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Sunlight dappled on Florida upland forest

Mac Lake Trail

An easy excursion into a dense hardwood forest along a natural floodplain, the Mac Lake Nature Trail at Colt Creek State Park is an interpretive walk in the woods

Colt Creek State Park  |  Lakeland
( 28.2961, -82.0413 )      0.9 miles

In a park that stretches across 5,000 acres, this short hike shows you a tiny corner of the mosaic of habitats that make up the Green Swamp.

Colt Creek State Park has longer trails, but this interpretive nature trail introduces the basics of the Green Swamp as it weaves along the ecotone between floodplain and uplands.

Although it officially is only a quarter mile long, that measurement is simply the length of the footpath in the woods.

To get there, you’ll need to walk from the Mac Lake Day Use parking area along the lake to the entrance of the trail, and then back along the lake to form a 0.9 mile loop.

Paved path past gazebo Paved path along Mac Lake


Resources

Resources for exploring the region

50 Hikes in Central Florida Orlando & Central Florida: An Explorer's Guide

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: Lakeland
Length: 0.9 mile loop
Trailhead: 28.2961, -82.0413
Address: 16000 SR 471, Lakeland
Fees: $4 per vehicle
Restroom: At the pavilion at the day use area
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 863-815-6761

Open 8 AM until sunset daily. Leashed pets welcome.

Insect repellent is wise protection against ticks and mosquitoes along the trail.

The portion of this trail that is between the two Nature Trail signs is not open to cyclists or equestrians.

Tall oak in hammock


Directions

 
Follow US 98 north from Interstate 4 at Lakeland to reach SR 471. Turn right. Continue north to the park entrance on the right. Follow the park road to the Mac Lake Day Use Area.

Hike

Your walk starts next to the big pavilion, where the restrooms are for the day use area, adjoining the fishing pier and rental kayaks and canoes.

It’s worth taking a walk out on the pier just for the views. Osprey commonly hover over Mac Lake. It’s deep, since it was formerly a limestone quarry.

Pier at Mac Lake Pier at the day use area


From the pier, a paved path continues along the lake for a bit before turning to a hardpacked surface.

Watch for the sign on the left at the break in the trees, indicating the start of the Mac Lake Nature Trail.

Trail signage and start of trail Signs mark both ends of the nature trail


Under the shade of tall oaks, the trail slips into a dense thicket of saw palmetto. Cabbage palms rise along the edges.

The temperature change should be obvious once you step into the forest. While the berm surrounding Mac Lake heats up, the forest itself is much cooler.

It’s not just cooler, but damper. Look up along the trunks of the trees to see bromeliads with their whiskery growth, and vines climbing into the palms.

As the trail goes deeper into the forest, the oaks become taller and the understory of palms is more dense. Grapevines drape across cinnamon ferns.

Tick interpretive sign One of the interpretive signs


The natural footpath winds past the usual array of Florida State Park interpretive signs, including one warning about ticks in the woods.

Where sweetgum joins the forest canopy, the trail has drawn close to a minor floodplain along a creek. These trees change color in fall.

Hardwood hammock Winding through the dense hardwood hammock


The trail enters a palm hammock, where cabbage palms blot out the sky with their large fronds. The trees look like columns along the edges of the trail.

Slender waving fingers of fronds are from bluestem palms in the understory. A bench sits between two trees.

Trail through cabbage palms In the palm hammock


Peek through the understory and you’ll see sloppy puddles where the floodplain is creeping into the palm hammock whenever the water rises.

As the trail approaches a very large live oak, it gains a little elevation and the understory becomes drier.

Large burl in side of immense live oak Massive burl on the side of an ancient live oak


Walk past another live oak with a gaping hole and burl near its base. Sunlight streams in beyond, letting you know where Mac Lake is.

As the trail rises away from the palms into the oaks and hickories, listen. There might be an armadillo shuffling through the underbrush.

Armadillo in the underbrush Armadillo browsing the forest floor


Passing a few slender pines, the trail emerges at the berm of Mac Lake at 0.4 mile. Here, the lakeside trail is unpaved.

If you look to the left, the unpaved trail leads along the lake to a distant junction with the Flatwoods Trail, a 10-mile loop around the park.

Trail along lakefront Connector trail to the Flatwoods Trail


Turn right to head back to the day use area, passing picnic pavilions tucked into the forest along the way.

There is also a warning sign about bears. When you get back to the screened pavilion and fishing pier, you’ve completed a 0.9 mile loop.

Picnic pavilion Picnic pavilion along the lakefront



Trail Map

Colt Creek Mac Lake Trail Map
The outer loop is the Flatwoods Trail

Explore More!

Learn more about Colt Creek State Park

Fishing pier on lake

Colt Creek State Park

Camping beneath the twinkling stars at Colt Creek State Park, enjoy a getaway from the busy bustle of the Interstate 4 corridor between Lakeland and Tampa

Slideshow

See our photos of Colt Creek State Park


Nearby Adventures

More worth exploring while you’re in this area.

Upper-Hillsborough-Hiking-Trail

Upper Hillsborough River Hiking Trail

A linear trail, the Upper Hillsborough River Hiking Trail meanders through pine flatwoods, oak hammocks, and floodplain forests along the edge of the Hillsborough River basin.

Gator Creek Preserve

Gator Creek Reserve

A dip into a corner of the Green Swamp, Gator Creek Preserve north of Lakeland offers 2.5 miles of easy loop trails for the whole family to explore

Hillsborough River State Park

Hillsborough River State Park

Water in motion: the Hillsborough rapids foam and froth over limestone boulders beneath grand cypress trees in Class II rapids. One of Florida’s oldest state parks, Hillsborough River State Park showcases this masterpiece of nature from an overlook and trail system built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Withlacoochee River Park

Withlacoochee River Park

With two different trails – gentle and wild – showing off the park’s natural features, Withlacoochee River Park is a popular overnight camping destination.

Trail Map (PDF) Reserve Campsite Official Website

Category: Central Florida, Hikes, Loop Hikes, Nature Trails, TrailsTag: Dade City, Dog-friendly, Family-Friendly, Florida State Parks, Green Swamp, Lakefront, Lakeland, Wildlife Viewing, Zephyrhills

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Trail under oaks flanked by ferns

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Cabbage palms adjoining a trail

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