 |
 |
 |
|
|
| COOP'S HIKING PAGE |
| FLORIDA DAYHIKES |
| Wekiva Springs The spring is a poular local swimming hole and the park has camping for large groups and RVs as well as primitive camping on the 20 or so miles of trails. This is where I like to go for a quick dayhike and is where I got back into hiking after moving to Central Florida. Rock Springs Run Located northwest of Sanford, in the Wekiva River basin. This park extends north of the Wekiva Springs State Park. This park seems gets a lot less traffic. There are multiple trails for hikers, horses and bikes. There are about 15 miles of hiking trails on 2 large loops that connect to form a sort of figure eight. The highlight of the trail is the part that runs alongside the Rock Springs Run (river). I have hiked the trail a couple of times and really enjoy the area. The first time I hiked northwest on the hiking trail and walked for a long time - thinking I would eventually hit the Rock Springs Run which borders the south end of the park. I never hit it and got "lost" for a while and wandered around in the swamp a bit before finding a decent trail out. The second time I hiked the opposite direction on the hiking trail and qucikly started heading due south toward the river. The interesting thing I've noticed about Central Florida hiking is that the area is so flat and the basins are so wide, and the hardpan so resistant to flood waters that, instead if finding a river, I more often than not find an ever deepening swamp with very thick vegetation surrounding it. The swamp is no different here, but the trail has been raised where needed to keep it out of the water. The trail follows the Rock Springs Run for about a mile - then there is a small side trail to a little campsite on the Run (river). It suffered from overuse - I think folks who are floating down the run use this site for lunch and to camp, so there were some beer cans, etc. The hike back out on the western edge of the lower loop was themost difficult trail I have ever hiked in Florida. It was about a mile of knee deep water on and surrounding the trail. The water had been standing for a while and thus had a bunch of mosquito eggs and silt across the top of the water. I was hiking alone so the addrenaline was really pumping. After the water hike I ended back up on the abandoned forest road I eventually found at the end of my first hike. An overnight would be fun out here some day. Blue Springs State Park Tosohatchee State Preserve Hal Scott State Reserve Cross Seminole Trail Big Tree Park - Seminole County Daubenmire Trail - Leesburg |