Hillsborough River State Park - Thonotosassa

The last time I visited Hillsborough River State Park, I wasn’t able to take all the trails I wanted so I went back. I first thought that I would take the Old Fort King Trail south to see the parts of it I missed when I visited John B Sargeant County Park and walked north. I was surprised to find it overgrown with grass and open to the sun. It was very hot. I walked for a ways and passed a sign. I don’t know what the sign said, because as I stopped to read it, a gigantic black fly two inches long landed on it right in front of me. It looked much like a horsefly on steroids. I removed myself from the area very quickly. Looking it up later I believe it must have been a type of Mydas fly, which are harmless and also kind of rare – lucky me! Further down the trail, it was still very hot. I considered turning back, but at that exact moment I saw a patch of flowers (see top). That was when I knew I had to keep going. There were many flies, bees, dragonflies, moths, and beetles in more colors than I could ever name.
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Finally I reached the shade of the woods but soon found that it was a mixed blessing. Not five seconds after I stepped under the trees I was assaulted by about fifty mosquitoes. I pushed on for a while, but eventually had to turn back.

Visiting the park proper just down the road, I stopped by the interpretive center to cool off. This is an unmanned one-room museum of the second Seminole War here in Florida. There is a map, a timeline, and many artifacts, including a spoon, a fork, a toothbrush, shoes, and some swivel shot – miniature cannonballs (about 1.5 inches across) meant to be shot from guns able to be quickly swiveled around. There is even wood from a burned bridge.

The Seminole were patient and clever fighters that used the swampy terrain and subtropical climate to their advantage, but they eventually lost to superior numbers and superior firepower. Also, the Floridians sometimes approached under the guise of truce in order to kidnap chiefs. Of course, the Seminole were no angels either; they even kept slaves.

After stopping for a snack and water, I finally took the trail I originally wanted to take. What I found was a fantasy landscape of twisted trees and logs like something out of a Sonic the Hedgehog game (see below). There were several hollow stumps with the holes extending well below ground level, reminding me of volcanoes. One tree grew across the path in such a way to make a neat bicycle jump. One gigantic hollow tree had a bumpy, swollen base. One tree wore a tutu (see left). This is obviously where God stashes his oddest sculptures. I also found more mosquitoes, but this time I had brought my spray. If I stopped to take a picture, admire a tree, or to apply more spray, they would immediately be all over me. There weren’t many other animals out that day. One exception was what might have been a large mayfly flying rapidly back and forth between two leaves with its long legs extended. It was one of the strangest behaviors I’ve ever seen. I never know what I’m going to see on my walks.  Perhaps the heat had driven it mad. Perhaps the heat had driven me mad and I was only hallucinating it. I suppose I’ll never know.

15402 US 301, Thonotosassa, Florida
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Written by Daniel Noe, InkDoodler.com