Alafia River State Park

State park in Florida, United States

27°46′48.41″N 82°8′41.05″W / 27.7801139°N 82.1447361°W / 27.7801139; -82.1447361Governing bodyFlorida Department of Environmental Protection

Alafia River State Park is a Florida State Park, located near Picnic in Hillsborough County in central Florida, 17 miles southeast of Tampa on County Road 39. Even before it became a park, the area, and particularly Hurrah Lake, was the center of leisure activities since the early 1880s.^[1]

History

Phosphate mining began in the area in the 19th century. At its peak the Lonesome Mine was owned by American Cyanamid and then its subsidiary Brewster Phosphates, who excavated the area with draglines until it was no longer commercially profitable to do so. In 1993, Brewster Phosphates including the Lonesome Mine was transferred from American Cyanamid to Cytec Industries. In 1996, Cytec donated the land to the state to be used as a park in perpetuity.^[2] Some of the topographical changes caused by mining have been reclaimed, but others, including the features known as the Old Agrico Pits, persist. Some of these were shaped into small lakes during reclamation efforts by Brewster Phosphates under the state's failed Old Lands Program.^[3]

Recreational activities

The park has such amenities as bicycling, birding, canoeing, fishing, hiking, horse trails, picnicking areas, wildlife viewing and full camping facilities. Especially known for its mountain biking, it has trails ranging from beginning to advanced, with the advanced ones being in an area of the park that was once a phosphorus strip mine. The mountain bike trails were originally created and maintained by the SouthWest Association of Mountain Bike Pedalers (SWAMP) club,^[4] but are now maintained by the Friends of Alafia club.^[5] The forest has grown back. The mine was abandoned before remediation laws took effect, and the area where mountain biking exists is an erratic mixture of pond depressions and abrupt hills jutting from the surface.

Mountain Biking

Alafia State Park is home to 17 miles of bike trails that range from novice to highly advanced sections.^[6] The trails are rated Epic by the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA). The trailhead parking lot consists of bathrooms, bicycle rinsing stations, shaded pavilions, a volleyball net and a playground.^[7] Alafia Trails are maintained and kept in safe conditions by the Friends of Alafia on a regular basis. The trails are solely preserved by volunteers so that park staff can focus on resource management tasks and other maintenance.^[8] Alafia State Park regularly posts on Instagram of updates and maintenance happening to the trails. Alafia also hosts a Mountain Biking Skills Clinic that is designed to enhance a riders capability on the trails.^[9]

Gallery

Great blue heron
On the Alafia River near Lithia Springs Park
An American alligator near the campground
Hurrah Lake on the Alafia River
Footpath to the left, tough cycle path to the right

References

^ "Fort Lonesome Was No Picnic". Retrieved June 5, 2020.
^ "Hidden Gems: Alafia River State Park".
^ "Alafia River State Park" (PDF). floridadep.gov. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
^ "SWAMP Mountain Bike Club" (PDF). State of Florida. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
^ "Friends of Alafia". State of Florida. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
^ "Best Trails in Alafia River State Park". AllTrails.com. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
^ "Alafia River State Park Mountain Bike Trail in Brandon, Florida || SINGLETRACKS.COM". www.singletracks.com. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
^ "Volunteer Spotlight, Alafia Trail Crew". Florida State Parks. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
^ "Events". Florida State Parks. Retrieved April 7, 2020.

External links

Alafia River State Park at Florida State Parks
Alafia River Watershed

Protected areas of Florida

Federal level

National parks	Biscayne Dry Tortugas Everglades
National memorials	De Soto Fort Caroline
National monuments	Castillo de San Marcos Fort Matanzas
National seashores	Canaveral Gulf Islands
National forests	Apalachicola Choctawhatchee Ocala Osceola
National wildlife refuges	Archie Carr Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee Caloosahatchee Cedar Keys Chassahowitzka Crocodile Lake Crystal River Egmont Key Florida Panther Great White Heron Hobe Sound Island Bay J.N. 'Ding' Darling Key West Lake Wales Ridge Lake Woodruff Lower Suwannee Matlacha Pass Merritt Island National Key Deer Okefenokee Passage Key Pelican Island Pine Island Pinellas St. Johns St. Marks St. Vincent Ten Thousand Islands
Other national protected areas	Big Cypress National Preserve Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve
National Estuarine Research Reserves and National Marine Sanctuaries	Apalachicola NERR Florida Keys NMS Guana Tolomato Matanzas NERR Rookery Bay NERR
National Wild and Scenic Rivers	Loxahatchee River Wekiva River

State level

Parks	Amelia Island Anastasia Avalon Bahia Honda Bald Point Big Lagoon Big Shoals Big Talbot Island Bill Baggs Cape Florida Bulow Creek Caladesi Island Camp Helen Cayo Costa Collier–Seminole Colt Creek Curry Hammock Delnor-Wiggins Pass Devil's Millhopper Don Pedro Island Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson Eden Gardens Egmont Key Falling Waters Faver-Dykes Florida Caverns Fort Clinch Fort Cooper Fort George Island Fort Pierce Inlet Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou Gasparilla Island George Crady Bridge Fishing Pier Grayton Beach Henderson Beach Highlands Hammock Honeymoon Island Hontoon Island Hugh Taylor Birch John D. MacArthur Beach John Pennekamp Coral Reef Jonathan Dickinson Little Talbot Island Long Key Lovers Key Mike Roess Gold Head Branch North Peninsula O'Leno Oscar Scherer Perdido Key Sebastian Inlet Skyway Fishing Pier St. Andrews St. George Island St. Joseph Peninsula Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center Stump Pass Beach Tomoka Torreya Windley Key Fossil Reef
Botanical garden parks	Alfred B. Maclay Gardens Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Lignumvitae Key Ravine Gardens Washington Oaks
Lakes, rivers and springs parks	Deer Lake Lake Griffin Lake June in Winter Scrub Lake Kissimmee Lake Louisa Lake Manatee Lake Talquin Alafia River Blackwater River Dunns Creek Econfina River Hillsborough River Little Manatee River Myakka River Ochlockonee River Oleta River Suwannee River Three Rivers Blue Spring De Leon Springs Edward Ball Wakulla Springs Fanning Springs Homosassa Springs Wildlife Ichetucknee Springs Lafayette Blue Springs Madison Blue Spring Manatee Springs Ponce de Leon Springs Rainbow Springs Silver Springs Troy Spring Weeki Wachee Springs Wekiwa Springs Werner-Boyce Salt Springs Wes Skiles Peacock Springs
Recreation areas	Dead Lakes Gamble Rogers Memorial
Museums, historic sites, and archaeological sites	Cedar Key Museum Constitution Convention Museum Forest Capital Museum John Gorrie Museum Ybor City Museum The Barnacle Bulow Plantation Ruins Dade Battlefield DeSoto Site Dudley Farm Fort Foster Fort Mose Fort Zachary Taylor Gamble Plantation Indian Key Koreshan Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Homestead Natural Bridge Battlefield Olustee Battlefield Orman House Paynes Creek San Marcos de Apalache Yellow Bluff Fort Yulee Sugar Mill Ruins Crystal River Lake Jackson Mounds Letchworth-Love Mounds Madira Bickel Mound Mound Key San Pedro Underwater
Preserves and reserves	Allen David Broussard Catfish Creek Anclote Key Cedar Key Scrub Charlotte Harbor Crystal River Disney Wilderness Estero Bay Green Cay Wetlands Fakahatchee Strand Hal Scott Kissimmee Prairie Lower Wekiva River Paynes Prairie Pumpkin Hill Creek River Rise Rock Springs Run San Felasco Hammock Savannas Seabranch St. Lucie Inlet St. Sebastian River Tarkiln Bayou Topsail Hill Tosohatchee Waccasassa Bay Yellow River Marsh
State trails	Blackwater Heritage Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Gainesville-Hawthorne General James A. Van Fleet Jacksonville-Baldwin Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway Nature Coast Palatka-Lake Butler Palatka-to-St. Augustine Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad Withlacoochee
State forests	Belmore Big Shoals Blackwater River Carl Duval Moore Cary Charles H. Bronson Cottage Hill Deep Creek Etoniah Creek Four Creeks Goethe Holopaw Indian Lake Jennings John M. Bethea Lake George Lake Talquin Lake Wales Ridge Little Big Econ Matanzas Myakka Okaloacoochee Slough Picayune Strand Pine Log Point Washington Ralph E. Simmons Memorial Ross Prairie Seminole Tate's Hell Tiger Bay Twin Rivers Wakulla Watson Island Welaka Withlacoochee