The Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails

 Local Places, Local Faces

the Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails

So we’ve got this great birding trail right around the corner from us. Seriously great. Three birding trails, a picnic pavilion, a kayak dock, a viewing tower that we climb to gaze out at the Chaz. And we seem to be the only ones that use it!  Well, we did see a few surly teenagers that were playing some kind of war game back there once. Probably “airsoft” which has scary looking weapons and ouch producing pellets. 

After visiting the Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails numerous times and posting  about those visits more than once, I realized I didn’t know much about it.  So with a little research on the Internet, I stumbled across the website for the Friends of Chazz and discovered that they are responsible for this beautiful retreat.

the Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails

According to their website, this project was completed on approximately 10 acres of the Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge property and is the only land accessible property in the Refuge System. After completed, the Friends donated it to the Crystal River Wildlife Refuge.

the Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails

There are no restrooms or drinking water on the property. Also, you need to know that the kayak launch is about ¼ mile from the road and if you want to use it, you will either need to carry your kayak or bring a cart–no vehicles allowed.

As I said before, the view from the tower is awesome. And it’s practically our own private park! But we’ll share it with you. The trailhead is on Mason Creek Drive, about a mile out of Old Homosassa.  Whether you are a bird enthusiast, a photographer, or just want to take a short walk on a beautiful trail, you should check it out.

Twisted Oaks

Local Places, Local Faces

I’m a pretty bad golfer but still enjoy going out just to enjoy a beautiful day. Last week Terry and I played at Twisted Oaks in Beverly Hills. We were pleasantly surprised with the rolling hills and course.

Twisted Oaks

Twisted Oaks

Twisted Oaks

Twisted Oaks
Terry pointed out all of these turtles so I checked them.
Twisted Oaks
And they started coming out of the water!
Twisted Oaks
Oh-my-god! (That’s OMG for those that only speak Web). Teenage mutant ninja ZOMBIE turtle! Brains! Brains! Brains! Fortunately, zombie turtles aren’t very fast. Jumped in the cart and got out of the undead zone!

Withlacoochee State Trail – Gulf Junction Trailhead

Local Places, Local Faces

Terry, Maggie and I love being outdoors and doing all those fun activities available to us all year long in Citrus County, but between the Al-La-Palooza, the JesAndy Jubilee, and the crazy weather we’ve had so far this year, we haven’t had much time to get out there. Finally this past weekend we had a free day and decent weather!

So we headed to the Withlacoochee State Trail for some bike riding. In the next few months, I want to travel the entire length of the trail–all 46 miles–broken up into several manageable lengths. This ride started on the very northern section of the trail, the Gulf Junction Trailhead, just south of Dunnellon. Our plan was to ride five miles south or until we reached the next trailhead and then ride back. A ten mile round trip seemed reasonable.

While we have used the trail many times over the last several years, we always start in Inverness so I didn’t know what to expect at this trailhead. I was relieved to see that there was a restroom. And like the trailhead in Inverness, there was a picnic pavilion and benches.

Withlacoochee State Trail - Gulf Junction Trailhead
Since this is considered the beginning of the Withlacoochee State Trail, bluebird box number one is there. We saw several bluebirds making use of the boxes.

There were already a few cars parked and people either cooling down or getting ready to start out. They all made a fuss over Maggie which made the pooch very happy. Most of Maggie’s trail experience is from a bike basket since she’s old and has short legs, but she loves getting down and running or walking for short spurts.  Her very favorite thing is definitely all the unusual smells.

Withlacoochee State Trail - Gulf Junction Trailhead

The trail was relatively flat–just a few inclines and only a few roads to cross over. But I was happy to come across the South Citrus Springs trailhead a little short of our 5 mile goal.I was ready to turn around!

I recently read about an attempt to connect several bike trails and create a continuous 200 mile bike trail from St. Petersburg to Titusville. While I don’t think I want to cover that much distance, I would like to do the “Rails to Trails” 19th annual bike ride on the Withalcoochee Trail in October this year. By then I should have visited all of the trail heads and be ready to ride!

Withlacoochee State Trail - Gulf Junction Trailhead
Another trail user asked if we wanted our pictures taken. I kind of said no cause I looked pretty bad, but Terry and he thought that was funny.

If you see us on the trail, stop and say hi! We’d love to meet you!