Little Manatee River State Park North Trail Head — Attraction in Riverview

Yesterday, with abundance of gradatude Cilla Plogander and I went to our favorite 6.2 mile hike along the Little Manatee River State Park, north entrance. It's old Florida wilderness. We were greeted with closure signs for part of the park .After 2 hurricanes from a couple month's earlier, trees were still down on portions of the trai, and the northern most sections was completely overgrown. We didn't let that stop us from enjoying the beauty of nature's chaos. Abundance and prosperity begin with gradatude and appreciation. Our determination to have our lunch at the primitive camp site drove us deeper into conquering the obstacles before us. It felt wonderful accomplishing our goal to eatg our deliciously made sandwiches on picnic tables in the camping area. But our adventure continues. Curiosity got the best of us. The trail wasn't really that difficult. Sure we had to scramble over and under down trees to reach the campground. What if we continue onwards. Could we make it to the bench looking onto the Little Manatee River like we always do? We trug onwards until it became apparent that we needed to turn back. At the beginning of the hike, there is a cross-over trail. We set new goals. We wanted to reach the bench with the view. We always set on it. It's usually towards the end of our journey. We usually reflect upon our journey with a drink and a fruit on that bench. Today wasn't going to be any different. When you are grateful fear dissappear and abundance blinds you. We had an awesome day exploring ourselves and a new appreciation of nature furry. We hiked 8.6 miles. at place for a 6...

Important Tip: This site is NOT located WITHIN the little manatee river state park. Though you do have to pay at the ranger station (entrance to the little manatee river state park) or pay at the honor box at the start of the north trail, it is not actually located within the park itself. It's actually up the road a bit from the entrance to the park. The google address is correct but for those who are confused, that might be helpful. There is a small dirt lot to park in on site. The trail itself was great. A little overgrown in parts, specifically the big bushes along the path that were at the start of the trail (if you started from the left), but besides that, everything else on the trail was maintained well. I opted for the 6 mile loop and had a blast. You're walking along the river, so there's water views of some sort at least 50% of the hike. It took about 3 hours total to complete and was partially shaded throughout. I encountered many snakes and tortoises, but really nothing else along the trail. Fun hike that I'd definitely recommend...

I love all nature, so this was worth the visit, but there are some improvements needed: 1). Ranger at gate does not like to make change for a $20. 2). I tried to do the 'Green' trail that loops on the inside of the park (as opposed to the river shore area). There were several areas that lacked any trail markers such as near the Equestrian campground and a key intersection near Dude Lake (I've never seen an unmarked 4-way intersection in a state park). There are several areas that overlap (Equestrian Trails, Service Roads, etc.) so without good signage its easy to meander off course. The park isn't that big as to be perilous so if lost, follow a wide service road. One of the key Green trail markers at a fork was broken off, and luckily I chose the right direction. 3). There are no distances or scale gauges on any of the maps. I think the Green Loop is about 3.5 miles, but in the hot FL sun, that can feel like 10 miles. As I said, all hikes are worth it, and Florida has done a great job overall, but this one needs a...