Florida Hikes

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Park with spring run under trees flowing to river

Green Cove Springs

Along the western shore of the St. Johns River, the county seat of Clay County grew up around a mineral spring on a hillside above the river.

Resources

Resources for exploring the area
North Florida Panhandle Explorers Guide book cover 50 Hikes in North Florida book cover Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover Paddlers Guide Florida
 
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Exploring Green Cove Springs

A bubbling fountain of mineral water pouring from a cavern on a hillside above the St. Johns River brought settlement to these shores early in human history.

But it was a Spanish land grant that brought commerce in 1816, a sawmill around which the community of White Sulphur Springs grew.

Spring run in a park Flow of the springs towards the St Johns River

During the Civil War, the town was occupied by Union soldiers, and renamed Green Cove Springs soon after.

Health spas were all the rage in the late 1800s, and so Green Cove Springs became a destination for northern tourists arriving by steamboat.

Long pier The modern-day city dock

A trolley car met them at the end of the long dock and took them to one of a dozen hotels and boarding homes, where they would winter.

Visitors would bathe daily in the spring-fed swimming pool that, now restored, is still a highlight of Spring Park today.

Round spring basin Green Cove Spring feeds the pool in front of it

During World War II, a naval air complex along the river was joined by a military port where the Navy shuttled up to 600 ships for storage out of harm’s way.

Decommissioned in the 1960s, these are now home to a large marina and an airfield with military museum near where one of the few bridges span the St. Johns River to the eastern shore.

theater building Vintage theater from WWII era

Trails and Parks near Green Cove Springs

Wild iris at Bayard Point Bayard Conservation Area Bayard Point Conservation Area preserves an untouched riverfront forest on the St. Johns River. Follow this route through the John P. Hall Nature Preserve to visit the river.
Creek reflecting blue skies with far shore of winter cypresses Black Creek Park An unbroken canopy of oversized trees edge low bluffs above the floodplain of Black Creek, shading singletrack loops at the southern end of Fleming Island.
Sandhill Habitat Black Creek Ravines Conservation Area Perched on high ground above Black Creek downstream from Middleburg, this 6.5 mile hike showcases upland forests, seepage slopes, bluffs and the transitional habitats between them.
1970s treehouse cabin on stilts in the woods Camp Chowenwaw Park In a deep forest on Black Creek north of Green Cove Springs, Camp Chowenwaw Park is a unique destination for campers and hikers, a former Girl Scout camp with a rich history.
Trail through a deeply shaded forest Camp Chowenwaw Trails Explore Camp Chowenwaw Park on a network of trails into an old-growth hardwood hammock and floodplain swamps near where Black Creek empties into the St. Johns River.
Green Cove Spring Park Swim in the perpetual flow of Green Cove Spring in a spring-fed swimming pool, the centerpiece of a landscaped riverfront park beneath old growth oaks along the St. Johns River.
View of river framed by trees RiverTown Riverfront Park Statuesque live oaks canopy an unparalleled 1.7 mile walk along the eastern shore of the St. Johns River at Riverfront Park in Rivertown, northwest of St. Augustine.
Sand path along cypress swamp Ronnie Van Zandt Memorial Park Gimme three steps and a whole lot more on a circuit of a park established to honor the lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, northwest of Green Cove Springs where he grew up.

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NEARBY: Keystone Heights, Middleburg, Orange Park, Palatka, St. Augustine | ALONG: St. Johns River | PART OF: North Florida