Address:
6998 Lakeland Highlands Road
Lakeland
33813
Details:
Lakeland Highlands Scrub protects the largest remaining contiguous tract of the historic Lakeland Ridge and is home to a small population of red-tailed hawks and palm warblers. Two trails, the 2.2 mile Tortoise Trail and 0.6 mile Shady Oak Trail, move hikers along open dry prairie, pine flatwood, oak hammock and basin swamp habitats. You’ll find sandy trails here, so running is not recommended.
Extend Your Hike
Walking through Lakeland Highlands Scrub takes you to a secondary entrance of Se7en Wetlands Park and can extend your hike for a few miles.
Gallery:
Lakeland Highlands Scrub is a 551-acre conservation area that is like no other in Polk County. Located in south Lakeland, it is home to one of the largest undeveloped scrub properties on the Lakeland Ridge, one of a series of elevated sandy ridges along the backbone of an area known as “peninsular Florida.” This area used to be surrounded by water, but now, the Lakeland Highlands Scrub rises more than 230 feet above sea level.
The Polk County Environmental Lands Program and the Florida Communities Trust Preservation 2000 Program jointly provided funding to acquire the Lakeland Highlands Scrub. This purchase was to protect the important natural resources on the site that was left relatively natural by the previous landowners.
Map: