In my recent discoveries of Central Florida trails, I’ve fallen in love with sections of the Florida National Scenic Trail, Florida’s answer to the Appalachian Trail that runs from the Everglades to the Florida panhandle, and perhaps my favorite place to do one-night backpacking trips near my home in Winter Garden is the section of the Florida Trail running through the Green Swamp West Tract.
Sitting approximately halfway between Orlando and Brooksville to the west, the Green Swamp is comprised of more than 37,000 acres of forest lying just south of the easternmost portions of the Withlacoochee State Forest. More of a forest than a swamp, the Green Swamp is a slightly elevated portion of Central Florida containing thousands of acres of pristine forest and wetlands that serve as the headwaters of the Withlacoochee, Hillsborough, Ocklawaha, and Peace Rivers. It is managed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District and is used by hikers, hunters, Boy Scouts, and backpackers. The Green Swamp’s East and West Tracts are divided by State Road 471 and sit less than 20 miles south of State Road 50 west of Clermont and Groveland.
The Florida Trail splits south of Orlando, with an eastern leg circling east and eventually north of Orlando before turning west toward Ocala. The western leg heads west through Kissimmee and eventually near Brooksville before eventually turning back east to Ocala, and 30.1 miles of the western leg lie in the Green Swamp. The seven Florida Trail campsites sitting in the Green Swamp are free to use but must be reserved and can easily be reserved by registering an account with the Southwest Water Management District.
Although both tracts of the Green Swamp are beautiful, I slightly prefer the West Tract, which can easily be reached at the McNeil Trailhead on State Road 471 just north of the Withlacoochee River, approximately 20 miles south of State Road 50. Four campsites are located within the West Tract—Gator Hole (1.7 miles north of the McNeil Trailhead), Concession Stand (7.5 miles north of the trailhead), Foster Bridge (10.9 miles north of the trailhead), and High Bluff (16.1 miles north of the trailhead). This section of the Florida Trail can also be reached from a trailhead/parking lot off Ranch Road east of Dade City.
Just one half-mile north of the High Bluff campsite is the point where the Florida Trail enters the Richloam Tract of the Withlacoochee Forest, and the nearest next trailhead is by way of a 0.7 mile connector trail that connects with the Florida Trail 5.9 miles north of the High Bluff campsite. Although that connector trail meets a convenient parking lot next to the historic Richloam General Store (a restored general store that sells tasty ice cream and bottled sodas), Richloam recently suffered extensive hurricane damage. As of the writing of this post (January 4, 2025), the connector trail from the Richloam General Store to the Florida Trail was impassable because of downed trees—I found out the hard way when I recently attempted to reach High Bluff via that connector trail.
I have done one-nighters through the entire section of the Florida Trail in the West Tract, and it is among my favorite places to backpack in Central Florida. Talk about varying ecosystems. In mere miles, you will pass through broad pine forest with tall pine trees sitting among fields of palmetto, through serene hammocks of lichen and bromeliad-covered live oak and other oak trees, through wet prairies with marsh fern, and over gorgeous sandhills. The Foster Bridge campsite also sits on a connector trail less than one mile from the Withlacoochee River, which looks like a set from a Tarzan movie.
Perhaps my favorite place to camp in the Green Swamp is the Concession Stand campsite, which sits less than a tenth of a mile down the crest of a sandhill sitting beside a pond. The campsite itself is intimate, with places for tents beside majestic longleaf pine or under live oaks. But the crest of the hill is the highlight, where I eat all camp meals and spend dreamy breezy evenings staring at the hundreds of stars visible on clear nights because of its distance from the city lights of Orlando and Tampa. Owls call throughout the night, as do occasional distant packs of coyotes. I’ve camped in the West Tract of the Green Swamp in April, June, and December, and I have yet to be disappointed. (But I do recommend avoiding the Green Swamp between May and the beginning of December because of mosquitoes and spider webs on the trail.)
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