Florida Hikes

Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

Purple blaze post along needle strewn path under pines

Silver Springs Mesic Loop

Bridge the two sides of Silver Springs State Park using the Ross Allen Island Boardwalk as a gateway to a longer walk in the woods via a new bridge over the Fort King Waterway.

Silver Springs (29.214842 -82.055365)   3.9 miles   Silver Springs State Park

Opened late 2025, an extension of the Ross Allen Island Boardwalk now links the springside and riverside trails of Silver Springs State Park in a showy way.

You could do so before via the kayak launch using the Springs Trail, but the distance made it more appealing for cyclists.

Boardwalk rising to tree canopy level New section of the boardwalk

Now there’s a destination for hikers to aim for: the Mesic Loop. Off the new park-wide Silver Trail, it also interconnects with the Sandhill Trail.

We tackled it via this route from the springs end to be able to enjoy that portion of the park on a sunny winter’s day.

Man walking in deep sand past purple tipped post The Mesic Loop

Resources

Resources for exploring the area
50 Hikes in Central Florida Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover Five Star Trails Gainesville Ocala book cover Florida Trail Hikes book cover The Florida Trail Guide book cover Paddlers Guide Florida
 
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Overview

Location: Silver Springs
Length: 3.9 miles
Trailhead: 29.214842 -82.055365
Address: 5656 E Silver Springs Blvd, Silver Springs
Fees: $5-8 per vehicle
Restroom: Adjoining the entrance station
Land Manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 352-236-7148

Open 8 AM to sunset. Leashed dogs welcome. Cyclists share the Silver and Mesic Trails.

The Ross Allen Island Boardwalk Trail is fully accessible. The remainder of this hike is natural surface.

Directions


 
From Interstate 75 exit 352, follow US 40 east 8.5 miles through Ocala into Silver Springs. Soon after the traffic light with SR 35 (Baseline Rd), the turn-in to Silver Springs State Park is at a grand entrance on the right. Follow the entrance road signs to the parking area adjoining the classic archway entrance into the former attraction.

Hike

Enter through the archway of the 1970s vintage Silver Springs attraction entrance. A broad boardwalk under towering trees leads through a shallow cypress strand.

Passing a fountain and mid-century modern buildings once part of the original Ross Allen Reptile Institute, pay at the entrance station.

Archway with park name amid cypresses Archway entrance

Make an immediate right onto a sidewalk to the Ross Allen Island Boardwalk Trail. Skim past a picnic area and the turnoff to the launch.

Cross the arching bridge where paddlers pass below on the Fort King Waterway. Deep and crystalline, the spring-fed waters hold a bustle of aquatic life.

Clear spring fed waters under a green cypress tree Looking into clear waters from the bridge

Descend gently in a wrap of floodplain forest to a T intersection in the boardwalk. Turn right to start a counterclockwise circuit.

This island hosted the final location of the Ross Allen Reptile Institute for the Silver Springs attraction.

Loop junction on boardwalk Start of the loop around the island

The boardwalk squiggles around a curve to the Fort King Pavilion. Paddlers ply this spring-fed channel past what served as a boat dock for the park’s Jungle Cruise.

Ascending from water level, reach a turnoff a quarter mile into your walk onto a broad new boardwalk headed to the island’s edge.

Paddlers headed towards viewer with boardwalk descending to right View upstream from the new boardwalk bridge

Reaching the Fort King Waterway, make a sharp left, climbing to the tree canopy. A sharp right leads to a bridge with fabulous views of the cypress-lined channel below.

Descend to a graded path, the final portion of this route that is accessible. At a half mile, meet the Silver Trail at a T intersection in front of a large kiosk. Make a left.

Curving boardwalk towards kiosk Descent from the bridge

Signposted with silver-tipped posts along an old connector road paralleling the Fort King Waterway, the Silver Trail enters disturbed habitats to start.

Foundations of former buildings adjoin the broad grassy path. Some are remnants of structures for the animals that once roamed waterfront enclosures.

Building foundations Foundation

After a curve, meet an incoming two-track and make the left as directed by the arrow. Gain a little elevation through a patch of tall grasses.

Curve past the corner of a fence marking a former animal enclosure. Round a curve under overhanging live oaks draped in Spanish moss.

Sunlit orange grasses and oaks Silver Trail

A straightaway along a grassy prairie leads towards towering pines. Make the sharp right off this path noted by an arrow on the trail post.

Join a two-track winding past culverts. The next arrow points left into the pines.

Marked turn off road into woods Turnoff past culvert

At 1.1 miles, meet a T intersection at a sheltered bench. The Silver Trail turns to the left on its route towards the Silver River Museum.

Make a right onto a two-track blazed with posts tipped silver and purple. This sandy connector leads through mesic flatwoods.

Purple and silver tipped post along two track in mesic flatwoods Connector between Silver Trail and Mesic Loop

Make a right at the next marked junction. Emerging from the pines into open prairie, meet the Mesic Loop at a Y junction at 1.3 miles.

Bear left to start a clockwise circuit. On a steady downhill along the sandy road, leave the prairie behind for sandhills.

Sandy path with loop markings on purple tipped posts along prairie Start of the Mesic Loop

Turkey oaks rattle their leaves in the breeze. Young longleaf pines rise like bottlebrushes from a forest floor of wiregrass and leaf litter.

Reaching a four-way intersection, turn right. The leafy path shifts to soft pine duff. Saw palmettos and scrub oaks take over the understory.

Four-way junction of sand roads Four-way junction

At a marked T intersection, turn left. This sandy path burrows into lines of pines with a thicket of saw palmetto beneath them.

Keep alert for a sudden to the right, marked with a post and arrow. At 2 miles, meet a junction with the Sandhill Trail with a bench and a kiosk.

Trail junction with kiosk and bench Sandhill Trail junction

The yellow-blazed loop starts by the park’s campground entrance off Baseline Rd. Turn right to stay on the Mesic Loop.

Following a straightaway under the pines, emerge into an open grassy area. Curving, return to the cover of the taller trees.

Two track amid tall pines Northward leg of the Mesic Loop

At the next junction of these forest roads, make a right. This final stretch of sandy two-track arcs along the pine forest.

The sand deepens approaching an unmarked junction. Emerging into the prairie, complete the Mesic Loop at 2.7 miles. Bear left to exit.

Bench at junction marker Returning to the Silver Trail junction bench

Return to the bench at the junction and dump the sand from your shoes. Make a left to return along the Silver Trail to the bridge over the Fort King Waterway.

After the up and over, descend to the Ross Allen Island Boardwalk. Meeting it at 3.6 miles, turn right to finish its circuit.

Cypress lined waterway far below View down the waterway on the new bridge

Curving around the far end of the island, pass a large roofed structure, the former Wildlife Theater. It was used by the state park until recent years for interpretive programs.

Continue along the boardwalk as it keeps up its curve through the trees, meeting the initial junction. Turn right to exit across the bridge.

glass-bottomed boat in waterway Late in the day, the glass-bottomed boats pass below this bridge

When the Ross Allen Boardwalk Trail Island ends, bear right onto the sidewalk and walk through the picnic area.

The next left leads directly through the exit at the entrance gate to the parking lot for a 3.9 mile hike.

Pathway under arch of trees Path towards the exit and the springs

If you haven’t yet seen Silver Springs, or if it’s a pretty day, put another tenth of a mile in by following the path on the right to the riverfront.

Ending at what was formerly a swimming beach, it overlooks both the spring and the river, an unparalleled beauty spot.

View of river with springs Overlook at the old swimming area

Trail Map

Silver Springs Mesic Trail Map
Green: garden paths. Brown: Ross Allen Island Boardwalk. Silver: Silver Trail. Purple: Mesic Loop

Explore More!

Learn more about Silver Springs State Park

Glass bottom boats docked at a spring Silver Springs State Park One of the world's largest and deepest springs, Silver Springs pours out more than 550 million gallons of water daily, forming the Silver River.

Video

Hiking this route to the Mesic Loop

Slideshow

See our photos from this hike

Nearby Adventures

Waterfront with clear water and springs Silver Springs Springside Trails Step back in time at the former Silver Springs attraction exploring its far corners on the Ross Allen Island Boardwalk Trail and the Creek Trail.
Archway with routed wood sign Sand Hill Trail Silver Springs Sandhill Trail At Silver Springs State Park, the Sandhill Nature Trail loops through a longleaf and wiregrass sandhill habitat near the park's campground entrance.
Jungle like setting of a river Silver Springs River Trail Discover the wonder of the floodplain of the lower Silver River on a 2.3 mile hike to a river overlook and a loop through through its lowlands.
Moss bed Silver Springs Conservation Area Silver Springs Conservation Area protects upland habitats crucial to recharge of Silver Springs. Two stacked loop trails (with a cross-trail on the upper loop) provide several options for hiking.

Trail Map (PDF) Reserve Campsite Official Website

Sandra Friend
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