End of Day Blackwater Creek Nature Preserve 6.5 JT Mile Hike

Let's show Blackwater Creek Nature Preserve a little love and hike alongside peeps from Tampa Hiking Meetup Group. Once we start getting regular rain, there will likely be freshwater marshes and wet prairies, so please be prepared for anything. We will hike for about 6.5 miles, time allowing.

This 2,200-acre preserve includes some of the finest remaining examples of long leaf pine dominated mesic pine flatwoods and blackwater streams, interspersed with hardwood hammocks, and cypress domes. More than half of the preserve is wide open, which offers spectacular views of gentle fields trimmed by forest and endless sky. A side trail leads to a bubbling creek that is perfectly shaded. We might see wildlife that includes butterflies, red shouldered hawks, and Terrance the Tortoise.

Blackwater Creek Preserve is part of a major wildlife and water corridor tied to the Hillsborough River and Green Swamp—important for regional drinking water. Trails often follow old logging tram roads from early timber operations (cypress & pine).

To learn more about the park, visit: https://hcfl.gov/locations/blackwater-creek-preserve

There is no day use fee. There are no bathrooms. There is a Circle K Gas station at 1449 Paul S Buchman Hwy, Zephyrhills, FL 33540.

On the day of the hike, please meet me in the parking lot at 5 pm. We will start hiking at 5:10.

You will need at least 2 liters of water, snacks, bug spray, sunscreen, a hat, hikers, and anything else you deem necessary for your comfort. A solar umbrella brings the heat down at least 10 degrees. There are only a few benches, so you may want to bring a ground cloth to sit on during the snack break. We must be out of the park by 8 pm (closing time).

My number on the day of the hike is 813-713-2492.

I am asking that everyone signs up (no guests) so everyone can agree to the waiver and agree to the following conditions:

ASSUMPTION OF RISK
YOUR ATTENDANCE AT A "SUNCOAST OUTDOORS " SPONSORED EVENT IS YOUR EXPRESS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF UNDERSTANDING AND UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE OF FULL PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND LIABILITY FOR ALL ASSOCIATED RISKS.

Possible risks from participation include, but are not limited to: injury from a trip and fall, venomous snakes, stinging insects, venomous spiders, wildlife encounters, heat stroke, dehydration, hypothermia, noxious vegetation, weather related injury, insect or airborne transmissible virus and disease, smoke inhalation, wildfire, and falling trees.

I am not a professional guide, just a volunteer for the group.

Any questions or concerns, please comment below.
Thanks. See you there!!