Mountain biking in Florida doesn’t sound very challenging given the lack of mountains. But what if you build trails in and around an abandoned quarry? That certainly changes the perception.
And that is exactly what the state did when it converted a quarry operation adjacent to the former Cross Florida Barge Canal into a mountain biking destination in the Sunshine State. Located in north Central Florida, Santos Trailhead & Campground is located west of US 441 between Ocala and Belleview.
“Santos was developed by grass roots volunteers who wanted a place to ride mountain bikes on the Cross Florida Greenway (CFG) as it evolved out of the former Cross Florida Barge Canal (CFBC) Project in the early 1990’s,” explained Mickey Thomason, Cross Florida Greenway manager. “In the early 1990’s there were already trails out there. The Greenway was created in 1992 after de-authorization of the CFBC project and the federal government turned the lands from the CFBC back to the state of Florida under conditions agreed to by the U.S. Congress and Florida Legislature and Governor and Cabinet.”
With that legislative action, the state could take two quarry sites and create two different mountain biking experiences. As a result, almost two dozen trails are available at this park, with difficulty ratings ranging from Easy to Difficult.
According to information posted on the Ocala Mountain Biking Association website, the Santos trail systems encompasses more than 85 miles of trails over terrain that ranges from flat and smooth to challenging climbs and 20 foot drops. The trail has earned recognition both internationally and nationally.
Santos Trailhead is formed around two quarry sites located to the south/southwest on the park property. One of these is the John Brown Pit and the other is the Vortex. When setting out the design of the trails, the first priority was building simple, single track trails, Thomason told The Buzz. As riding styles evolved, so did the trail design, adding the jumps and features commonly used in the popular free riding style.
“We brought in consultants via the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA), who did planning on improved navigability of the trails, safety via skill progression, and development of features and signage for the free-ride element, particularly at the Vortex site,” said Thomason.
The Vortex trail traverses the boundaries of the lime rock quarry using both natural and man-made structures to enhance the riding experience and test the mountain biker’s skills.
The park continues to improve the mountain bike experience for visitors. Users have commented on the climbs incorporated into this trail as well as the technical challenges built for this trail, such as wood berms, skinnies and the Corkscrew- a wooden curved obstacle that takes riders through various elevations.
Advanced trail at the 2018 Fat Tire Festival at the Vortex quarry site. [Photo/Santos Trailhead]
“Santos at first was just a dirt parking lot with no facilities and the parking area centered was around a large laurel oak tree,” Thomason recalled. “Marion County funded the day-use area restroom and in the late 1990’s we received funding to build additional facilities and pave the entrances and parking areas, then a few years later the campground was added.
“The large tree that had been the centerpiece of the parking area died but it had propagated lots of small trees around it that now have grown larger over the past 20+ years to look the way it does now,” he continued. “Also, a pump track and later skills development area were installed via our partnership with the Ocala Mountain Bike Association (OMBA), the volunteer organization that flourished from the original volunteers who wanted a place to ride.
Places like Santos Trailhead are important to bike associations like the OMBA because it provides an opportunity to enjoy their chosen outdoor sport, but also to be a centerpiece to develop skills, mentor new riders and provide a place to socialize with like-minded enthusiasts, according to the organization.
Thomason said that there are already new projects planned for the site that will expand on Santos Trails’ appeal to the mountain bikers, no matter their skill level.
“A new Flow Trail is just being completed in the Vortex Area by a private contractor and the project was paid for by OMBA through funds they raised at the Fat Tire Festival (FTF) last year,” Thomason explained. “Other than the new Flow Trail we have asked OMBA to start working with us on planning and installing single-track cross country MTB trail/s from the park eastward to the Baseline Road Trailhead area approximately 5 miles to the northeast of Santos when time allows. There are also plans for more paved trails going East as well as West towards Dunnellon over the next few years.”
While more trails is a good thing, it also means more maintenance. Trail maintenance is based on factors such as weather, special events, and other occurrences.
“After hurricane Irma, our outstanding volunteer partner organization the Ocala Mountain Bike Association (OMBA) had approximately 80 volunteers come over the following two weekends and during that time they cleaned up the bulk of the 80+ miles of MTB trails we have on the CFG connected to Santos,” Thomason shared. “Our staff had heavy equipment and lots of chainsaw work to do post Irma on all of the trails, trailheads and campgrounds etc.
“When special events like the annual Santos Fat Tire Festival that is held every March, staff and volunteers spend weeks or even months prior to the event getting things ready, and then there is always the post event cleanup that is required,” Thomason explained. Ongoing maintenance usually involves minor brush/vegetation trimming and control due to how fast things grow there in Florida. OMBA does monthly inspections and repairs of the wooden and dirt features in the Vortex area and other locations along the MTB trails.
All that hard work pays off. Thomason estimated that hundreds of thousands access the trails on an annual basis. This number is based on data collected via the approximate 50 access points across the Greenway.
“Our estimated total visitation CFG-wide last fiscal year 18/19 was just over 3 million visitors with the Santos trails being one of our most popular areas,” Thomason said. “We had 10,000+ visitors at the Fat Tire Festival this past March over that weekend alone.”
The Fat Tire Festival is popular and serves as a fundraiser for Santos, and it as well as other events are geared toward developing skills.
“We have numerous clinics and demos by various bike vendors and instructors that can help all levels of abilities. As we gathered from Thomason, some of the clinics are geared for beginners and there is a Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day annually and done internationally via the International Mountain Bike Association IMBA and OMBA. There are clinics just for females with female instructors. So pretty much something for everyone if they think they might have an interest in the sport.
That something-for-everyone philosophy also applies to trail accessibility. Trails within the system are marked to indicate the level of skill needed to successfully navigate it. Beginner trails carry a yellow marking system, intermediate a blue marking system, and expert trails are indicated with a red/black diamond marking.
“We also have a skills development area in the main Santos trailhead that provides a low to the ground variety of options for people to learn or progress their skill level at riding over roots, logs, rocks, wooden features and other types of terrain or obstacles that they might encounter out on the trails,” Thomason noted.
For someone who is looking to visit the park and partake in the activities at Santos for the first time, Thomason has some suggestions.
“First, I would recommend they look up info on Santos and the Greenway in advance to get an idea of what is available and to see what they might want to check out,” he said. If they have a good bike and already ride they should be able to get out on the trails, familiarize themselves with them and see what they think.
If they are new to mountain biking, several excellent bike shops nearby offer very high quality bikes for rent at reasonable prices. They, too, will provide any instructions needed for the courses.
Another resource for beginning riders is to take advantage of the OMBA scheduled rides for varying levels of ability.
Thomason also reminds riders to keep safety in mind by bringing a helmet, riding gloves, sunglasses or other eye protection, sunscreen and a way to stay hydrated like water bottles or backpack hydration system.
For those wishing for an extended stay, an RV and tent campground is located on site just east of the main trailhead. It offers 25 sites with a bathhouse and showers. Each site has electric and water hookups and a dump station on site. Visit the Florida State Park website for more info.
Vehicles and RVs camp at Santos campground in Ocala. [Photo Credit: Postwick-CC]
Three other campgrounds are operated right on the Greenway at Shangri La, Ross Prairie and Rodman.
“We take safety and security as top priorities in our facilities and have staff/hosts onsite to assist campers as needed,” Thomason highlighted. Staff will be happy to try to assist new campers on how to set up tents, hookup RV’s, etc. It is not too unusual to have someone show up with all new gear they bought at a big box store or online and not know how to set it up.
The campground and trails are open 365 days, with the exception of some closures during the annual Fat Tire Festival held in March.
Five MobileRVing preferred properties are also located nearby in the Ocala area:
Ocala RV Camp Resort is in a private RV camping setting with a great location surrounded by a natural environment of beauty with oak and magnolia trees. Our pet friendly campground is conveniently located and offers Easy On/Off to the Highway. Our Log Cabins are located around scenic ponds where you will see ducks and other Florida birds. More here.
The Wild Frontier RV Campground is family owned and operated. You will be treated like our extended family as everyone is provided with a southern hospitality welcome. The Wild Frontier Campground resort rates include full use of all facilities, including the 4000 square foot clubhouse. More here.
There are three entrances to Silver Springs State Park. The Main Entrance is located on State Road 40 at 5656 E Silver Springs Blvd, Silver Springs, FL 34488. The Camping Entrance is located on State Road 35 at 1425 NE 58th Avenue, Ocala FL 34470. The third entrance is our Equestrian Entrance, also located on State Road 40, about 1.3 miles east of the SR 40 Main Entrance. More here.
Oak Tree Village and Campground
Oak Tree Village has an extensive list of excellent RV sites and affordable apartments with some quality amenities to make your living comfortable. Located in sunny Ocala, Florida there is lots to do and our community has just what you are looking for to make an amazing stay for you and your family. More here.
Ocala Sun RV Resort offers the best of central Florida living with its convenient location, spacious full hook-up sites and first-class resort amenities. More here.