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Resources for exploring the area
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Exploring Keystone Heights
Developed as a winter resort, Keystone Heights is home to many lakes formed in sinkholes. Its centerpiece is Lake Geneva, home to Keystone Beach since 1915.
The lakeside casino and sandy swimming beach framed by oaks attracted prospective buyers from northern states to nearby lots. The town began to grow soon after World War I.
During the Great Depression, the state of Florida accepted Federal assistance from the Works Progress Administration set up by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
A crew of young men camped on rolling hills north of town donated by local resident Martin J. “Mike” Roess to learn timbering, masonry, and carpentry skills.
Original wooden water tower at Gold HeadWith paid on-the-job training, Civilian Conservation Corps Company 2444 built the infrastructure of what would become Gold Head Branch State Park.
While that effort was going on, the state of Florida acquired property around Kingsley Lake to move their Florida National Guard training center from Jacksonville.
Sign near the junction of SR 21 and SR 16When entry into another war in Europe was imminent, the Federal government took over the newly christened Camp Blanding and expanded it greatly through eminent domain.
Camp Blanding swelled with Army personnel as infantry units were trained. More than three quarters of a million soldiers passed through the camp during World War II.
A German prisoner of war camp over 4,000 residents by war’s end. The personnel required to run military operations made Camp Blanding the fourth largest city in Florida during the war.
While the Army turned the land back over to the state by the 1950s, the size of the base didn’t shrink, so Keystone Heights is bounded to the north by Camp Blanding.
Hunters can use designated roads within Camp Blanding WMA during hunting seasons.In 1957, the state of Florida accepted a parcel of land along Magnolia Lake within the range to build Magnolia Lake State Park.
During the post-World War II era of “Jim Crow” laws, it was a segregated Florida State Park for Black residents, a counterpart to Gold Head Branch State Park, where they weren’t allowed.
Once segregation ended in the early 1970s, the park remained a local swimming hole until the state ceded the property back to Camp Blanding.
Like Gold Head, Magnolia Lake State Park had picnic grounds and a swimming area. You can visit it along the Florida Trail.In the late 1960s, the Florida Trail Association built a segment of their newly conceived statewide hiking trail across Gold Head Branch State Park.
Now a National Scenic Trail, the Florida Trail continues to cross Keystone Heights to this day. Look for orange blazes on back roads and at trailheads in the area.
Florida Trail crossing from Gold Head to Camp Blanding across SR 21A newer edition to local trails, the Palatka-Lake Butler Trail came about when the railroad grade from Palatka to Lake Butler was acquired by the state.
Paved between Palatka and Hampton, this long-distance bike path largely parallels SR 100 through town then veers northwest to parallel CR 18 to Hampton.
Palatka-Lake Butler Trail approaching downtownTrails and Parks near Keystone Heights
Belmore State Forest Crossing a landscape of remarkably resilient trees in a desert-like environment, the Satsuma Trail showcases the adaptability of certain species native to Florida.
Etoniah Creek Georges Lake Trail The inviting and densely forested George's Lake Trail leads to scenic views from a lakefront pier at Etoniah Creek State Forest . 
Etoniah Creek Lake Blossom Trail Rare endangered Etoniah rosemary bushes grow atop sandy ridges that descend to this 0.7 mile loop around a deep prairie pond. 
Florida Trail, Camp Blanding Explore the high ground of Keystone Heights through sandhills and scrub on undulating terrain across forests managed by the Florida National Guard at Camp Blanding. 
Florida Trail, Etoniah West On this 3.5-mile segment of the Florida Trail in Etoniah State Forest, you'll encounter the rare Etonia rosemary and a number of sinkholes in the pine forests and scrub
Florida Trail, Gold Head Branch Following high ground above Devils Washbasin and Gold Head Ravine, the oldest section of the Florida Trail at Gold Head Branch State Park makes for a pleasant six-mile round trip.
Florida Trail, Gold Head to Smith Lake Preserve Southbound from Little Lake Johnson at Gold Head Branch State Park across Smith Lake Preserve, this 3.3 mile linear hike traverses upland forests along a trio of scenic lakes. 
Florida Trail, Northeast Florida Connecting public lands on this 123 mile stretch, the Florida Trail walks into the past through farms and timberlands between Palatka and Osceola National Forest.
Gold Head Branch State Park One of Florida's oldest state parks and notable for its Civilian Conservation Corps architecture, Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park offers a lesson in Florida topography.
Gold Head Ridge and Ravine Trails A beauty spot with extreme elevation changes, Gold Head is best explored along the Ridge and Ravine Trails that guide you into and around the bottom of the steephead ravine.
Lake Alto Preserve North A well-marked system of trails weaves around wetlands and across upland pine forests to a dock overlooking scenic Lake Alto.
LEAFS Preserve North On the North Tract of LEAFS Preserve, explore a forest undergoing longleaf pine restoration along a well-defined loop with scenic views of Lake Alto. 
LEAFS Preserve South South of the Lake Alto Canal, a mile loop introduces well-managed uplands of restored longleaf pine flatwoods in the South Tract of LEAFS Preserve.
Little Lake Santa Fe Preserve Meander across an upland pine forest to cypress-filled wetlands on a short loop trail alongside Little Lake Santa Fe.
Palatka-Lake Butler Trail With a corridor spanning nearly 50 miles through North Florida, the Palatka-Lake Butler State Trail provides paved trail for riders and an unpaved corridor used by the Florida TrailRelated Articles
The Moon Tree Garden (7/14/2019) Florida's most unique arboretum features a circle of sycamores honoring the Apollo missions, all here thanks to an Apollo 14 project for the U.S. Forest Service to take tree seedings into orbit around the moon.
Botanically rich hikes along the Florida Trail (2/6/2018) With more than 1,400 miles of hiking statewide, the Florida Trail provides a gateway to grand landscapes for botanical beauty. Here are our top suggestions for fascinating botanical destinations along the Florida Trail.