This is a great daytrip park. The only camping is equestrian, group or primitive camping. No RV facilities. They say someday, but not soon. It is a great park for hiking, biking, kayaking, horseback riding and fishing.
Park your vehicle in one of two parking lots. The main lot is on Mac Lake, the largest of three lakes, and is the location of a building with restrooms and a screened in pavilion.
Off to one side of the main building are two open pavilions and a few lone picnic tables with grills along a paved roadway.
In addition, there is a nice T-shaped fishing pier that extends 75 feet into the Mac Lake. Kayaks and canoes are available or there is a boat ramp if you bring your own boat. No gas power allowed.
Serene Mac Lake. Ideal for lazy kayaking. Plenty of shoreline to see and no river current to challenge peaceful paddling. The park area used to be a limestone mine. Water comes from the aquifer where mining reached depths of 50 feet. There are three small creeks on the property that also feed the lake. Colt Creek, Gator Creek and Little Gator Creek.
Fishing the lake shore.
There are three main trails to hike, bike or ride your horse. This one is foot traffic only and is a nature walk starting and finishing in a loop along Mac Lake. It is about a quarter mile in length.
A wetlands area along the nature trail.
An old tree stump along the way. Just looked interesting as I approached.
There are two other trails that are wider and made for hiking and biking (fat tire recommended). One, the Orange Trail is 10 miles in length wandering through pine flatwoods, around cypress domes, bottomland forest, and past open grazing land. Along this trail are two primitive campgrounds. No water or electric. One has to pack a couple of miles in and out. Reminds me of the Boy Scout days.
A stretch of the Orange Trail bordering on grazing land and forest.
This part of the Orange Trail circumvents Mac Lake.
You don't have to traverse the entire 10 mile loop as there are several cross/spur trails that you can take to create your own hike length. There is another trail with similar scenery, the Yellow Trail. Along this trail is the group/youth camp and equestrian camp. No electricity or water. Pack it in. The trail is a 7 mile loop. No cross/spur trails on that one.
Along the trail one will encounter large ant beds. This one is about a foot tall.
More wetlands along the way.
Sawgrass among a pine forest.
Obviously horse and riders recently passed.
I think they want the horses and the hikers doing the trail in opposite directions. This sign is in between Mac Lake and the next size down lake named Middle Lake. Probably named that as it is in between Mac Lake and Small Lake (the smallest of the three lakes - hmm)
A day use equestrian area is in between Middle Lake and Small Lake. It has a corral, hitching posts, water troughs, a pavilion with grills and ample area to park your truck and horse trailer. It is also here that the ten mile FLeetwoods (Orange) trail officially begins and ends.
Middle Lake. No swimming, gators, but good fishing according to those on the shore today.
Another ant hill. This one reinforced by Lopsided Indiangrass.
The last marker of the 10 mile Orange Trail. A little wet.
Small Lake. Today the benches surrounding the lake were pretty much unusable.
Some things along the way:
Great Egret
Anhinga
Great Egret
Little Blue Heron
White Ibis bathing and eating.
Little Blue Heron
Palm Tree Warbler
Great Egret
Red-Shouldered Hawk
Some flowers from a butterfly garden near the corral.....
.....and, among the reeds at the lake.
