Florida National Scenic Trail: An Outdoor Paradise in Our Own Backyard

Most people have heard of the Appalachian Trail, but did you realize we have our own national scenic trail right here in Florida?  The Florida Trail is truly a hiker’s and backpacker’s paradise—and much of it runs through Orange, Seminole, and Osceola Counties.

The Florida Trail is one of eleven national scenic trails recognized by the National Park Service and spans more than 1,400 miles.  It was first established in 1966, with its first sections being laid out and blazed in the Ocala National Forest.  It runs the length of the state, beginning in the Everglades, passing north around Lake Okeechobee, then running north through Central Florida and eventually turning west just north of Lake City, before continuing through the panhandle and ending near Pensacola.  Each winter and spring as many as 50 people attempt to hike its entire length (usually starting at the Everglades and heading north); to date, fewer than 400 people have made it the entire way.  The Florida Trail is also popular for day hikes and short thru hikes lasting as little as a day or two.

For Central Floridians, the Florida Trail offers several options.  The northbound trail splits into eastern and western corridors near Kenansville, with the eastern corridor heading north through Orange and Seminole Counties and then veering west toward the Ocala National Forest. The western corridor tracks west through Osceola and Polk Counties before turning north through the Green Swamp and Withlacoochee Forest, then eventually turning back east to rejoin the main route in the Ocala National Forest.

Although most of the western corridor running through Osceola County is on roads in or near Kissimmee and St. Cloud, the eastern corridor stretches through sixty miles of some of the most scenic wilderness in Central Florida, including the Little Big Econ State Forest, C.H. Bronson State Forest, Chuluota Wilderness, Mills Creek Woodlands, Seminole Ranch Water Management Area, and Lower Wekiva River Reserve State Park.  These are excellent places to hike and backpack, and backcountry campsites are available in most of these locations for less than $5.00 per night (or are free) and can often be reserved online.

The Florida Trail and its famous orange blazes are maintained by the Florida Trail Association, and the Central Florida Chapter of the FTA of which I have the pleasure of being a member of is among the state’s biggest and best.  Its members maintain trails by building bridges and clearing fallen trees in the fall after the hurricanes pass through, and the FTA’s Central Florida chapter also hosts hikes, camping trips, and kayaking trips through Central Florida’s waterways.

The best time to hike or backpack the Florida Trail is from December through May, after the hunting and hurricane seasons end but before the summer heat and mosquitoes return.  Having done one-nighters on the Florida Trail in the Green Swamp, the Withlacoochee State Forest, the Little Big Econ State Forest, and the Osceola National Forest, I can confirm that its winding hikers’ only trails and secluded backcountry campsites are majestic and a great way to see what Florida looked like before the theme parks arrived.  They’re also a great way to experience the thrill of thru hiking without taking weeks or months climbing through the Appalachian Mountains.