Pt 33 Whispers in the Wild: My First Florida Forest Walkabout
From sacred stillness and swinging oaks to swampy cypress groves and along came a golden spider....
Have you ever felt like some places feel like they’re waiting for you to show up and when you do, they greet you like an old friend?
Florida wasn’t unfamiliar, but its forests were. I’d never stepped foot into a Florida woodland before, not like this. My hiking boots had mostly touched desert soil, dry trails dusted with pebble and red dirt, shaped by creosote and cacti. So when I set out to find a new trail, I wasn’t expecting magic. I just wanted a good walk. What I found instead was something sacred. Indian Lake wasn’t just a morning walkabout—it was a portal into a forest that seemed to breathe, remember, and speak in hushes. And like all stories worth telling, it began at dawn.
Need to catch up?
Pt 33 Whispers in the Wild: My First Florida Forest Walkabout
Pt 32 Alligators, Monkeys and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, OH My
Or, Start from the beginning
Now that I had some grounding in the history of Silver Springs, I feel like I can appreciate it even more. I was looking for a good trail I could explore and make part of my morning walkabout. I’m a nature nut. Well, truth be told, this is something new. I wasn’t always, but once I started, I couldn’t get enough. There’s something so peaceful about being in nature.
What made this nature adventure magical was that it was happening in Florida. I had never explored a Florida forest before. My experience was limited to Arizona’s desert trails, endless dirt and pebble pathways. I had grown a kinship with saguaros and the scent of creosote after rain, the way it fills the desert air with something ancient. But Florida? It was different, tropical, humid, sandy, and level. Not even a hill. I was excited for my first walkabout.
Indian Lake intrigued me. Now part of the State Forest, it comprises approximately 4,462 acres just north of Silver Springs in Marion County. What makes this park unique is its blend of sandhills, sinkholes, depression marshes, mesic flatwoods and the lake itself.
I pulled up to the entrance just as dawn was breaking and was met with the most beautiful scene. Massive live oaks sprawling in every direction, Spanish moss swaying gently in the breeze. A glimpse of the lake. An instant smile spread across my face. I felt like I was stepping back in sacred time. The light was quickly lighting my way. The entire area was still, as if trying to hide its secrets from the hikers who would arrive in a few hours. I was in gratitude to have this moment to myself. The lake mirrored the morning light, still and glowing. Birds were singing their morning songs. My eyes found a wooden tree swing, inviting me to sit and take in the view. A small lake, unmoving, only the dragonflies stirring.
Interestingly, Indian Lake isn’t a true lake. It’s a natural sinkhole formed by Florida’s karst topography. A soluble limestone bedrock creating sinkholes and underground drainage systems. It’s fed by rainfall and surface runoff, with water filtering into the Floridan Aquifer. This lake is part of the Silver Springs recharge zone, vital for regional water quality and quantity. Water levels rise and fall with the aquifer beneath it.
I chose to walk clockwise drawn toward the cypress trees. I had no idea what treats awaited me. The lake and surrounding ecosystems support a variety of plant and animal species, some rare, some endangered.
I entered a shaded area that felt otherworldly. Live oaks forming a natural cathedral entrance. Resurrection ferns and Spanish moss adorned their limbs. The air cooled. Light filtered in soft patterns on the ground, and every twisted limb seemed to welcome me. These trees resist hurricanes with their wide, winding forms spralling along the ground instead of rising tall as if greeting those who will sit a while. Their bend, their resilience, it’s genius.
I moved slowly, drawn deeper into their sacred hush. while the sunrise filters through in dappled patterns, dancing on the path like whispers from another time. It feels sacred here—still and storied—a place where your footsteps slow without you realizing, as if the oaks are inviting you to listen, to breathe, to simply be. I spent some time being among these great oaks and wondered what secrets they held. What had they witnessed?
Soon my curiosity was caught by a wooden boardwalk, angled and missing a plank or two. Beneath it, a stream flowed around the pond cypress, whose fluted trunks rose like ancient columns on both sides.
Stepping off the boardwalk, the cypress grove surrounded me. Time slowed. The air thickened. Cypress knees protruded like curious fingers. Water lapped quietly. The ground felt spongy beneath my shoes. I half expected the Creature from the Black Lagoon to surface from the dark black water. It was surreal. I reigned in my imagination.
These trees are wetland guardians. Their roots filter water, trap sediment, prevent erosion, and support wildlife, from frogs to herons to the occasional gator (but no alligators here, I checked). I lingered, grateful for their quiet labor (and no gators!)
Eventually, the path gently rises to higher ground. The swampy terrain fades behind me, replaced by a firm blend of sand and sun-warmed earth underfoot. The canopy opens, and the morning light pours through in hues of magenta and gold, casting everything in a soft, ethereal glow. This side of the lake feels wild and expansive—longleaf pines, turkey oaks, wiregrass, and saw palmetto thriving in the dry upland terrain.
I inhale deeply. The air is warm, laced with the scent of pine and earth. Butterflies drift lazily across the trail, and for a moment, I think about following them, until I remember this parks knack for unseen sinkholes. A hawk circles overhead, gliding effortlessly, its wings wide against the vibrant sky. It calls out once, sharp and clear, like a greeting carried on the wind.
I smile wide, eyes lifted to the sky, soaking in its graceful flight.
And then, I stop. Suddenly.
As I turned back to the trail, I came face-to-web with a massive spider stretched across the path. A Golden Silk Orb-Weaver (Trichonephila clavipes), nearly two inches long, all spindly legs and unapologetic boldness. I had to catch my breath. This was the biggest spider I had ever seen and it was 2 inches from my nose. Had the hawk warned me? I stepped back quickly. I could have walked right into her. I suddenly feel hot and sweaty.
I took a deep breath and summoned the nerve to step closer, just to observe. So what happens with the spider? Find out next week.
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Need to catch up?
Pt 33 Whispers in the Wild: My First Florida Forest Walkabout
Pt 32 Alligators, Monkeys and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, OH My
Or, start from the beginning
Thank you for tuning in and reading this. I super appreciate you.
~Karen
This place sounds amazing to visit. When I was a kid, I went to the bottom of our garden. We had a big garden and this was in Africa. I came across this huge spider web. It was probably 5m wide and 3m high. It was full of golden orb spiders. This image has never left me. I think it would have made national geographic if I had taken a picture. There where two spiders bigger than the rest which I imagined where the King and Queen. It was an incredible site. If I had fallen into that, my heart would have stopped from fright.
Sounds very magical there, indeed! Will be wondering about what happened with the spider now all week! 🕸️