Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
With an array of parks and natural lands and a network of bike trails, Lakeland is a hub for outdoor recreation
INTERACTIVE MAP
Alafia River State Park lets you launch on a Florida downhill while mountain biking the rugged terrain of a reforested open pit mine.
Straddling the confluence of the North and South Prong of the Alafia River, Alderman’s Ford Conservation Park provides immersion into lush riverine forests.
Alderman’s Ford Preserve offers a surprising treat for a Central Florida hike: whitewater, showcasing the Alafia River churning as it winds through a deeply eroded channel
Weaving though a lush floodplain forest in the Alafia River floodplain, a paved loop provides access to a network of natural pathways, boardwalks, and primitive campsites.
A pair of loop trails provide access to wide-open pine flatwoods interspersed with a mosaic of prairie, cypress domes, oak hammocks, and a quiet spot alongside the namesake creek.
Atop one of the highest hills in the Florida Peninsula, Bok Tower Gardens is one of Florida’s most spectacular landscaped gardens, “something to appeal to both man and animal, a meditative place,” as envisioned by Edward William Bok in the 1920s.
The 6.9-mile Buster Island Loop at Lake Kissimmee State Park is a favorite for both day hikers and backpackers, as it shows off a variety of habitats along the open prairies
At Catfish Creek Preserve State Park, the steep ridges of blinding white sand are some of Florida’s most ancient landscapes, an unusual and unique natural area for Central Florida
Allan David Broussard Catfish Creek Preserve State Park isn’t just “a perfect example of Lake Wales Ridge Scrub,” it’s a landscape unlike any other you’ll find in Florida
For fabulous birding and more alligators than you can count, roam the marshy edge of Lake Hancock on miles of causeways through Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland
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
In addition to the 6.9 mile paved bike path loop at its core, Flatwoods Park at Lower Hillsborough Wilderness provides many different routes for outdoor exploration
