The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park

Get off the beaten track, to experience Pasco’s beauty

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Any sport can tamp down frustrations of everyday life. Hiking in the woods goes a step further. It soothes the soul.

Visit one of Pasco County’s trails and you’ll see. You can hike under ancient oaks, past cabbage palms and ferns, through pine , and along swamps and riverbanks.

You’ll hear birdsong, and smell pine needles, bay leaves and loamy lakebeds. You’ll see wild orchids, thick forests, and, maybe you’ll even taste salt air.

Scientists say getting out into nature may ward off depression, high blood pressure, even hyperactivity in children. Some doctors even prescribe a hike in the woods to alleviate stress and anxiety, and to get their patients to cut down on screen time.

Guides lead “forest bathing” meditation tours to soothe worries. And studies have shown that merely looking at photographs of nature or even the color green can be calming.

Hiking is an enjoyable way to immerse yourself in nature and get exercise.

Here are just some places in Pasco County to hit the trail:

Giant oaks, some dating back to before Florida became a state, line nature trails in Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, encompassing 8,300 acres in New Port Richey. (Karen Haymon Long)

Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park
10500 Wilderness Park Blvd., New Port Richey
Hours: Daily, dawn to dusk
Free entrance
Contact: 727-834-3247; PascoCountyFl.net

This 8,300-acre park has a 7.3-mile paved trail that leads to the Suncoast Trail, which runs 42 miles from Hillsborough to Hernando County. Bikes share the park’s paved trail with hikers, but it’s wide enough for both. Woods often line both sides of the paved path, so it feels more serene than urban.

Off the paved trail, signs lead to leaf-strewn nature trails through pine and oak forests, palmettos, fern beds, red mulberry, magnolias and other trees.

Trails are marked with green and blue slashes on trees, so it’s easy to find your way. One trail leads to the Pithlachascotee River, in a spot where it’s tea-colored and crossed with fallen tree trunks.

Birdwatchers have identified 177 species of birds in the park. Look for wood ducks, little blue herons, even sandhill cranes. The park also has a 10-mile equestrian trail, camping, restrooms, picnic shelters, tables and grills.

Nearby, Starkey Gap Trail starts on the south side of State Road 54 at Starkey Boulevard. Heading south, it crosses Trinity Boulevard (where there is a parking lot) and continues through grassy fields, past cow pastures and woods. After about a mile, it joins the Pinellas Trail.

Suncoast Trail
Hours: Daily, dawn to dusk
Free entrance
Contact: PascoCountyFl.net

This 42-mile paved trail passes through Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando counties, running along the east side of the Suncoast Parkway.

Half the trail is in Pasco County. Benches, water and portable toilets are available in some areas. The trail passes through residential, agricultural and natural areas.

“There are many areas where you really can’t see the parkway,” says David Jay, site supervisor for the Suncoast Trail and Crews Lake Park. “It’s completely wooded to the west in many areas.”

He says most hikers (and bikers) access the trail at State Road 54 at the Suncoast Parkway. That’s the official trailhead, with a free parking lot, a picnic table, portable toilets and a fix-it station.

Pasco County’s other main access points, he says, are off Wellfield Road, where the Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park Trail leads onto the Suncoast Trail; and off Shady Hills Road, a mile hike from Crews Lake Park in Spring Hill.

Other Pasco access points are at the Ridge Road Extension, State Road 52, Caldwell Lane, Lawless Road, Bowman Road and County Line Road.

Everywhere you hike in the Green Swamp, you’ll likely see towering trees and watery views. The Green Swamp is a vital recharge area for the Florida Aquifer. (Karen Haymon Long)

Green Swamp Wilderness West Tract
13347 Ranch Road, 5 miles from downtown Dade City in East Pasco County
Hours: Daily, sunrise to sunset
Free entrance
Contact: 352-796-7211; www.swfwmd.state.fl.us

This preserve, with an astounding 37,350 acres, has 65 miles of trails for hikers, bikers and horseback riders.

A section of the Florida National Scenic Trail meanders through thick woods shaded by towering oaks, pines and magnolias. Some stretches are lined with ponds and brown grasses, saw palmettos and cabbage palms.

On a portion of the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, hikers may see deer, wild hogs, turkeys, alligators, wading birds and soaring, squawking osprey.

The Green Swamp is one of Florida’s largest wetlands, and because it is considered an environmentally sensitive habitat, hikers are urged to stay on designated trails.

The tract also has picnic tables, portable toilets and campsites.

Trails in Withlacoochee River State Park near Dade City wend through woods and past the picturesque river. (Courtesy of Experience Florida’s Sports Coast)

Withlacoochee River Park
12449 Withlacoochee Blvd., Dade City
Hours: Daily, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Free entrance
Contact: 352-567-0264; PascoCountyFl.net

This picturesque Pasco County park, on the western edge of the Green Swamp, has sandhill bluffs overlooking the Withlacoochee River, a forest, prairies and wetlands.

Eight miles of well-marked hiking trails and boardwalks loop through the park, past the Withlacoochee River, cypress trees and old oaks. The park also has a 1.7-mile paved trail for walkers and bikers. All trails begin at a kayak dock, the south parking area and the campgrounds.

The park is home to barn owls, woodcocks, ibis, limpkins and many other bird species, some that can be seen from an observation tower. Other amenities: picnic shelters, restrooms, cabins, and primitive and RV campsites.

At Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park in Port Richey, you’ll see springs, deep woods, and maybe even bald eagles and dolphins. (Karen Haymon Long)

Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park
8737 U.S. 19 N., Port Richey
Hours: Daily, 8 a.m. to sunset
Fee: $2 for walkers and bikers; $3 for vehicles with up to 8 people
Contact: 727-816-1890; FloridaStateParks.org

This tranquil park of bayous, salt marches, creeks and thick mangroves is just off busy U.S. 19, but you’d never know it. It’s a peaceful place to hike, kayak and have a picnic.

Each park entrance has hiking trails. The half-mile Springs Trail leads to sinks and artesian springs, through oak hammocks and pinewoods. Just past Salt Spring, if it’s low tide, hikers may see a tidal waterfall created by a spring that is 351 feet deep.

Bald eagles are sometimes seen on the Eagle Trail, along with hawks, roseate spoonbills, great blue herons and snowy egrets. A boardwalk leads to a kayak launch, where you’ll see water views and, if you’re lucky, dolphins and otters.

From the launch, kayakers can paddle through bayous, salt marshes and creeks. The park also has restrooms, picnic tables and a pavilion.

A boardwalk trail makes it easy for hikers to see the Pithlachascotee River in the James E. Grey Preserve in New Port Richey. (Courtesy of Experience Florida’s Sports Coast)

James E. Grey Preserve
6938 Plathe Road, New Port Richey
Hours: Daily, sunrise to sunset
Free entrance
Contact: 727-841-4560; FloridaHikes.com

This 80-acre wildlife preserve is on a stretch of the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, with 140 bird species, manatees, deer, wild boar, gopher tortoises and more.

Hikers can walk along a boardwalk past the Pithlachascotee River, take the shaded Palmetto Loop, with a river overlook, or follow the Uplands Trail Loop through a scrub habitat of palms, wildflowers and gopher tortoises.

Towering palms cast shadows on the river. Thick palmettos and cabbage palms line the boardwalk, and benches dot trails, all adding to the preserve’s tranquility.

The preserve also has a lake, playground, restrooms, a picnic shelter and an observation deck.

By Karen Haymon Long

Published February 09, 2022

Dipping into serenity, beauty and fun

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Science tells us if you want to live a longer, healthier life, get out into nature.

Take a walk, watch birds fly, reduce your stress by kayaking in tranquil waters – and leave your phone at home.

For a great escape, take off in one of many waterways in a kayak. (Karen Haymon Long)

Kayaking, even more so than walking, helps you escape, takes you into watery worlds – worlds far away from highways, noise and worries.

Take a kayak trip around here and you’ll likely see majestic great blue herons, bubblegum pink roseate spoonbills, cackling kingfishers, leaping dolphins and beauty beyond anything you normally see day to day.

We’re lucky, this part of Florida has it all – the salty Gulf of Mexico, mostly shallow and calm Tampa Bay, lakes galore, sounds, marshes and bayous.

If you don’t have your own kayak, you can rent one from local outfitters. And, you can choose from one-person or tandem varieties, use paddles or your feet on the increasing popular pedal kayaks.

You can fish, race or coast. You can explore canopied mangroves. Or, you can paddle along marked trails.

No matter which way you float, you’ll be exercising and mentally decompressing – far from phones, politics, crazy drivers and information overload.

Here is a look at five local places sure to be worth a kayak trip:

Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park, 8737 U.S. 19 N., Port Richey
This park offers 4 miles of Gulf coastline, inlets and bayous and many springs, including Salt Springs, where you can view dolphins, bald eagles, roseate spoonbills, red-tailed hawks, and all sorts of shorebirds and songbirds.

From the parking lot, a lengthy boardwalk leads to the kayak launch, so you must carry your own, which could be a hardship for some. The park does not rent kayaks.

Ranger-led tours are given the first Saturday of the month, starting at 10 a.m., at the kayak launch. You must have your own kayak and make reservations by calling (727) 816-1890.

This park also has picnic tables, restrooms, and nature trails through pine woods to springs. The trail to Salt Spring is a quarter of a mile long and is highlighted by a waterfall created by a spring that’s 351 feet deep.

Park hours are 8 a.m. to sunset daily; fee is $3 per car with up to eight people, and $2 for bikers and pedestrians.

For more information about the park, call (727) 816-1890, or email .

If you worked up an appetite kayaking or hiking and didn’t bring a picnic lunch, a variety of restaurants line U.S. 19. We like Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill, 7835 Bayview St., Port Richey, on the Pithlachascotee River, called “the Cotee” by locals. Call (727) 815-1178, or visit WhiskeyJoePortRichey.com, where you can make reservations.

Anclote Gulf Park, 2305 Baillies Bluff Road, Holiday
This 23-acre park straddles the Anclote River and the Gulf of Mexico, so it offers lots of watery beauty. You can launch a kayak from a sandy spot next to a fishing pier that’s open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and paddle the river and Gulf.

The park itself is open from dawn to dusk daily. On a recent visit, anglers caught mangrove snappers, a night heron stood guard next to the pier and chattering kingfishers dove into the Gulf. Two men said they had just spotted three dolphins in the Anclote.

For more information about this Pasco County Park, call (727) 942-4030, or visit PascoCountyFl.net.

Historic Tarpon Springs is close-by and offers many good places for lunch. Our favorites are Tarpon Tavern, at 21 N. Safford Ave., for pub food. Call (727) 945-1000, or visit TarponTavern.com; and Mykonos, at 628 Dodecanese Blvd., for Greek specialties. Call (727) 934-4306.

Dunedin Causeway, Pinellas County
Take Florida 586 (Curlew Road) west to Causeway Boulevard
You can drop a kayak just about anywhere into St. Joseph Sound from the causeway to see dolphins, shorebirds and manatees in the warmer months. People who fish from kayaks tend to stay on the more tranquil north side of the causeway, but others try their luck on the south side near a small bridge leading to Honeymoon Island State Park.

A woman kayaks back to shore after paddling in St. Joseph Sound.

Skilled kayakers can go farther afloat into the Gulf, or stay in the sound and paddle to Caladesi Island State Park, a barrier island in the Gulf that  has a marina and kayak trails. Kayak rentals are available for $25 for one hour to three hours, at the park’s cafe.

Sail Honeymoon on the south side of the causeway rents kayaks for $35 for two hours, $45 for four hours, or $60 all day. The outfitter also rents fishing kayaks and tandems. For details, visit SailHoneymoon.com/kayak-rentals, or call (727) 734-0392.

A word of caution: On weekends, the sound can be crowded with boats and big yachts, whose captains don’t always see kayaks, so wear bright colored lifejackets, carry a whistle, keep close watch and wave your paddle in the air if you face danger.

For good food and good vibes, eat lunch at Frenchy’s Outpost Bar & Grill, at 466 Causeway Blvd., Dunedin. Call (727) 286-6139, or visit FrenchysOnline.com.

Philippe Park, 2525 Philippe Parkway, Safety Harbor; and, Safety Harbor City Marina Area, 110 Veterans Memorial Lane, Safety Harbor
This Pinellas County park has a boat launch and lots of grassy, low-lying spots in picnic areas where it’s easy to slip a kayak into Old Tampa Bay.

A Roseate Spoonbill stands in the shallow waters off Old Tampa Bay, at the south end of Philippe Park in Safety Harbor. The Pinellas County park is a popular place to kayak.

You can tool around the bay as far as you’d like. Much of it is shallow and safe, and within sight of land. We’ve seen beautiful birds along the shore – spoonbills, herons, egrets, pelicans and even flamingos. Once, a huge manatee scared us by popping up for breath right next to our kayak.

Park hours are 7 a.m. to dusk; admission is free.

You can also launch kayaks into the bay at the city marina and, on weekends, you can rent them from Tocobaga Tours, across the parking lot from the marina. Ken Bambery, a teacher who owns the company, charges $20 per hour, $25 for two hours, or $45 for a full day. He’s not always there, so call (727) 389-8687 for reservations.

Just across the street from the marina, Barfly Saltwater Grill, at 100 Main St., has tasty Caribbean seafood and other fare. Call (727) 400-4790, or visit BarflySafetyHarbor.com.

Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park, 8001 Double Branch Road, Tampa
This park has one of the best kayak launches in the bay area. It’s a floating dock with bars you can hold onto to glide yourself into waterways that lead to Tampa Bay. Along the way, you’ll pass dense mangroves, salt marshes, pinewoods and thick hammocks.

Marked kayak trails lead the way to all sorts of wondrous sights. We once saw a dozen dolphins frolicking in the waters between the kayak launch and bay. Another time, we counted 27 roseate spoonbills in mangroves off the bay. It’s a wonderful place to see butterflies, and mullet, snook and red drum. Best of all, the waters here aren’t usually very crowded with boats, since it’s so shallow in most places.

The park rents kayaks for $25 for up to four hours. Other amenities include picnic areas, nature trails, a fishing pier and a nature center, closed now for renovations. Park hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fee is $2 a car.

For more information about this park, call (813) 855-1765, or visit HillsboroughCounty.org.

For a tasty lunch and good craft beer, head to nearby Tampa Bay Brewing Co., at 13937 Monroes Business Park, Tampa (off Race Track Road, south of Tampa Bay Downs). Call (813) 247-1422, or visit TBBC.beer.

These suggestions are just a small sampling of places for kayaking in the Tampa Bay area. So grab a paddle, launch away, and savor the silence.

By Karen Haymon Long

Published January 08, 2020

Tourism to keep booming in Pasco County, officials say

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Tourism is booming in Pasco County — which reported nearly a million visitors last year.

And, the best may be yet to come, according to a presentation by county tourism officials Adam Thomas and Kolby Kucyk Gayson, during a recent Dade City Commission meeting.

The county now brands itself as “Florida’s Sports Coast,” with the tagline, “Let’s Play,” in its tourism pitches. Previously, it used the slogan “Visit Pasco. Open Spaces. Vibrant Places.”

Tree Hoppers Aerial Adventure Park, in Dade City, gives people of all ability levels the chance to experience a ropes course and ziplining. Tree Hoppers is one of Pasco County’s top tourist draws. (File)

It changed its brand in March to highlight the county’s growing list of recreational sports venues and outdoor activities.

“We were in dire need of a rebrand as a destination,” said Gayson, communications manager for Florida’s Sports Coast. “We needed our own identity within the Florida tourism market.”

Now, word is spreading about Pasco County in tourism circles regionally, nationally and even internationally, said Thomas, the county’s tourism director.

“In the past six, seven months, we’ve created some strong destination awareness, so the buzz is starting to get out there about the Sports Coast,” he said.

Thomas expects a noticeable uptick in activity once the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex of Pasco County comes online in July 2020 and begins booking events for 2021. The $44 million, 98,000-square-foot indoor space in Wesley Chapel will primarily accommodate basketball, volleyball, cheerleading, dance and gymnastics events.

“We’re thinking on a global scale for that facility,” Thomas said.

“It’s a one-of-a-kind facility,” he said, noting no other facility in the Southeast compares to it.

“We’re offering something that’s unique that people are going to travel around the state to come experience,” Thomas said.

The $44 million Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex is expect to draw tourists from across the country, and even internationally, after it opens next year. (Courtesy of RADD Sports)

The sports complex will ultimately benefit each surrounding community in Pasco, the tourism director explained.

That’s because, he said, there’ll be opportunities for marketing partnerships with local chambers and merchant’s associations, encouraging visitors to make trips to Dade City, Zephyrhills, New Port Richey and so on.

He put it like this: “The longer (tourists) stay here, the more money they spend. The more money they spend, the greater the economy gets.”

During the presentation, Thomas shared various tourism facts and figures from the past year.

There were 965,000 visitors to Pasco, booking 1.23 million hotel room nights in 2018, he said.

That generated roughly $57.5 million in sales tax for the county.

A group of skydivers enter a plane which they will jump from at Skydive City in Zephyrhills. Skydive City is one of Pasco County’s top tourist attractions. (File)

The economic impact generated an estimated $194 in tax savings for each Pasco household, Thomas added.

Additionally, tourism supports about 7,500 jobs each year, at hotels, restaurants, attractions and other businesses, he said.

That represents 13 percent of all jobs in the county, he said.

The tourism agency’s “bread and butter” is youth and amateur sports tourism. The next most popular categories are leisure and adventure travelers for activities including biking, fishing, boating, ziplining and so on.

He pointed out the county’s top tourist attractions annually, in order, are:

  • Skydive City in Zephyrhills
  • Giraffe Ranch in Dade City
  • Lift Adventure Park in Hudson
  • TreeHoppers Aerial Adventure Park in Dade City
  • Anclote Key Preserve State Park in West Pasco
  • Werner-Boyce Salt Springs State Park in West Pasco

He described adventure attractions as “where the rubber meets the road in pulling the entire 742 square miles of a destination together under one umbrella to call ourselves Florida’s Sports Coast.”

In addition to sports and outdoor recreation, Thomas said a greater focus is being placed on soliciting social, military, education, religious, fraternal groups, as well as business travelers, conventions and corporate retreats.

They’re doing that by leveraging meeting space that’s available at various hotels, golf clubs and local colleges.

“Those are the niche marketing segments or niche influencers that we’re trying to partner with and cater to,” Thomas said.

The bulk of the county’s visitors come from other areas of Florida and the Southeast region, followed by the Northeast and Midwest, he said.

But, he noted, there’s a growing number of international tourists. They made up 9% of all travelers to the area in 2018.

Pasco’s top international market is Canada, Thomas said. They mainly visit between January and April and their primary interests lie in outdoor activities, particularly cycling.

Meanwhile, as tourism grows, Thomas’ department is growing, too.

The agency has six staff members, including Thomas, but also is hiring a corporate tourism sales manager and a digital media producer, he said.

Published November 06, 2019