Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
On the south shore of Lake Jesup, Winter Springs is a suburban community surrounding the Cross Seminole Trail and the Florida Trail, with springs that feed the lake
A patch of wild in a sea of suburbia, Bear Creek provides nearly a mile’s worth of exploration atop sandy bluffs in a shady creekside hammock in Winter Springs.
While the iconic Senator is no more, Big Tree Park continues to fascinate visitors with its enormous cypress trees, including Lady Liberty. The park provides access to the Cross Seminole Trail.
When we revisited Spring Hammock Preserve in December 2017 for research for our third edition of 50 Hikes in Central Florida, we discovered radical changes to the trail system that needed explanation. Here’s what’s up at one of our favorite preserves.
JK finishes up his last Florida Trail miles in Seminole County as he continues to fill in the blanks on a section hike of the statewide Florida Trail.
In Central Florida, the Florida Trail presents two options: east or west around the Orlando metro. Forested public lands provide protection for much of the route.
150.4 miles. The Orlando section of the Florida Trail spans from the Ocala National Forest south through the prairies of Osceola County, encompassing the eastern suburbs of the Orlando metro.
When you live in a tightly packed space, you need somewhere green as your go-to place nearby. These are our top picks for parks in Florida’s urban areas, chosen for their diversity of outdoor activities and/or their unique green spaces.
Dueling fireworks – Winter Springs and Oviedo – were visible from the Florida Trail the other night if you knew where to look! The Cross Seminole Trail bridge over SR 434 makes a great viewing platform.
A hike along the Cross Seminole Trail – which the Florida Trail follows – through Oviedo and Winter Springs means an introduction to suburbia in the Orlando metro.
To see the Florida Trail from a different perspective, our friend Richard drove over from the coast to join Sandy and I for a recumbent trike ride on the Cross Seminole Trail.
While The Senator is a charred stump, thanks to an arsonist, the grandeur of its surroundings at Big Tree Park – including a 2,000-year-old cypress – has reopened to the public.
The home of some of Florida’s most ancient cypresses, Spring Hammock Preserve in Winter Springs is one of the most delightful places to take a hike in the Orlando area.
