.

Some of the taller spans have wire handrails to hold onto while crossing the dark tannic waters.

Suspended plank bridges in swamp Big Gully Creek bridge

On the north side of the creek, enter an expansive forest of longleaf pine carpeted with an understory of saw palmettoes, gallberry, grasses, and bracken ferns.

In the late fall, tall wildflower stalks rise above the emerald sea of shrubs, adding an array of bright yellow and purple blooms.

Close up of lacy purple flowers Vanillaleaf flowers

Transition from pine flatwoods into sandhills as you approach Memery Island, a high spot in the landscape.

At 7.8 miles, the Trail of Lakes ends, the blue blazes meeting the Florida Trail near Memery Island Camp at another large trail junction sign.

Large purple flowers on stalks Lupine in the sandhills

A side trail leads to the designated campsite nestled under an oak tree at the top of a hill. Follow the Florida Trail southbound towards Camel Lake.

Orange blazes trace alongside an edge of sandhill and titi swamps. Cross some of the wetter sections on short boardwalks.

Camping area in sandhills Memery Island Camp

Pitcher plants emerge from soggy soils along the path as it cuts through a low grassy pine savanna before climbing a small ridge onto higher ground.

Soon after crossing another fragrant titi swamp on a robust wooden bridge, the trail reaches FR 105. Walk to the day use area, completing the hike after 9.5 miles.

Pitcher plant in dense grassland Pitcher plant

Trail Map

Trail of Lakes Trail Map
Red: Trail of Lakes Loop. Orange: Florida Trail. Blue: Camel Lake Loop.

Explore More!

Learn more about the Apalachicola National Forest

Pitcher plants Apalachicola National Forest Noted for its botanical beauty, the Apalachicola National Forest is the largest National Forest in Florida, sweeping south and west of Tallahassee.

Video

A recent walk through the Trail of Lakes

Slideshow

Older photos from the Trail of Lakes

Nearby Adventures

Lake beyond screen of trees Camel Lake Loop Explore robust sandhill habitats on a short loop hike around cypress-lined Camel Pond at Camel Lake Recreation Area in the Apalachicola National Forest.
Tupelo swamp Florida Trail Florida Trail, Camel Lake to Savannahs 5.3 miles. Wet feet are expected on this traverse of the pine savannas along the edges of Johnson Juniper Swamp in the Apalachicola National Forest.
Florida Trail, Vilas to Camel Lake 10.3 miles. Broadening your perspective on Florida's largest national forest, this hike offers an ever-shifting focus from macro to landscape amid habitat diversity in the Apalachicola National Forest.
Pitcher plant bog Apalachee Savannas Scenic Byway In the Apalachicola National Forest, the Apalachee Savannas Scenic Byway is a winding stretch of scenic road through expansive wet flatwoods and open pine savannas

Reserve a Campsite Hunt Dates Official Website

Chris Stevens
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