Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
Established in 1908 as the first National Forest east of the Mississippi, the Ocala National Forest is a mecca for hikers as the birthplace of the Florida Trail.
Florida’s original tourist destination, Silver Springs is both one of the world’s largest springs and the name of the community that grew up around it in the 1800s.
A delight to visit, the Spring Boils Trail showcases bubbling springs both big and small, starting within sight of the main springs at Silver Glen Springs before it leads you to coves of tiny bubblers
One of Central Florida’s most scenic and easy-to-follow day hikes, the 7.9-mile St. Francis Trail traverses the southeastern corner of the Ocala National Forest
What’s it like to do trail research? Here’s a typical day out on the trail for us when we’re tracking down relocations of the Florida Trail or finding new trails to add to this website.
A follow-up to the conservation legacy of Teddy Roosevelt’s administration, The Weeks Act was signed by William Howard Taft in March 1911. It authorized the Federal government – for the first time – to purchase private land to protect watersheds throughout the eastern United States.
5.3 miles. On Pat’s Island, discover the landscape and the history that inspired Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings to write her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Yearling in 1938.
Have a three-day weekend coming up and an urge to spend it with Florida’s springs? Here’s an itinerary for the Orlando area that’ll have you splashing in beautiful locations.
While less than a mile long, the Timucuan Trail at Alexander Springs Recreation Area is the best place to sample the Big Scrub habitats of the Ocala National Forest while enjoying lush habitats along a spring run.
On a return trek to Hidden Pond, we find that all is well in this oasis in the middle of the Juniper Prairie Wilderness, just waiting for backpackers to savor it.
