Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
Surrounded by the Ocala National Forest, the community of Salt Springs is a hub for outdoor recreation, with direct access to trails on both land and water
INTERACTIVE MAP
Established in 1908 as the first National Forest east of the Mississippi, the Ocala National Forest is a mecca for hikers and campers, and the birthplace of the Florida Trail
Except for service dogs, dogs are not permitted at Alexander Springs, Salt Springs, Silver Glen Springs, Juniper Springs, Clearwater Lake, Fore Lake, Lake Dorr and Mill Dam Recreation Areas in the Ocala National Forest
Paddling Juniper Run from Juniper Springs to the take out at SR 19 in the Ocala National Forest, a popular paddling trip along this sinuous, spring-fed waterway that winds through the Juniper Prairie Wilderness.
A ramble through Pat’s Island on the Yearling Trail brings home the reality of forest fires sweeping across a once-lush landscape.
An easy walk of 2 miles, the Salt Springs Loop in the Ocala National Forest is a popular hike, since it leads to an observation platform on Salt Springs Run.
See the beauty of William Bartram’s “amazing crystal fountain” as you gaze into the depths of this rocky spring in the Ocala National Forest
With a strong aquamarine hue accented by refracted rainbows as sunlight plays across the ripples on its sandy bottom, Silver Glen Springs is a first-magnitude spring in the Ocala National Forest.
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
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.
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.
