Hillsborough River State Park

July 11th, 2008

Hillsborough River State Park – North Thonotosassa, Florida


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This past weekend we decided to take a trip down to Hillsborough River State Park and see what it was all about. The park itself is huge and there's tons of things to do at the park. You can pack a lunch and go for a hike around any of the 4 trails that lead through about 7 miles of the park. You can bike along the wetlands nature trail. The park also offers guided tours of Fort Foster. The only standing replica of a fort from the second Seminole War. While we arrived too late to take the tour, I think it would be a great learning experiance for anyone who wants to learn a little bit about Florida's history and have a good time enjoying Florida the way it was meant to be.

You can also head on over to their HUGE swimming pool that located in the middle of the park almost. a beautiful place to head on the weekends. The price is $2 per person to get into the swimming area. even if you're not swimming, you still have to pay the fee so be prepared.

Personally, the $4 (per car load of up to 8 people) to get into the park and the $2 per person to get into the swimming area is definitely worth it. You'll have no problem finding a parking place and there's not an overwhelming number of people at the pool side. At the pool you will also find the park's gift shop and consessions. The food looked pretty good even though we didn't try it. also, they have tables with flat iron grills placed in the center. I've never seen that before and found that to be really cool as well. We dont know what they use them for or anything but perhaps one of you might know and be able to drop us a comment and let us know. It would be interesting to find out.

After checking out the pool and swimming for a little bit we headed over to parking lot #3 to eat lunch and relax whiile the kids played on the playground. There is plenty of covered picnic tables for you to sit at but you might be surrounded by buzzards. yes i said it, buzzards. there were probably a good 30 buzzards just flying around and perching themselves on top of the pavillions. This could have been just that day that they decided they wanted to hang around i'm not sure but to me, they looked pretty comfortable as if it were their meeting grounds. After we finished our lunch we headed down the trail towards the suspension bridge. This thing is awesome!. It's definitely beautiful and would make a great destination for photographers. In the evening light with my Nifty Fifty (50mm f/1.8), I walked away with some amazing photos. could have used a little fill flash but even without it the photos were awesome and the colors were bold and vivid. We will be going back with some models and some strobes here in the near future. It's a perfect place for beautiful portraits to say the least. All though i would recommend some type of insect repellant with deet in it. You all know how Pam is if you have read about any of our past adventures and this holds true here as well. If there's a bug that bites, it's bound to find her. and they did! the mosquitos were pretty bad in this area but that's to be expected with any type of wetlands around so be prepared. While we were out on the trail I didnt notice any deer flies or anything but when we were pulling into the park I did get attacked by one as it flew into my head through the open window, lol.

Now if you don't know, the Hillsborough River is one of the only rivers in Florida with rapids and the section through Hillsborough River State Park is home to the only Class II Rapids in Florida. To me this is pretty cool. Me being a Florida native i've never really seen rapids. Especially not in my own state. So when I had the opportunity to go and photograph some, i got overly excited and left my tripod at home. I've always wanted the 'silky water shot'. Even though i still dont have it 100% because you need a tripod for that type of shot and i left mine at home, i do know where to go to go and get it... and I will be going back tripod in hand. If you're not up for a long hike just to see the rapids, don't fret. It's only a  3 - 5 minute hike from parking lot #2. The rapids are closed off to kayaks, canoes, and boats but you can enter your canoe or kayak down stream and enjoy a day on the river.

I think that is about it for this adventure to another one of Florida's beautiful State Parks so unless we forgot something, Thanks for reading!.

For more photos from Hillsborough River State Park, please visit the Hillsborough River State Park Photo Gallery

Map of Hillsborough River State Park

Activities available at Hillsborough River State Park

Bicycling
Campfire Circles
Canoeing & Kayaking
Concessions
Facilities
Fishing
Full Facility Camping
Guided Tours
Interpretive Programs
Nature Trails
Pet Camping
Pets
Picnicking
Playground
Primitive Camping
Showers
Swimming
Wildlife Viewing
Youth Camping

Parks within 20 Miles of Hillsborough River State Park

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