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Geneva Wilderness

Geneva Wilderness Area

Showcasing prairie ponds amid scrub on the edge of a pine flatwoods, Geneva Wilderness Area offers two loops of gentle paths on which to explore the habitats.

Geneva      ( 28.708800, -81.123967 )      1.8 miles

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Showcasing prairie ponds amid scrub on the edge of a pine flatwoods, Geneva Wilderness Area offers gentle paths on which to explore the habitats. Two main trails wind their way through the park.

Red diamonds designate the Loop Trail, which runs along the edges of the ponds and through a stand of pine forest that once was part of a thriving turpentine camp.

The yellow diamonds provide a connection to the Flagler Trail, a north-south trail leading into the adjoining Little Big Econ State Forest.


Resources

Resources for exploring the area

The Florida Trail Guide book cover Central Florida Orlando Explorers Guide book cover 50 Hikes in Central Florida 5 Star Trails Orlando

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: Geneva
Length: 1.8 mile loop and 1.4 mile spur
Trailhead: 28.708800, -81.123967
Fees: none
Restroom: At the picnic area
Land Manager: Seminole County
Phone: 407-665-2211

Day use only unless overnight group camping arranged in advance. Trails open to hiking and cycling.


Directions

 
Follow SR 434 from Winter Springs into downtown Oviedo. Turn left at the light, then immediately left on SR 426, following it 6.1 miles west (past the Little Big Econ State Forest trailhead for the Florida Trail at Barr Street) to the entrance to the Geneva Wilderness Area on the right. Approaching from Sanford or I-95, take SR 46 to Geneva and turn onto SR 426; the park comes up on the left not long after you pass Snow Hill Road.

Hike

Start your hike at the informational kiosk. Sign the register, and pick up a trail map. The trail starts off in a forest in miniature—gnarled sand live oak, scarcely tall enough to shade the trail.

Dense clumps of foamy turquoise deer moss carpet the forest floor. At the first distinct junction of trails, turn left. A boardwalk leads into one of the ponds, providing a nice spot for birding or fishing.

Geneva Wilderness
Geneva Wilderness

At 0.3 mile, the trail leads up to a clearing. It is here that the Loop Trail starts and ends. Turn left and walk along the Loop Trail.

Stay right at the next fork to follow along the edge of the two largest flatwoods ponds in Geneva Wilderness. Although both ponds fade to mud during drought, they serve as magnets for wildlife when the waters return.

Rounding the second pond, the trail forks again. Turn right and follow the trail paralleling the shoreline. Walk out to the water’s edge and look carefully for the many small and delicate sundew plants along the shore.

After 0.7 mile, you’ll walk along the edge of the South Camp, situated beneath spreading live oak trees. When you reach the sign for Spigot #8, turn left and follow the narrow service trail up through the pine forest.

Pause to enjoy spring blueberries and blackberries before you pass the restrooms. You’ll soon come to a T intersection with the loop trail.

Although this hike follows the Loop Trail to the right, you can extend the length of your hike an extra 2.8 miles by turning left, then right, following the route of the Flagler Trail. A round-trip walk to the Econlockhatchee River and back will take at least two hours.

The Flagler Trail is blazed with yellow diamonds within Geneva Wilderness, but the blazes turn to blue rectangles painted on the trees once you enter the adjoining Little Big Econ State Forest.

Geneva Wilderness Park is the former site of one of Florida’s many turpentine camps. The Loop Trail soon crosses a narrow but deep cut through the forest, one of the few remaining canals from the turpentine era.

Turn left for a quick side trip along the canal to see several of the longleaf pines that were once regularly tapped for turpentine. At the canal’s end, near the property fence, notice one tall pine tree with a deep gash running more than six feet up the tree from its base.

Beyond the fence lie several more tall pines with similar gashes. Called catfaces, these gashes provided the turpentine collector a means of “bleeding” the tree for its resin.

Walk back along the canal to the Loop Trail, and turn left. The Loop Trail soon rejoins the shoreline trail in front of the entrance to the Chapel.

Take a moment to walk the 0.2-mile trail down through the dense pine hammock to the Chapel. Built on a peninsula out into the pond, the Chapel provides Scouting groups and others with a nondenominational outdoors site for worship.

Returning to the Loop Trail, turn right. The trail squeezes between two flatwoods ponds on its way back around the loop.

At least one pair of bald eagles nests nearby, providing hikers a chance to see these regal birds in flight over the open space of the ponds. At 1.4 miles, the Loop Trail has completed its full loop.

Turn left, and watch for a trail leading off to the right to the Ed Yarborough Educational Center. Used mainly for field trips and Scouting outings, this building is open the first Saturday of each month between 9 AM and noon for public workshops; check the kiosk for details.

Once you reach the front of the building, take a look at the native plant garden. You can walk back to the parking area along the entrance road near the caretaker’s home, but it’s more pleasant to walk back behind the nature center and head back along the trail to the main trail.

Turn right, and right again to exit through the tiny scrub forest, ending up back at the parking area after 1.8 miles.


Trail Map

Geneva Wilderness trail map

Explore More!

Slideshow

See our photos of Geneva Wilderness


Nearby Adventures

More worth exploring while you’re in this area.

Trail mile marker on unpaved rail trail

Flagler Trail South

Following a historic railroad route, the southern portion of the Flagler Trail provides a sometimes rugged, sometimes gentle offroad ride between Chuluota and Geneva.

Trail through palm hammock

Florida Trail, Little Big Econ State Forest

One of the most beautiful hikes near Orlando is rugged, too: the Florida Trail atop bluffs above the Econlockhatchee River through Little-Big Econ State Forest.

Lake Harney Wilderness

Lake Harney Wilderness Area

With an outstanding accessible observation tower offering a panorama of the St. Johns River floodplain, Lake Harney Wilderness is a must-see for birders and photographers

Trail adjoining river on bluff

Culpepper Bend

One of the lesser-known trails of Little Big Econ State Forest, Culpepper Bend leads you to an outstanding panorama where the Econlockhatchee River meets the St. Johns River.

Trail Map (PDF) Official Website

Category: Backpacking, Central Florida, Day Hikes, Hikes, Loop Hikes, Natural Lands, Nature Centers, TrailsTag: Birding, Botanical, Family-Friendly, Geneva, Historic Sites, Lakefront, Orlando, Oviedo, Picnic, Primitive Camping, Sanford, Wildflowers, Wildlife Viewing

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