A man-made landform but nonetheless largely forested, Inglis Island lies between the natural channel of the Withlacoochee River and the Inglis Dam on Lake Rousseau.
Popular with anglers, Lake Rousseau is a freshwater expanse held back by the dam. A system of locks is on the far side of the island leading to the brackish part of the river.
Tip of Inglis Island and Lock as seen from Felburn ParkInglis Dam is your entryway to this extensive trail system on the Cross Florida Greenway. Generally broad trails marked in yellow, red, and blue interconnect in a 7.6 mile network.
Those original loops we scouted two decades ago for Hiker’s Guide to the Sunshine State are now joined by a 2 mile paved trail to the western tip of the island.
Our route described below follows the inner Yellow Loop of the trail network, a largely shaded 1.7 mile hike.
The Yellow Trail follows an ecotone central to Inglis IslandResources
Resources for exploring the area
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Overview
Location: Crystal River
Length: 7.6 mile trail network
Trailhead: 29.00824, -82.61663
Address: 10905 W Riverwood Dr, Crystal River
Fees: Free
Restroom: Portable toilet at Dessie Smith Prescott Memorial Park
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 352-758-1000
Open 8 AM to sundown. Leashed pets welcome.
Trails are shared with cyclists and equestrians. The bike path is accessible and nicely shaded for half its length, with benches along it.
Directions
From the intersection of US 19 and SR 44 in Crystal River, follow US 19 north for 6.4 miles to N Basswood Ave, which veers off to the right soon after a traffic light for Dunnellon Rd. Meet Riverwood Dr at a T and turn right to continue 1.6 miles to the Inglis Dam complex on the left. The primary parking area at Dessie Smith Prescott Memorial Park, where the only restroom is located, tends to be packed with boaters. Hikers and cyclists can continue to parking near the dam itself. The lower parking area provides a launch point for boaters and paddlers below the dam.
Hike
No matter which parking area or trail you choose, all trail users must cross the Inglis Dam on the paved access road that continues beyond the closest parking spots.
Walk around the vehicle gate and cross the bridge over the spillway. Buffered by large rocks beyond it, the near shore is lapped by the expanse of Lake Rousseau.
Lake RousseauThe first dam built at this site in 1909 held back the Withlacoochee River to generate hydroelectric power for the phosphate mining boom in Dunnellon.
Doing so created Lake Rousseau. The digging of the Cross Florida Barge Canal in the 1960s created Inglis Island. The canal and its locks are on its north side.
The Withlacoochee River flows free below this damDespite the cancellation of the ill-conceived canal project, this dam built for it and the locks remain because they form a barrier between saltwater and freshwater.
At the north end of the dam is a trail kiosk with a map. Although the routes were unlabeled, the solid line is the bike path and the outer loop blazed blue.
Paved path leading to kioskWith no approximation of scale and only a vague recollection of how long the full loop took to hike, we concentrated on the inner Yellow Loop.
Turn right at the kiosk and walk along the lakeshore past interpretive signs. Lake views are largely screened by wax myrtle and palms. There is no clearly defined path.
Picnic shelterThere is, however, a large open area with a picnic shelter. It serves as an equestrian parking and disembarkation point for riding the trail system.
Continue past it and stay close to the shoreline along the grassy expanse, which narrows but provides a few views from the marshy edge.
A look across Lake RousseauA cleared area between the cedars with a tall post marks the location of the first of several primitive group camping areas.
Each has picnic tables and a fire ring. By their signage, they appear to have been constructed by Boy Scout troops.
Group campsiteA worn two-track road leads forward under the pines. Follow this obvious path, edged by a dense forest on the left.
The understory beneath the pines is very open and covered in pine duff, with glimpses of the lake beyond each of the campsites.
Pathway past the campsitesThe road ends in a large clearing facing a wall of trees, with a campsite with a food-hanging hook and a peek to the lake beyond.
It makes a sharp left. However, you shouldn’t, unless you’re tackling the longest loop around the island. We discovered that after reaching the first blue marker along it near a bench.
Clearing where the Blue Trail pivots leftThe shape of this junction didn’t match the kiosk map, so we backtracked from the food-hanging hook along the road in the pines.
Scan carefully on the right for an unmarked earthen ramp dropping off into a hardwood forest. This is the unmarked start of the Yellow Trail, 0.7 mile from the dam spillway.
Blink and you miss it. We did the first time!Jogging around a cluster of palms and a few towering pines, it becomes a nicely shaded causeway in the forest.
Curving left within a tenth of a mile, the two-track road enters a long, showy tunnel of straightaway under the arcing limbs of large oaks.
A tunnel in the treesA series of green posts installed by a variety of troops spell out the points of the Boy Scout law along this slightly elevated path.
Soon after the “Brave” marker is a yellow blaze on a white diamond on an oak trunk, confirming you’re on the Yellow Trail.
Yellow Trail markerA floodplain forest fills a low-lying area of the forest to the left, but the landscape on the right gains elevation.
Eventually the forest canopy on that side opens to reveal statuesque pines over a dense understory of saw palmetto.
Passing one of the Scout markersThe straightaway yields to a curve, where a massive live oak is obvious well before the trail passes under its thick fern-laden limbs.
Beyond it, cabbage palms crowd both sides of the trail as it straightens. Reaching a T intersection in a clearing at 1 mile, make a left.
Trail junction. The right turn possible here is not shown on the map.The path remains broad and cushioned by pine needles. Leaving the imprint of the floodplain forest behind, it gains elevation.
Cabbage palms yield to more pines and oaks, some of notable size. Saw palmetto takes over the understory.
Pine flatwoodsLoblolly pines tower above sun-kissed palmetto in a patch of flatwoods largely devoid of an oak canopy.
The oaks soon provide shade again, and at 1.3 miles, the Yellow Trail ends at the paved bike path within sight of a bench.
Trail junctionTo the right, the paved path leads to the other end of the Blue Loop, as well as overlooks of the Cross Florida Barge Canal and the tip of the island.
A round-trip to the canal overlook via the bike path adds 1.3 miles to this hike; to the end of the island, 3.3 miles.
The bike path through the woodsTurn left to continue along the Yellow Loop. In a little less than two tenths of a mile, the path emerges from the forest at the base of the dam.
Climb the ramp to the kiosk where this loop hike began. Turn right and cross the dam, reaching the first parking space beyond it at 1.7 miles.
Ramp to the kiosk atop the damTrail Map
Explore More!
Learn more about the Cross Florida Greenway
Cross Florida Greenway
Stretching 90 miles from the St. Johns River near Palatka to the Gulf of Mexico, the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway is a mile-wide recreational corridor with hiking, biking, and equestrian trails as well as paddling and boating access.
Video
Hiking the Yellow Loop
Slideshow
See our photos from Inglis Island
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Felburn Park
The eastern terminus of the Withlacoochee Bay Trail is home to a surprisingly hilly trail above a freshwater marsh along the saltwater Cross Florida Barge Canal.
Withlacoochee Bay Trail
Paralleling a completed segment of the ill-conceived Cross Florida Barge Canal, this 5.1 mile paved bike path surprises with hills, overlooks, and a panorama stretching to the Gulf of Mexico.
Withlacoochee Gulf Preserve
Immerse in the beauty of an expansive coastal estuary at Withlacoochee Gulf Preserve in Yankeetown to take in the panoramic views.
Crystal River Preserve State Park
Crystal River Preserve State Park spans 20 miles of the Gulf Coast between Yankeetown and Homosassa, protecting key manatee habitats along estuaries of the Gulf.