Crooked River Campground Withlacoochee State Forest

Open — Open year-round with reservations available through Reserve America. Campground closes if Hernando County is placed under a Tropical Storm or Hurricane Warning by the National Weather Service.

About

Crooked River Campground is situated on Silver Lake within the Croom Tract of Withlacoochee State Forest in Hernando County, just 5 miles from I-75. This tent-only campground offers 23 campsites with water hookups, picnic tables, and fire rings with grates. The campground provides a bathhouse with restrooms and is part of the Silver Lake Recreation Complex on the Withlacoochee River system. Withlacoochee State Forest spans over 165,000 acres across five counties and was ranked number one on the World Wildlife Fund's "10 Coolest Places You've Never Seen in North America" in 1999. The forest features the Withlacoochee River (meaning "crooked river" in Native American), which flows 70 miles from Green Swamp to the Gulf of Mexico. The landscape includes open pine sand hills, dense woodlands, and canopied trails with slash pine, longleaf pine, cypress, magnolia, hickory, and oak trees. Recreational opportunities include river access for paddling, fishing, and canoeing directly from the campground, plus nearby hiking trails and the Withlacoochee State Trail. The forest supports diverse wildlife including bald eagles, fox squirrels, gopher tortoises, white-tailed deer, and turkeys. Seasonal hunting is permitted in most of the forest outside campgrounds. Generator and chainsaw use is prohibited in camping facilities. During hunting season, hikers must wear at least 500 square inches of blaze orange clothing on trails.

Directions

Via I-75: Take Exit 301 for SR-50/US Hwy 98. Head east on SR-50/US Hwy 98 to Croom Rital Road at the 3rd traffic light. Turn left (north) on Croom-Rital Road and continue approximately 3.5 miles to the entrance to Silver Lake Recreation Complex on the right. After passing gatehouse, stay on road to the right. Crooked River Campground is the last campground at the end of the campground road.

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