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Footpath along winding creek in greenery of forest

Hogtown Creek Greenway

As Hogtown Creek threads its way through modern-day Gainesville, step into the past along a string of urban nature preserves.

Gainesville      ( 29.654950, -82.371836 )      

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Along the Hogtown Creek Greenway, a series of wild spaces hemmed in by neighborhoods share the duty of preserving natural shorelines along the city’s longest creek.

While none of these parks are truly wild – all are surrounded by neighborhoods and subdivisions – few of them have developed amenities except for trails.

All of them provide places inside Gainesville city limits for hikers and cyclists to immerse in deciduous forests on natural pathways.

Hiker walking dogs in forest on broad path Hiking the original “Hogtown Creek Greenway” in Loblolly Woods Nature Park


Resources

Resources for exploring the area

Five Star Trails Gainesville Ocala book cover North Florida Panhandle Explorers Guide book cover

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: Gainesville
Fees: None
Restroom: At Loblolly Woods and Alfred Ring Park
Land manager: City of Gainesville
Phone: 352-334-5067

Most preserves along the Hogtown Creek Greenway are open dawn to dusk daily, with the exception of Hogtown Creek Headwaters, which opens 8 AM.

Leashed dogs permitted. Some parks have no parking areas, see details below. Trails are typical natural footpaths or singletrack.

Waterway in forest


Directions

Use the map below to get directions to each preserve in the greenway
 

What is the Hogtown Creek Greenway?

Childhood trips to Gainesville meant leafy green forests, where houses were nestled under a canopy of woods unlike the horse farms and sand ridges of our youth.

Back then, poor Hogtown Creek, named for an 1824 Seminole village four miles to the west of what is now downtown, wasn’t in the best of shape.

Forest with strip malls and road beyond Approaching where the creek goes under University Avenue


Shunted under expanding roads and parking lots, encased in concrete culverts, it was treated badly, “in the way of progress.”

After two decades of land acquisitions amid the urban quilt of this forested city, the city of Gainesville takes a different view now.

Creek at base of bluff with palm overhanging Hogtown Creek in Alfred Ring Park


It started with Loblolly Woods Nature Park, where a trail was dubbed the “Hogtown Creek Greenway” back when we first started researching trails.

It’s expanded along the length of the creek, from its headwaters to the north to its splashdown into the Floridan Aquifer through a sinkhole not far from Lake Kanapaha.

Trail kiosk for Hogtown Creek Greenway Trail kiosk in Loblolly Woods


The Greenway is non-contiguous, that is, you cannot walk, bike, or paddle its length. Hogtown Creek fluctuates wildly in depth and still passes through culverts.

The water, too, suffers in quality from both urban runoff and dumping, with water quality warnings posted at the preserves when things get dire.

Orange ribbon on tree near dark waterway with reflections Hogtown Creek as it flows by Green Acres Park


However, the string of preserves that make up the Hogtown Creek Greenway provide access to slices of nature in urban Gainesville and havens for wildlife.

Depending on the preserve, you can hike or bike the trails, enjoy either groomed or wild trails, take the kids to playgrounds, and savor the botanical beauty.

Hardwood forest with Southern magnolia Hardwood forest at Hogtown Creek Headwaters


Hogtown Creek Greenway Preserves

The preserves are listed from north to south, the direction of the creek’s flow.

Hogtown Creek Headwaters Nature Park

Address: 1500 NW 45th Ave, Gainesville
Trailhead: 29.696516, -82.342923

One of the easier preserves to find, Hogtown Creek Headwaters has twisty little footpaths through its hardwood forest. The preserve encompasses 70 acres that was part of Hartman’s Dairy for more than a century.

Old-growth trees on deeply shaded trails along the narrow creek provide no clue to the land’s long agricultural use, but a structure from the dairy is still standing, awaiting renovation. Ample parking provided.

Alluvial stream
Hogtown Creek rises in these woods in North Gainesville

29th Road Nature Park

Address: 1502 NW 29th Rd, Gainesville
Trailhead: 29.679711, -82.340330

Only five acres in size, this tiny patch of beautiful slope and bottomland forest has a lush understory of ferns. No parking, walk-in only.

Needle palm close up Needle palm


Alfred Ring Park Trail

Alfred A. Ring Park

Featuring a dense slope forest along Hogtown Creek with old-growth trees and rare wildflowers along Appalachian-style ravines, this is a scenic hike in the heart of Gainesville


Path through deciduous forest

Loblolly Woods Nature Park

Protecting 159 acres of lush forests along the confluence of Possum Creek and Hogtown Creek, Loblolly Woods Nature Park is a beauty spot in urban Gainesville.


Green Acres Park

Address: 643 SW 40th St, Gainesville
Trailhead: 29.64559, -82.38494

Centered on a open area with a playground in an oak hammock, Green Acres Park has meandering singletrack winding beneath pines of incredible size to the edge of braided waters in the forests along the Hogtown Creek basin. Ample parking.

Path past massive tree in forest
Along the trails of Green Acres Park

Clear Lake Nature Park

Address: 5480 SW 1st Ave, Gainesville
Trailhead: 29.651883, -82.397826

While only 14 acres, Clear Lake adjoins vast Sugarfoot Prairie, a conservation area spanning to Green Acres Park. Trees of notable size are a part of this forest.

The trails include uplands wanders and a levee along the wetlands. No parking provided. Walk in at the west end of SW 1st Ave.

Looking up through trees to sky Tree canopy


Split Rock Conservation Area

Address: SW 20th Ave, Gainesville
Trailhead: 29.639295, -82.410380

At 241 acres, Split Rock is the largest of the preserves and the terminus of Hogtown Creek, where it vanishes into the Floridan Aquifer in a sinkhole in Hogtown Prairie.

The prairie often floods, so it may not be possible to follow the full loop trail, which is roughly 1.5 miles long. No parking is nearby. Use RTS Route 75 to access by bus, or bike to the entrance.

Patterned leaf of devil's walking-stick Devil’s walking-stick


Explore More!

Nearby Adventures

Additional parks in the vicinity of the Hogtown Creek Greenway

John Mahon Nature Park

John Mahon Nature Park

Ten acres isn’t a lot for a natural area, but at John Mahon Nature Park in Gainesville, it’s plenty for a quick, refreshing walk in the woods off Newberry Road.

Cofrin Nature Park

Cofrin Nature Park

One of Gainesville’s urban nature parks, Cofrin Nature Park is right near the Oaks Mall on Newberry Rd and features a half-mile trail in a shady forest

Visiting the Bottle Tree at Kanapaha Botanical Gardens

Kanapaha Botanical Gardens

One of the most beautiful and complex gardens in Florida, Kanapaha Botanical Gardens sits beneath grand live oaks with more than a dozen themed gardens on 62 acres. Bamboo is their specialty, with Florida’s best collection of these tall grasses.

Devils Millhopper stairs down

Devils Millhopper Geological State Park

It’s the trickle of water that catches your attention, the steady drip and splash down the rocky rim and into the depths of one of Florida’s largest sinkholes at Devils Millhopper Geological State Park

Official Website

Category: Biking, City Parks, Day Hikes, Greenways, Hikes, Nature Trails, North Florida, TrailsTag: Dog-friendly, Gainesville, Hogtown Creek Greenway, Wildflowers, Wildlife Viewing

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