Florida Trail Hikes – Bay View Trailhead to Yellow River – February, 2026

Hope all are well and being blessed of the Lord.

On February 24-26, 2026, my grandson Hunter and I camped at the Gulf Islands National Seashore campgroud – Fort Pickens, and conducted 3 day hikes on area sections of the Florida National Scenic Trail (FT).

On Wednesday, February 25 and Thursday, February 26, we day hiked the section from the East Bay Trailhead located on the west side of SR 87 (3 miles north of Navarre) to the Yellow River Trailhead located on the east side of SR 87.

We broke this section up into two day hikes.

Wednesday, February 25:
Parked at the East Bay Trailhead and hiked north to the first SR 87 crossing,
then returned using the same route (up and back method).
Distance: 11.2 miles (5.6 each way)

Thursday, February 26:
Parked car #1 at trailhead on SR 87 (stoping point for February 25 hike)
Drove north to Yellow River Trailhead to leave car #2
Hiked south to the SR 87 trailhead and car #1
Distance: 8.5 miles

Eglin Reservation:
Much of this section of the trail goes through a portion of the Eglin Air Force Base Reservation (640 square miles, or around 409,000 acres).
Most is used by the military for training.
However, they do allow the FT to pass through the northeast and northwest portions.
In order to walk on this section, one has to obtain a permit to do so.
That can be obtained by going to this web site: https://eglin.isportsman.net/Login.aspx
NOTE: This must be done at least 3 days before hiking.

Here are some views our walks on each day.

February 25: East Bay Trailhead to SR 87 Crossing

Entering the woods after a short road walk.
Note the palmettos on the right, will see many on this hike

Saw these frequently – they’re called “Ground Moss” (as told to me by a lifetime Florida resident)

Did I mention there were some Palmettos? 🙂

Campsites like this can be found all along the Florida Trail
They typically have good spots for tents, some benches, a fire ring, and are normally located near water

The water was crystal clear! We twice filtered some to drink – on the way out and the way back.

A long boardwalk after the bridge would help in times of flooding

Not only did someone dump an old boat here (full of trash), but on the otherside,
there’s what’s left of an old piano (you’ll see what I’m talking about when I make the YouTube video)
How sad!

I enjoyed seeing the different kinds of hardwood trees
Their trunks and limbs often do what is seen here

Another boardwalk section
These are sometimes seen in other sections due to the low areas through which the trail goes

Arriving at the FS 87 crossing where we turned around
This is where we’d end the next day’s hike coming from the north
Tthe parking lot was just to the left of this picture

February 26: Yellow River Trailhead to SR 87 Crossing

This section was different thnt the previous day’s
We walked through at least 4 clear-cut areas
There was also some elevation gain/loss as well

An old boat and piano on the previous section,and now this!

This is what’s left of a former boardwalk

The powerline afforded us our only open view of the day
This section contained some hills which offered easy ups and downs

The former recreation area known as Bucks Pond.
It was accessed by a short side trail down to the area.
At one time, there was fishing and other recreational opportunities.

A nice dropoff to a much lower area
There are hills in northwest Florida 👍🙂

Crossed many old roads in this section, which are used by the military
to access different parts of the Eglin Reservation

An enjoyable two days of hiking on this section of the Florida Trail

I plan to create a movie on my YouTube channel (Ken Brenner) of these hikes in God’s beautiful Creation.
Will update this article with the link when the video is completed and published.

God Bless!!!

October, 2025 Hike on the Pinhoti Trail in Alabama

Hope all are well and being blessed of the Lord.
On October 21-23, 2025, I hiked 2 of the southern most sections of the Pinhoti Trail with my trail Brother Tom Booth.

The previous June, we explored this area to enjoy the views from Flagg Mountain (southern terminus) and find road crossings and trailheads for future reference when hiking the trail (it was too hot in June to do so).
Here’s the related article of this trip.

Hike Summary:

Tuesday, 10-21

– Drove to Flagg Mountain and hiked 5.3 miles to CR 56
– Drove to Pinhoti Outdoor Center to set up camp

Wednesday, 10-22

– Hiked 6 miles on first half of section for Trammel Gap to Bulls Gap
– Camped at Pinhoti Outdoor Center

Thursday, 10-23

– Broke camp at Pinhoti Outdoor Center
– Hiked 6 miles on second half of section for Trammel Gap to Bulls Gap
– Drove Home

Here are photos of each hike.

Flagg Mountain to CR 56

Here we go!
As info, it’s steeper going via the “Pavilion” route. But, I like it better.

The tower was closed the day we were there.

The trail is marked with blue paint blaes (markers)

Note the treee in the middle, “pointing” us to the nice view 🙂

Trammel Gap to Bulls Gap

Thankful for the great weather and views of the Creation on this series of hikes.
Always good to be with my long-time trail brother Tom.

Also, the Pinhoti Outdoor Center was a great place to camp and fellowship with others.
For more information, see this link: https://www.pinhotiforever.com/

God Bless!!!

Walks on the Longleaf Trace – November/December, 2025

Hi. Hope all are well and being blessed of the Lord.

In November and December, 2025, I did three hikes on the Longleaf Trace.
The November hikes were on the traditional paved bike/walking trail.
The December hike was on the horse trail, which parallels the Trace.

November 15, 2025:

I walked Trace from the Jackson Station north (by trail) 3 miles, then returned to the car. Here are some scenes from that walk:

Milepoint 8 on the Trace.
On this walk, I started at milepoint 7 (Jackson Station and
turned around at milepoint 10 (Eply Station).

There were a few signs of the now-ended Fall season,
as seen in the remaining leaves on these small trees.

These 4 horses trying to find any remaining grass to graze.
The fenced area behind them goes around a pond.

Note the high “wall” next to the Trace.
This bike/walking paved path follows the route of a former train line.
Having a higher area next to the Trace indicates
the original tracks went “through” a small hill.

There are several of these “rest areas” along the Trace.
Sometimes, they offer views (here: the pasture the horses were grazing in)

Always a pleasant time, walking along the Longleaf Trace.

November 28, 2025

I walked the Trace (bike trail) north from Sumrall towards Lott Circle, then returned to the car.
Here are some scenes from that hike:

A “back” entrance to a very scenic ranch.

They’re not real, but they sure looked like it!

December 13, 2025

I walked Longleaf Trace Horse Trail north around 6 miles from the the Lott Circle parking area, then returned to the car. Here are some scenes from that walk:

Had nice weather and skies for this hike, plus views into pastures with cattle.

Pasture is to the right, bike trail to the left.

A scenic look at how the horse trail fits into the Trace trail system.
Trace bike trail above and to the left, scenic woods and pasture to the right.

The bike trail below from the horse trail above.

Thankful for these opportunities to walk in the Lord’s Creation.

God Bless!

Latest Movies on my YouTube Channel

Hi! Hope this finds you and your family doing well, and enjoying the peaceful and comforting grace of our Lord.

In the past 5-6 weeks, I’ve produced and published four new videos on my YouTube Channel Ken Brenner (click on this link to see the channel contents).

Longleaf Trace
This is a three-part series that shows my hikes on a nearby rail-to-trail, the Longleaf Trace. Like other rail-trails, this one follows the route of an abandoned railway that is now a paved trail for biking and walking.
The southern end of the trail is on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, and goes 41 miles northwest through farmland, woods, and the towns/communities of Sumrall, Bassfield, Carson, and ending in Prentiss.

In May, 2021, we moved from Cumming, GA (where we’d lived for 22 years) to Jones County, Mississippi. I desired to continue my hiking, but the nearby DeSoto National Forest trails are not “walkable” in the heat of the summer.
I knew about the Trace from my previsious visits to family here.
It seemed like a good place to do “summer hiking”.
I began my journey (day hikes) from the Hattiesburg Gateway in July, 2021 and walked into Prentiss in October, 2021.
There are three movies of this trail as follows:
Hattiesburg to Sumrall Part 1
Sumrall to Bassfield Part 2
Bassfield to Preintiss Part 3

To see the movie, click on the link next to each description.

As with all my movies, I like to use music to accompany the photos and videos.
You may note that, the music used at the start of each movie, has a bit of a “railroad” sound. In Part 1, I also added a traditional railroad song that I’ve always liked.
Hope you enjoy this detailed look at the variety of scenery seen in the 41-mile walk.

Tishomingo State Park Hikes
(I originally documented this trip in an article on this web site: Hike at Tishomingo State Park)
I had heard of this park and decided to pay it a visit on June 11-12, 2024.
This park is in the far upper northeast corner of Mississippi, and at over 1,500 acres, its largest state park.
I met my long-time hiking buddy Tom there and in two days we day-hiked all 13 miles of this unique state park. We camped out in the campground at the end of the first day.
What I find different (than any other parts of Mississippi) is the amount and size/shape of the rocks. Considered being in the “foothills” of the Appalachian mountains, provides this area is much different look than the rest of the state.
We were blessed with nice scenery, a lake, and a swift-flowing river.
We were also blessed with an incredible start to the second day (I’ll let you watch to see what it was! 🙂).

Here is a link to this movie: Tishomingo State Park Hike.
Hope you enjoy this walk with us through the very special scenery.

God Bless!!

June Hike at Tishomingo State Park

Hi! Hope this finds you and your family doing well, and enjoying the peaceful and comforting grace of our Lord.

On Tuesday, June 11 and Wednesday June 12 (2024), I and my long-time hiking buddy (and Brother) Tom Booth hiked and camped at Tishomingo State Park in far northeast Mississippi.

This park is located northeast of Tupelo, Mississippi and is easily accessed from the Natchez Trace Parkway as well as state highway 25.
It has 1,530 acres with camping, hiking (13 miles of trails), Haynes Lake, and scenic Bear Creek.
Its rocky landscape is unique compared to other parts of Mississippi.
Here’s a link to more information about the park:
https://www.mdwfp.com/parks-destinations/park/tishomingo-state-park

We hiked half of the trails on Tuesday, set up camp, then hiked the remaining trails on Wednesday before leaving for home.

Here are pictures that shows highlights of what we saw.

Day 1 Hiking:

The park was built by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) and opened in 1939

Right from the start, we saw the unique and very large boulders!

Note the size difference between Tom and those two rocks!

The trail often went between “walls” rock.

Note how the rocks are in layers, and here – some are different colors.

There was some nice forest walking also, but much of the time – we were amongst the rocks.

Our campsite located not far from the lake’s shoreline.

Day 2 Sunrise and Hiking:

The following highlight what was one of the nicest sunrise progression I’ve seen when camping. Praise God!

The morning mist enhanced the beauty of the moment.

Tom leading the way up a long set of rock steps.

Another comparison of man and rock.
I guess Tom felt safer if he held it up with his hiking stick!

Don’t try this one if you are averse to tight squeezes!

A patch of Cypress Knees near the river.

Thank you CCC guys for such a nice park!

(09-03-2024 Update)
I have created a video of these hikes on my YouTube Channel (Ken Brenner).
The name of the video is: Walking in Creation – Tishomingo State Park Hike – 2024
The link to the video is: https://youtu.be/2tkc8LzYb-M

Thank you for looking at this article on my trip to this scenic and interesting park.

God Bless!!