The Prairie Lakes Loops at Three Lakes WMA are Perfect for Hiking and Backpacking

Just an hour south of Orlando off the Florida Turnpike, you can find one of those special places in Florida that offers virtually everything an outdoor lover might seek—hiking for both moderate and longer distances, backpacking, a section of the Florida National Scenic Trail, birding, and even fishing and hunting, all in a vast landscape with a variety of ecosystems that feels far from civilization.  I had the chance last weekend to do my first one-night backpacking trip at the Prairie Lakes Unit of the Three Lakes Wildlife Management Area, and I highly recommend it and look forward to returning again.

Prairie Lakes is the central unit of the larger Three Lakes WMA west of Kenansville and approximately thirty minutes south of St. Cloud, which spans a whopping 63,500 acres bordering Lakes Kissimmee, Jackson, and Marion. Used for centuries by Native Americans and then the descendants of Europeans for tending cattle and operated privately in the early 20th century as the Three Lakes Ranch, the land now containing Three Lakes WMA was purchased by the State of Florida under the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program in 1974. Its broad tracts of open dry prairie were what drew the cattle and cowboys, and Three Lakes now contains the second largest expanse of dry prairie left in the United States. But the Prairie Lakes Unit also contains a variety of other habitats, including pine flatwoods, oak and palm hammocks, and cypress wetlands.

The two Prairie Lakes loop trails traverse all of it.  While more than 26 miles of the Florida Trail cross through the entire Three Lakes WMA, the most accessible 5.4-mile leg of the Florida Trail can be found on the eastern curve of the North Loop and the western curve of the South Loop.  And with two backcountry campsites and easily accessible trailheads with overnight parking, the Prairie Lakes North Loop and South Loop can be easily combined for a not-too-difficult 11.4-mile one-night backpacking adventure.

The 5.4-mile North Loop and 6.0-mile South Loop lie like an eastern-tilting figure eight separated by the North Canal and connected by a bridge over a pump station. Each loop has a primitive campsite with a picnic table and pitcher pump, with the Parker Hammock campsite lying on the southern tip of the North Loop and the Dry Pond campsite lying 1.7 miles southwest of the bridge over the North Canal on the South Loop. For my one-nighter, I chose to park at the trailhead for the North Loop just past the entrance to the Prairie Lakes Unit off Canoe Creek Road, then hiked into Dry Pond using the western legs of the North and South Loops for a hike in of 4.7 miles, then hiked out on the eastern legs of both loops for a hike out of 6.7 miles.  But the two connected loops provide the luxury of multiple routes to vary distances or time hikes for afternoon shade without crossing the same stretch of trail twice.

What makes Prairie Lakes so enjoyable is the variety of terrain, the wildlife, and the tranquility at night. The North Loop splits its distance between pine flatwoods, those open spaces covered by low palmettos and occasional tall pines, and shaded oak hammocks, with live oaks sprouting above the forest floor like giant fern and moss-cloaked fingers.  Although the South Loop stays primarily in hammocks, it contains more palm hammocks with towering palm trees jostling the trail from side-to-side.  Most of the trail on both loops also borders the broad dry prairie, which the Dry Pond campsite sits beside.

This is also prime habitat for deer, wild hogs, and a wide variety of birds, including bald eagles that feed off the fish in the nearby lakes. While much of the Three Lakes WMA’s more southern legs of the Florida Trail through the wet prairie are home to alligators, you’re unlikely to see too many on the much more dry trails in the Prairie Lakes Unit.

Camping at Prairie Lakes is also a treat if you love stars and sunsets painted on panoramic skies.  Three Lakes WMA is far from civilization, so no city lights wash out the stars, and you can often see as many here as at the more famous Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park further south. And if you’re lucky to have high altitude clouds at sunset, you’re in for a treat. You’re also far enough away from the Florida Turnpike or other major roadways, so you’ll hear little at night from Dry Pond other than the hooting of owls and the howls of coyotes. Overlooks of Lakes Marion and Kissimmee are also easily accessed from the South Loop by connector trails or roads.

Primitive campsite reservations can be made here, and parking is available at multiple locations for a day use fee of $6 per vehicle.  With well-blazed trails over flat, sturdy terrain that are easy on the legs, Prairie Lakes is a great place for a day hike or a one-night backpacking experience.