
Explore Florida with "Room to Roam”
Florida's Adventure Coast, Brooksville -Weeki Wachee

Discovering a New Destination
I don’t know about you, but for me, Florida is all about the popular beaches, sunset happy hours, and our favorite amusement parks. But as we all know, things looked a little bit different this past year, and our annual vacation couldn’t really include any of these things.
My son probably took the news the hardest when he learned that Mickey was quarantined. So, we all cried a little bit together and then thought long and hard about some other places that might be safe to travel to.
In my research, I kept reading about an area I didn’t really know much about called Florida’s Adventure Coast, Brooksville-Weeki Wachee. The abundance of outdoor activities along with their catchy slogan “Nature’s Place to Play” just screamed the perfect social distancing vacation spot with plenty of room to roam. I did some more research and decided to book it. Let’s just say we were not disappointed.
Just over an hour west of Orlando and 45 minutes north of Tampa, I was shocked that we hadn’t yet explored this natural gem. The area is home to brilliant forests, rivers, and wildlife preserves, and offers basically every outdoor activity you can possibly think of. Here are some of our favorite recommendations:
Cycling:
Explore on Two Wheels
I thought we’d tire out the kids a little bit on the first day so that they were mellow the rest of the week. So that’s why we took them cycling. My kids love to ride bikes. We rented some from Crank Works Bicycles in Brooksville and took them over to the Withlacoochee State Trail. It’s the longest paved trail in Florida – 46 miles long in total – and tiring them out was definitely a success.
The trail runs through the Withlacoochee State Forest and parallels to the Withlacoochee River, so you’re surrounded by giant trees, lush green flora, and that warm Florida air hitting your face the whole time. The kids just loved it. After we returned the bikes, we grabbed some food and beers outside The Tap Room which really hit the spot.


Paddling:
Explore by Water
The next day, we decided to hit the water for a change. With so many options like the Weeki Wachee River and the Withlacoochee River, we had a hard time choosing. But our goal was to see as much wildlife as possible, so we decided on the coastal waters.
Kayaks & Attractions hooked us up with all of the kayaks and gear we needed and set us off onto the Bayport-Linda Pedersen Paddling Trail. This 1.7-mile trail traverses through a coastal estuary, home to so many different species that it left us wanting to buy a field guide to look them all up. Bird watching is my happy place, so I brought my binoculars and spotted some ospreys, egrets, blue herons, and many other wading birds and wildlife.
The best part was spotting a group of otters. I’m surprised the kids didn’t dive in to swim with them; they got so close to the boats! And they seemed so playful. We were of course sad we didn’t cross paths with any manatees along the way, but one of the guides informed us that the Weeki Wachee River is known to be home to these sweet creatures since the waters stay a solid 74 degrees most of the year. Next time we’ll give that trip a go-round.

Motorized Fun:
Off-road Adventures
One day we decided to change it up a bit and check out Lead Foot City. It’s a 60-acre property dedicated solely to automotive lovers. Since my oldest son is very interested in racing, he wanted to check out the drift cart rentals and the burnout track. While I didn’t even know what that was at first, I quickly learned why the thrill. We had a ball watching all of the cars spin their wheels in circles.
We also learned that you can take an ATV or BMX bike to the Croom Motorcycle Area in the Withlacoochee State Forest, which might be an activity we’ll save for when the kids are a little older. I heard there are also tons more animals to be found there too, like deer, opossums, hawks, and wild turkeys, so I’ll stay entertained as well.
Obstacle Courses:
Up High Thrill
Of all the adventures, though, I think the crowd favorite had to be the treetop obstacle course. Ziplines, rope swings, hanging nets, and wobbly bridges, FLG-X Extreme Adventure Park is literally a playground, off the ground. I loved that they even had a “Little Ninja” Kids Adventure Course for the little guys. I can’t tell who had more fun – the kids or my husband.
After about 5 minutes of tackling the 80 plus obstacles they have, all of our stress from this crazy year seemed to just melt away. Swinging around trees like Tarzan will do that, I guess.
Nature therapy is real, and it is alive on Florida’s Adventure Coast. We will definitely be back for another dose real soon
