Nature Coast
Ramblers
Crystal River Crystal River Preserve State Park
13 K Year Round Walk ( / ) 1/1/10 12/31/10
Award: IVV Credit Only Strollers: Hard Restroom: Yes
Rating: 1+ Wheelchair: Hard Pets: Yes
Riverwalk America, State Parks
Sponsor: AVA-0931 Nature Coast Volkssport Biking & Hiking Club
www.naturecoastramblers.org
Contact: Theresa Schmidt, schmidt@isgroup.net,
(352)794-0414, 8502 N. Briarpatch Av, Crystal River, FL 34428
Start Point: Crystal River Preserve State Park Visitor Center 3266 N. Sailboat Ave, (352)563-0450. Take US 19 to State
Park Dr at Days Inn. West on State Park Dr to 90 degree turn. After turn, road becomes Sailboat Ave. Take to visitor center where box is located on left front of building. No Park fee.
Event Info: Open daily 8am to sunset; must be completed in day light. More sun than shade; carry water and insect repellant.
Sturdy footwear is suggested as the trail starts on pavement, then enters service road / wide trail though pine flatwoods, tidal marsh and wet hardwood hammocks habitats. Visitor center is open M-F 8-5 for recreation information, but restrooms available daily
8am to sunset. Eco-Heritage boat tours on the Crystal River are available $10, MW&F 10:30 & 1:30, with views of famous pre-Columbian indian mound complex at Crystal River Archaeological State Park next door. Walk is part of the Walk Florida State Parks
program.
Crystal River Historic Downtown
10 K Year Round Walk ( / ) 1/1/10 12/31/10
Award: IVV Credit Only Strollers: Hard Restroom: Yes
Rating: 1+ Wheelchair: Hard Pets: Yes
Firehouses, Honoring Law Enforcement, Museums, Railroad Heritage, Riverwalk America
Sponsor: AVA-0931 Nature Coast Volkssport Biking & Hiking Club
www.naturecoastramblers.org
Contact: Theresa Schmidt, schmidt@isgroup.net,
(352)794-0414, 8502 N. Briarpatch Av, Crystal River, FL 34428
Start Point: Aardvark's Florida Kayak Company 707 N. Citrus Ave, Crystal River, FL. Start point is half block north of Suncoast Blvd, which is US 19 & 98. This main road is
easily accessible from the east on SR 44 (connecting to I75 exit 329), and the south via the Suncoast Parkway.
Event Info: Start box is located on Aardvark's porch, in Heritage Village shopping district and wends through historic Crystal River, past old railroad station, streets arched with
Live Oak trees draped in spanish moss and cemetary. Historic homes brochure available in start box. The city is situated around King's Bay, which is spring fed and is the winter home of more than 400 manatees. The trail has several views of the bay, including
a bridge overlooking a manatee travel route to the springs. The trail is on sidewalks and road sides; 60% shade and 40% sun; and passes by several restaurants. Kayak, boat and dive shops also available.
Inverness Downtown Historic
10 K Year Round Walk ( / ) 1/1/10 12/31/10
Award: IVV Credit Only Strollers: Hard Restroom: Yes
Rating: 1+ Wheelchair: Hard Pets: Yes
Honoring Law Enforcement, Hooray for Hollywood, Museum, Railroad Heritage
Sponsor: AVA-0931 Nature Coast Volkssport Biking & Hiking Club
www.naturecoastramblers.org
Contact: Karl Seidman, otherkseid@hotmail.com,
(352)344-1531, 359 N Golf Harbor Path, Inverness, FL 34450
Start Point: Old Courthouse Heritage Museum, 1 Courthouse Square, Inverness, FL. Open Monday through Friday, 10:00am to 4:00pm; ask for the AVA box at the docent's desk. The museum
is a cultural center that houses free exhibit galleries on pre-history, local history and rotating exhibits in a 1912 Courthouse on the National Register of Historic Places. (Follow That Dream with Elvis Presley was filmed in the courtroom upstairs.)
Event Info: The trail follows city streets, goes through several parks, on boardwalks, paths and pavement with generous views of the Tsala Apopka chain of lakes, and along part of
the 46 mile rails to trails Withlacoochee State Trail (excellent for bike riding). The City of Inverness has spent a decade in making the town a walkable, bicycle friendly community intergrating the historic downtown. There is one short, steep, unpaved slope
that would make it very difficult for strollers/wheelchairs. Public rest rooms are available at the start point as well as in many parks along the route. Several restaurants and picnic areas along the route.
Inverness Fort Cooper State Park
10 K Year Round Walk ( / ) 1/1/10 12/31/10
Award: IVV Credit Only Strollers: No Restroom: Yes
Rating: 1+ Wheelchair: No Pets: Yes
Forts of the United States, Native American Culture, State Parks
Sponsor: AVA-0931 Nature Coast Volkssport Biking & Hiking Club
www.naturecoastramblers.org
Contact: Karl Seidman, otherkseid@hotmail.com,
(352)344-1531, 359 N Golf Harbor Path, Inverness, FL 34450
Start Point: Fort Cooper State Park Ranger Station- 3100 S. Old Floral City Rd, Inverness, FL. 352-726-0315. From SR 44 in downtown Inverness, take US 41 South to first traffic light
onto Old Floral City Rd, follow signs to Park entrance. Park fee is $3 per vehicle. Walk box is at Ranger Station.
Event Info: Open daily 8am to sunset; must be completed in day light. Ft Cooper was of historical significance during the 2nd Seminole
War. The shaded trail follows the 1830's Military Road which linked Fort Brooke in Tampa with Fort Cooper and with Fort King in Ocala. This mainly unpaved trail passes through hardwood hammock and along the shore of Lake Holathlikaha. As part of the Great Florida
Birding Trail, bird watching and wildlife viewing is common. March is Archaeology Month, contact park for date of annual Seminole war reenactment during Ft. Cooper Days. Restroom available near the lake. Walk is part of the Walk Florida State Parks program.