At 184 feet above sea level, Mount Dora is hardly reminiscent of a real mountain, but this quaint li

Wekiva River Basin: Paddle, bike, hike, camp, swim | Florida Rambler Home Florida Keys Southeast Everglades Southwest Central Northeast Panhandle Birding / Central Florida / Road Trips / Springs Wekiva River Basin: A wild and scenic adventure Posted by Bob Rountree
The beauty and natural landscape of the Wekiva River Basin is rivaled only by the bounty of recreational travel lodge daytona beach fl activities this environmentally pure region supports.  The river and its tributaries run through a half-dozen state and county parks, forests and conservation areas that protect the watershed, including Wekiwa Spring State Park and the Lower Wekiva travel lodge daytona beach fl River Preserve.
At the heart of the basin are two inviting springs, rising out of the Floridan aquifer with cool, clear water that feeds a diverse travel lodge daytona beach fl and thriving wildlife community as well as a variety of recreation activities, travel lodge daytona beach fl including paddling, hiking, biking, swimming, birding and camping.
My original mission when visiting this area was to find authentic Florida campgrounds within an hour’s drive of Disney World and Universal Studios.  I left my RV at home and took a tent so I could fully digest the experience.
Wekiva River Paddle travel lodge daytona beach fl Trail – The Wekiva River is formed by the convergence of Rock Spring Run and Wekiwa Spring Run, creating a 27-mile paddle trail that tracks through the Wekiva Basin to the St. John’s River.
Wildife is abundant, from the threatened Florida black bear and the ubiquitous alligator to gopher tortoises and hundreds of bird species, including cranes, cormorants, herons, eagles, plovers, sandpipers and more, making it a prime stop along the Great Florida Birding Trail.
There are five access points along this pristine waterway, the most popular being the privately owned Kings Landing , near the entrance to Kelly Park, and the Wekiva Island marina, travel lodge daytona beach fl a half-mile below the point where Wekiwa Springs Run and Rock Springs Run converge.  Both liveries rent canoes and kayaks travel lodge daytona beach fl and provide shuttle services.
There is also a busy kayak and canoe concession within Wekiwa Spring State Park that does not provide a shuttle service, requiring paddlers to return to the launch ramp upriver. But the currents are not strong, and paddling back upstream is not difficult..
Kelly Park  – Rock Spring rises from the ground within Kelly Park , feeding the Rock Spring Run at a rate of 26,000 gallons per minute that trickles through a series of cool, clear pools set aside for swimming and tubing.  The water emerges travel lodge daytona beach fl from its underground source at a constant 68 degrees.  These swimming holes are absolutely fabulous, and they are extremely popular with locals travel lodge daytona beach fl on weekends, especially in summer.  Indeed, the park is often forced to close on hot weekend days when it is over capacity. Not a problem during the week.
The campground is the best I found anywhere in Central Florida. The sites are spacious and heavily shaded, with water and electric at each site and a dump station at one end of the campground. It s far enough away from the spring to muffle the noise of children playing, but close enough for an easy walk.
The canoe and kayak launch is just outside the park at Kings Landing, travel lodge daytona beach fl a private livery that rents canoes and kayaks for a spectacular travel lodge daytona beach fl 8.5-mile paddle down Rock Spring Run to the shuttle pickup travel lodge daytona beach fl at Wekiva Island marina on the upper Wekiva River.
travel lodge daytona beach fl There are 7 miles of hiking trails throughout the park. Bicycles are also permitted on the trails, although travel lodge daytona beach fl you will frequently encounter soft sand, making them difficult.  For campground reservations or park information, call (407) 889-4179 or visit the Kelly Park web site
Wekiwa Spring State Park – At 8,500 acres, Wekiwa Spring State Park is one of the largest and most popular of Florida’s state parks, where Wekiwa Spring rises into large pools for swimmers, then spills downstream via the half-mile-long Wekiwa Spring Run to form the Wekiva River with help from Rock Springs Run. The water at this spring is a constant 72 degrees and, like Rock Spring, it is crystal clear.
Canoes and kayaks are available at the park concession, and park roads provide an excellent surface for cycling. The park has more than 20 miles of multi-use trails, some of which are populated on weekends by equestrians.
The main campground continues to under construction, primarily to bring sewer hookups to each site, so no reservations are being accepted through July 1, 2014.  (Updated March 2013) When I visited, half of the 60 sites were available for walk-ups on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The park also has three primitive travel lodge daytona beach fl sites on Rock Spring Run to which you can hike or paddle, but you will need reservations for those sites by calling the ranger station (407) 884-2009 up to 60 days in advance.
Wekiva Island – I am singling out this private marina because it is a popular river access point and seems to be the focal point of activity, where paddlers either finish travel lodge daytona beach fl their trek down Rock Spring Run or begin/continue travel lodge daytona beach fl their paddle down the Wekiva to the St. John’s River.  In any event, it’s a crossroads for recreation in the basin.
Check out their web site. The property features a tiki bar (beer and wine), riverside cabanas, river swimming, a beach volleyball court and parking.  It’s not free, but it looks like fun.  Wekiva Island travel lodge daytona beach fl is at 1014 Miami Springs Road, in Longwood, off Wekiva Springs Road, a few miles east of the entrance to Wekiwa Springs State Park.  Call (407) 862-1500 or visit the Wekiva Island web site.
Lower Wekiva River Preserve -– Somebody is trying to keep this state park a secret, but I’ll expose it for you.  The park largely exists to preserve travel lodge daytona beach fl the watershed in the Wekiva River Basin, but it is also a popular destination for equestrians.  On the south end of the park, accessible travel lodge daytona beach fl from State Road 46, just west of I-4, you can hike or bicycle on the 2.5-mile Nature Trail.
The northern access to the park, on State Road 44 west of Deland, provides access to 18 miles of multi-use trails. Equestrians are also allowed travel lodge daytona beach fl on these trails, so conditions may not always be ideal for cyclists.
There are no launch ramps for canoes and kayaks within the preserve, although there is an access point at Katie’s Landing, which can be found on the east side of the river on Wekiva Park Drive, off State Road 46 west of Sanford.
Seminole-Wekiva Rail Trail – This paved trail in Seminole County is 15 miles long, from the northern trailhead on Markham Road in the Wekiva Basin to the southern terminus on State Road 436 in Altamonte Springs.There are five official access points and one unofficial, at the halfway mark where the trail slips around the Shoppes of Oakmonte on Lake Mary Boulevard, west of I-4 exit 98.
The trail, built on a former railroad bed, runs north-south, roughly parallel to Markham Woods Road, through an area of new development from the expanding Orlando metroplex. Nevertheless, the trail offers several breaks from civilization, intermittent with sprawling back yards, making this an enjoyable, smooth and easy ride.
To access the northern trailhead, take Exit 101 off I-4 and head west on SR 46A to Orange Blvd. Turn right on Orange, then left on Markham Road. To reach the southern travel lodge daytona beach fl trailhead, take I-4 to Exit 92 and go west on SR 436 about 1.5 miles.
The best description of this trail can be found at TrailLink.com , the web site of the national Rails-To-Trails travel lodge daytona beach fl Conservancy, a nonprofit group that played a major role in the development of this trail.
The most popular stop along the trail is at the halfway mark, 7.5 miles from each trailhead, at the Shoppes of Oakmonte, where the Panera Bread restaurant and another café have patios overlooking the trail.   Also in this shopping center is David s World Cycle , a full-service shop with gear and repairs. Dave Wood and his crew will answer your questions about the trail. (407) 942-1020.
While the shopping center’s parking lot is a tempting place to access the trail, the lot is often full, even during the week.  But if you haul your bikes about 1.5 miles south on Markham Woods Road, you’ll travel lodge daytona beach fl find ample shaded parking at the Long Pond Trailhead.
West Orange Rail Trail – This 22-mile trail was one of the first rail trails in Florida, and it remains travel lodge daytona beach fl one of the most popular. travel lodge daytona beach fl It’s northernmost trailhead is just a few miles from Kelly Park and Wekiwa Springs State Park, at the junction of Rock Springs Road and Welch Road, north of Apopka.
While I have yet to ride this trail, it’s very high on my to-do list. You might recognize this trail from passing under its odd-looking, landscaped bridge that crosses Florida’s Turnpike north of Orlando. The southern  terminus, known as the Killarney Trailhead, is nearby, on West Colonial Drive (SR 50), just west of Turnpike exit 272.
This mostly paved multi-use trail passes through several small towns around the southern rim of Lake Apopka, including Oakland, travel lodge daytona beach fl Winter Garden, Ocoee and Apopka, which are also good access points with food, rest rooms and services.
You can rent or service your bike at the West Orange Bike Shop, (407-) 877-8884, across the street from the Winter Garden Heritage Museum, a former railroad depot, or at West Orange Trail Bikes and Blades, is near the Killarney Trailhead at 17914 SR 438. (407) 877-0600.
Mount Dora – It would be difficult to visit the Wekiva River Basin and not visit charming Mount Dora, which is just a few miles west of the watershed on State Road 46, or take U.S. 441 north from Apopka.  U.S. 441 is known in these parts as the Orange Blossom travel lodge daytona beach fl Trail.
At 184 feet above sea level, Mount Dora is hardly reminiscent of a real mountain, but this quaint little village (population 10,000) will remind you of a small New England town with its Victorian architecture and laid-back travel lodge daytona beach fl pace.
It’s history, like many areas of Florida, dates back to the railroad barons of the late 1800s who sought to bring tourists to Florida on their trains. The Lakeside Inn, built in 1883, is a classic reminder of the era and remains the oldest structure in town. The inn, or course, is on Lake Dora.
But perhaps the mo