The place: the Suwannee River. The year: 1863. Union soldiers were infiltrating Florida, seizing goods and burning plantations.
A steamboat builder in Bradford Springs wrote to Governor Milton to let him know he’d scuttled his finest craft in the nearby springs to keep it out of enemy hands.
Soon after, the man joined the Confederate Army. The Madison remains beneath the waters of Troy Spring.
Above the spring basin, the Troy Spring Nature Trail has no big surprises like the spring itself does, but is a gentle, shaded walk in the woods well above the floodplain.
The trail isn’t blazed, but is easy to follow.Resources
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Overview
Length: 0.9 mile loop
Trailhead: 30.00538, -82.99808
Address: 674 NE Troy Springs Rd, Branford
Fees: $5 per vehicle
Restroom: Adjoining the parking area
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 386-935-4835
Open 8 AM until sundown daily. Leashed pets welcome.
For safety’s sake, the spring may close to swimming and diving if water clarity drops. Divers must be open-water certified and dive in pairs. No cave diving permitted.
Directions
From the intersection of US 27 and US 129 in downtown Branford, cross the Suwannee River and drive west 5 miles to CR 425 (the turnoff is also 12.5 miles east of Mayo). Turn right. Continue north 1.2 miles and turn right into the park entrance. The trailhead is inside the fenced picnic area along the walkway to the spring.
Hike
From the parking area, follow the accessible walkway towards the restrooms and spring. Loop around the fence at the picnic area.
A hiker symbol marker notes the start of the nature trail under the pines and oaks. Begin a counterclockwise hike here.
Picnic area, with trailhead marker in the woodsThe surroundings are relict sandhill, now a climax forest dominated by laurel oaks. The understory is thick with grapevine.
Roots jut from the footpath as it winds past a screen of trees along the parking area and makes a left.
Rooty footpathThe understory opens up in a transition to hardwood forest, where white-tailed deer surprised us by racing across the trail.
Pass beneath a large live oak where resurrection fern swarm up the outstretched limbs. The footpath is a grassy ribbon through the forest.
This loop is largely canopied and shadyPass a bench at a curve in the forest of oaks and pines, and soon after, two truly outstanding slash pines of significant girth at a quarter mile.
Despite being on the bluffs well above the river, swales and depressions in the karst bedrock enable water to pool across the forest floor.
Work your way around low-lying spotsOaks arc in a variety of interesting shapes beneath the higher canopy. In this moist environment, look for showy jelly fungi on rotting logs.
The grassy ribbon continues to lead the way. Reaching a T with a forest road, the trail makes a left.
An arrow points the wayStroll down a grassy strip through the middle of the forest. The trail curves past a marsh with a glassy sheen.
Trees rise out of a mat of aquatic plants in this low floodplain. Pines rise from duff-covered mounds around the edge of the marsh.
Low marshThe width of a narrow road, the grassy path continues its easy curving route through the forest, emerging at a sand road after 0.6 mile.
It’s here you’ll see the hiker symbol sign facing where you just came from. Follow the road straight ahead past the ranger residences.
The trail emerges onto a road used by park staffFollowing this road past the residences and utility buildings. It narrows to a two-track and enters the picnic area.
Seal this loop hike when you reach the picnic benches near the accessible pathway at three-quarters of a mile.
This pretty cove is visible at the far end of the boardwalk below the observation deckIf you haven’t yet seen the spring, follow the zigzagging ramp down to the observation deck.
The new-to-us ramp put a stop to the erosion occurring on this bluff. Even if you aren’t here to swim, the waterfront view from the deck lets you peer into the spring’s depths.
The spring bottom drops sharply, maxing out at 70 feet deep.It’s not possible to see the outline of the Madison from this angle: it lies closer to the river, and was visible when a path once led to the far bluff.
Return the way you came on the back and forth climb along the ramp to reach the picnic area again, completing a 0.9 mile walk at Troy Spring.
Climb the zigzags back uphill to finish the hikeTrail Map
Explore More!
Learn more about Troy Spring State Park
Troy Spring State Park A first-magnitude spring along the Suwannee River, Troy Spring State Park has the remains of a Civil War steamboat cradled in its rocky waters.Video
Our walk in the woods at Troy Spring State Park
Slideshow
See our photos of Troy Spring State Park
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Royal Springs Staring into Royal Springs, it feels like looking into a bottomless pit. Steep and broad, it drops 42 feet into shimmering waters of turquoise and royal blue.
Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park A top international destination for cave divers, Peacock Springs also offers a unique interpretive hike for non-divers to trace the watery passages beneath the surface.
Ichetucknee Springs State Park A swimming hole as a work of natural art, the deep gash in the earth that is Ichetucknee Spring glows an unearthly robin's-egg blue, cradled in a limestone bowl within a leafy glen.
Lafayette Blue Springs State Park A beauty spot along the western shore of the Suwannee River, Lafayette Blue Spring is both a swimming hole and a lesson in the curious nature of karst.
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