The scenic majesty of Ocala National Forest can be experienced in many ways, whether it’s by car, by ATV or by bike.
However, the best mode of transportation to truly witness the forest’s treasures and explore is on foot. Luckily, there’s a footpath for doing just that. One of the prettiest sections of the 1,500-mile Florida Trail runs right through the heart of the 387,000-acre pristine public land.
Better yet: One stretch of trail connects several of Ocala’s natural freshwater springs, which invite visitors for a swim with their azure-blue waters.
Can I eat this? 22 miles on the Florida Trail with no packed food
Of all the sections of the Florida Trail, this is one I’m most familiar with after my first experience backpacking the trail in 2020 and another foraging experiment without any packed food in 2022.
For this excursion, I set off to see what this slice of wild Florida had to offer us, starting our 40-mile journey at Alexander Springs before meandering our way to Juniper Springs and ending at Salt Springs. This three-day, two-night itinerary was an idea discussed for more than two years, and it finally happened in the sunny spring days in early April.
Along the way, we found evidence of bear activity, spotted the rare endemic Florida scrub-jay and enjoyed the springs. This full immersion in nature was the perfect way to enjoy the last fleeting moments of spring.
Finding our footing
When it comes to backpacking, it’s incredibly rewarding to hit the trail with only what fits on your back. Whittling down all the gear to the essentials reveals what’s truly important to bring along and what can be left behind. Still, my pack weighed in around 38 pounds with the tent, food, including lots of snacks, backpacking stove, water and other essentials.
Before the trip could begin, we staged cars at each end of our planned route and spotted a swallow-tail kite flying overhead, which I once heard was a sign of good luck, and chose to believe it. I felt optimistic about our chances of having a successful, scenic journey, especially after seeing a bald eagle as well.
We set off just before 2 p.m., skipping a visit to the swimming area at Alexander Springs, hoping to put some miles behind us before the sun set for the day. Even as we began our trek, we marveled at the trail’s beauty and diversity as it changed from a shady hardwood hammock to sandhill habitat.
Storm clouds rolled in, casting raindrops down on us as we rolled over Ocala’s ancient sand dunes with longleaf pines as far as the eye could see. As soon as my partner dug out her poncho, the rain seemed to let up. It felt refreshing until the sun came out again, making us sweat through the humid afternoon.
After an 8-mile haul to Farles Prairie, we stopped for a much-needed break to eat the Publix subs stashed for day one. We checked out the remains of a recent prescribed burn and spotted a woodpecker on one of the charred pine trees, along with a sandhill crane flying overhead.
With such a nice view of Farles Lake, we had a hard time leaving our beautiful break spot to go find camp.
We skirted the edge of the prairie, following orange blazes as the afternoon’s rays shone through cumulus clouds that hung low in the sky. We found a perfect place to camp under some pine trees right as the sun was finding its way to the horizon to retire for the night.
The first order of business was finding a place to hang the bear bag with our food. This proved to be trickier than anticipated, especially as we began to encounter ticks that ruined the magic of the twilight.
Back in camp, we heard something big rustling in the trees, which we feared could be a bear. The scat we had seen on the trail earlier in the day let us know they weren’t far away.
Using my backpacking pot and spoon like a drum to make noise, we warded off any potential unwanted visitors and got ready for a slightly uneasy sleep.
Spring in our steps
With the prospect of covering 20 miles, we had a huge motivator to get us through the hot, sunny day: the thought of jumping into refreshing 72-degree water at Juniper Springs.
A cup of joe made with my single-cup backpacking coffee maker helped to start the day off right, plus the discovery that our bear bag was untouched.
As we set off, the scenery alternated between sunny scrub forests and shady tunnels of greenery. At one point, we glanced up to see two swallow-tailed kites soaring overhead, then looked down to find ticks crawling on our legs.
We shook off the bugs, as well as the feeling of heebie jeebies, before continuing on to Juniper Springs as fast as our legs would allow.
Our oasis appeared before us just after 1 p.m. Families and couples splashed and played together, delighting in the springs’ magic as a respite from the Easter weekend heat.
It was a stop that we never wanted to end. Aside from doing our “hiker chores” like filtering water from the spring and organizing our packs, we took a refreshing dip, ate a backpacker mac and cheese meal and taped up any hotspots that had emerged on our feet.
While the break gave us a much-needed lift, we still had nearly 11 miles to trek before calling it a night at Hopkins Prairie.
The temperature continued to climb as we made our way through the pristine Juniper Prairie Wilderness Area, one of the most beautiful, untouched areas in Ocala, where even vehicles cannot travel. The fire-shaped landscape sometimes contained lush green tunnels through scrub forest and at other times showed ground charred by prescribed burns, which help maintain the landscape for important species like the Florida scrub-jay.
After almost 6 miles, we arrived at Hidden Pond, a spring-fed water source known for high bear activity. We refilled our water and then kept moving as the sun began to cast long shadows on the trail.
As we hiked up ancient sand dunes, we could see clearly for miles, marveling at the expansive scrub habitat with taller pine trees off in the distance. It wasn’t long after this that we experienced our first scrub-jay sighting of this trip, an exciting plot twist to our afternoon. In this case, we heard the bird before we saw it, identifying its scratchy “weep” then seeing this sentinel looking at us from the top of a tree. Another scrub-jay came to join, then the pair darted into a scraggly bush. It’s always an awe-inspiring encounter, especially knowing how few of these smart and social birds are left.
We also saw a rough green snake spread out across the trail, dangling from a bush. The harmless, non-venomous snake didn’t seem in a hurry, so we paused to marvel at its colors before continuing on our way.
As dusk approached, we spotted another singular scrub-jay checking out from atop a tree, then two more who lingered atop short dead trees, unfazed by our presence. Even though we wanted to be in camp by dark, it felt like we were in the right place at the right time to see a total of five scrub-jays next to the trail during three different encounters.
Our long day on the trail held one more delight on our way to camp. Hundreds of fireflies lit up both sides of the trail, blinking in unison in a magnificent nightly display that we didn’t expect. Even though the miles can feel long at times, having close-up opportunities to behold the beauty of Florida’s nature makes it all worthwhile.
The final push
Although we had planned to get an early start on our final day, I awoke groggy and sore, finding it hard to muster the energy to start our 10-mile day. When everything hurts a bit, it’s not easy to put that pack on and start walking again — but nonetheless I did, and found my legs worked just fine.
When we did hit the trail around 10:30 a.m., we first said goodbye to the friendly resident sandhill crane patrolling the campground at Hopkins Prairie, then prepared for what was set to be the hottest day on the trail yet.
While Hopkins Prairie offers abundant scenery spread out as far as the eye can see, it provides little shade, which made us especially mindful of our water intake and more grateful for what little shade we did find. The evidence of Florida’s drought was most evident in this section, where we stopped at a pond to filter some water and saw a gator lurking in the distance.
After spotting great blue herons and egrets out on the prairie, hearing the calls of sandhill cranes in the distance, the orange-blazed trail ducked back into the woods for a moment of respite from the sun before opening back up into rolling hills of scrub habitat.
While it was a shorter day of hiking, we kept our momentum — inspired by the thought of post-trail tacos and spring swimming — until we reached the Salt Springs spur, at which point we had just three miles until the finish. It was at this trail intersection that we encountered two other hikers and fellow trail enthusiasts about our age, and an older local on his bike.
The pair of hikers had spent the night at Hopkins Prairie just as we did, and were about to head back that way to finish their day hike. The local said he rode the trails regularly and helped remove downed trees from the trails, an effort we appreciated.
For posterity, it’s worth noting that bicycles are prohibited on many sections of the Florida Trail, but trail maintenance is encouraged, especially during work weekends hosted by the Florida Trail Association.
With the end in sight, we focused on Odd Todd’s, a Salt Springs staple set up with a food truck and a covered patio. The roadside eatery held the promise of tacos, burritos or whatever else our hungry hiker appetites desired.
Before long, we made it, incredibly relieved to sit down in the shade with our packs off, drinking Jarritos and Cheerwine to quench our thirst with something other than filtered pond water. Shortly, we happily devoured a monster burrito and a few tacos.
After a short walk to Salt Springs Recreation Area, we jumped in, eager to wash off the day’s sweat and cool down after hours in the sun.
Leaving it all behind for a few days and carrying everything on my back reminded me that the best way to connect with nature is by simplifying, listening and observing what’s around us. Such an experience also brought quality time together doing what we love most: exploring outside. Such an experience is the perfect antidote to the relentless pace of modern life, and one I will certainly seek out again.
To learn more, visit floridatrail.org or floridahikes.com/florida-trail.
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