Wild Persimmon Trail, De Leon Springs

Was De Leon Springs the Fountain of Youth? History relates that when he sailed to Florida in 1513, Ponce De Leon visited a spring.

To get there, he “ascended a large river, passing through two small rivers and three lakes, whence we came to a great boiling spring which the Indians call ‘Healing Waters’.”

The waters bubbling into Spring Garden Creek have been a centerpiece of history for centuries, and are the starting point for adventure at a park well known for its pancakes.

Built and maintained by volunteers of the Florida Trail Association, the Wild Persimmon Trail gets you into the park’s wildest corner.

For more than half the hike, the trail slips along the edge of a swamp forest with waters that ebb and flow with the St. Johns River.

Dayflowers along the Wild Persimmon Trail

Resources

Full details on this hike are in 50 Hikes in Central Florida

Orlando & Central Florida: An Explorer's Guide

Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy these through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.

Overview

Location: De Leon Springs
Trailhead: 29.136952, -81.361309
Address: 601 Ponce de Leon Blvd, De Leon Springs
Fees: $4-6 per vehicle
Restroom: Nearest one is at the swimming area
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 386-985-4212

Open 8 AM to sunset daily. Leashed pets welcome along the trails. Insect repellent is a must. Expect wet feet along this loop.

The Old Spanish Sugar Mill and Griddle House is open 9-5 weekdays, 8-5 weekends (serving until 4), closed Christmas and Thanksgiving.

You can leave your name for a reservation before hiking, but if they call you while you’re in the woods you’ll miss your turn. Give yourself at least two hours to complete this hike.

Directions

The town of De Leon Springs is just north of DeLand on US 17. From US 17 in De Leon Springs, turn west onto Ponce De Leon Boulevard. Follow it 0.8 mile. The entrance to De Leon Springs State Park is just after the railroad crossing.

Once you’re past the ranger station, make the right to drive down to the small parking area behind the changing house at the swimming area. This is the closest place to the trails for hikers to park.

Hike

Getting to the trailhead for the Wild Persimmon Trail means walking in on the park’s paved nature trail, a throwback to its tourist attraction days.

As you walk through this oak hammock with its statuesque live oaks, you might spot a barred owl in the canopy. Planted azaleas bloom in the understory in spring.

The base of Old Methusalah

A side trail leads to “Old Methuselah,” a bald cypress estimated to be nearly 500 years old, one of the ancients of the forest.

You reach the well-marked trailhead for the blue-blazed Wild Persimmon Trail after 0.3 mile. The dry start of the trail under the oaks is deceiving.

The Wild Persimmon Trail is a rugged day hike

While we could find no current interpretive brochure for this hike, the markers from long ago persist. Marker 5 is at the beginning of a long stretch of bog boardwalks.

The trail reaches a bench at 0.8 mile, with more boardwalks beyond as it enters a hydric hammock dense with cabbage palms.

One end of the bog boardwalk

Deep shade and clouds of mosquitoes are normal the deeper the trail continues into the floodplain.

A mile in, the trail crosses a bridge over a picturesque stream with sand banks. The stream vanishes into the forest.

The loop portion of the hike starts after 1.4 miles at a bench. Continue straight ahead to stay on the floodplain side of the loop.

Habitats shift from swamp to oak hammock and back again as the canopy overhead rises with the height and age of the oaks and palms.

A sluggish stream in the swamp forest

Bromeliads grow thickly on the oaks. Underfoot, the footpath is muddy as as the trail dances in and out of the hydric hammock.

Just past a bench at 1.9 miles, there are puddles across the footpath, the low spot in the forest.

Puddles in the footpath

Where it is drier, fungi flourishes in the leaf litter and on rotting logs. The thick, arching limbs of live oaks break up the angular feel of the cabbage palm trunks.

A panorama of oak and palm hammock wraps around the trail in every direction, even straight up.

Marker 10 with wild persimmons ahead

Reaching Marker 10, the trail leaves the influence of the swamp, swapping the beauty of the hammock for uplands that were once farmed.

The grove of wild persimmons for which this trail is named is just beyond the marker in the open area. Their small orange fruits are very astringent, but sweeten as they ripen.

The forest reclaiming the former pasture

A grassy aisle through the young forest, the trail skirts around older live oaks and along colorful stands of sweetgum.

Watch for blue blazes as the understory opens up. Past an “Exit” marker, there are the remnants of a former primitive campsite, including benches and a picnic table.

Former campsite along the trail

Returning to the floodplain forest, the trail reaches a bench at Marker 13 after 3 miles, completing the loop.

Turn left to backtrack through the palm hammocks and over the bog bridges, reaching the trailhead for the Wild Persimmon Trail at 4 miles, and the parking area by 4.4 miles.

Returning along the bog boardwalks

Trail Map

Trails at De Leon Springs

Explore More!

Learn more about De Leon Springs State Park

De Leon Springs State Park

While pancakes and De Leon Springs go hand-in-hand thanks to the popular Old Spanish Sugar Mill Restaurant, the natural beauty of De Leon Springs is the reason to visit