Tag: Hiking
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Rainbow Springs State Park
If Florida wasn’t so muggy in the summer, I think I’d spend all my day trips at the fabulous parks with their bodies of water, hiking trails, towering greenery, unexpected wildlife, and sublime quiet and save the museums, galleries and restaurants for cooler months. But the parks are often my best experiences. And so it
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Hillsborough River State Park
I always like driving up to a park’s entrance and seeing a nice, windy road with nothing but green on either side. That usually means that even if the hiking trails aren’t much to write home about, the drive will be scenic. I was interested in this park because the website said they had “Class
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Payne’s Prairie State Preserve
The draw for a 2-hour drive to Payne’s Prairie was that you could see bison and wild horses roaming free. Good luck! I understand that having wild animals right where you want them at any given moment probably involves a zoo situation, but maybe park websites should post a “chances are” percentage rate when talking
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Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park & Yulee Sugar Mill Ruins
Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park, one of Florida’s 1,000 springs, is a gem. The entire trail is only about 1.1 miles and an easy walk. I highly recommend it. It’s well kept, has wide sidewalks and boardwalks, great signage, lots of comfy benches if you need to rest, and a couple of places to grab
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Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park
Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park was originally inhabited by the Tocobaga Indians (500-1500). In 1982, the entire area was established for nature study. It encompasses mangrove forests, salt and freshwater marshes, coastal hammocks and pine flatwoods. Hillsboroughcounty.org says the park was minimally developed due to its “fragile and sensitive environment.” They weren’t kidding. There is
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Sugarloaf Mountain
To my way of thinking, it’s a bit of a stretch to call Sugarloaf a mountain. Steep hill to hike? Check. Pleasant scenic drive? Check. But mountain? Not so much. Sugarloaf is billed as the 5th highest named point in Florida and sits at 312 feet above sea level. It’s near Clermont. Once you get
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Lettuce Lake Park
Funny how a name can influence your perceptions. I decided I wasn’t going to like Lettuce Lake long before I got there. I mean, who names a park after a vegetable? I was wrong. It’s a beautiful, quiet place – a feast for the eyes and a respite from noise and bustle. If you’re a
Lisa Browder 