We have several State Forests in Florida that are riddled with Forest Roads and trails through what are called Wildlife Management Areas (or WMAs). These are perfect for dual sport action and will be the initial proving grounds for my Tenere. In my area, West Central Florida, alone we have the Croom, Richloam and Citrus WMAs that are part of the Withlacoochee State Forest. A little further north is Ocala National Forest and up by Tallahassee are the Apalachicola and Hells Tate Forests. Any motor vehicles are allowed on the Forest Roads, so long as they’re tagged, but anything short of a four-wheel-drive or good dirt bike would be crazy.
You’ll encounter many different surface and trail conditions in the forests, although they’re predominantly fluffy sand and during the summers you can expect a lot of water. But don’t expect a lot of elevations; we’re still in Flatistan here. Lots of primitive camping, too. These places are thousands upon thousands of acres and although I’ve been through them a lot with bikes and my Jeep Wrangler, I always take my map and a good compass.
A few weeks ago, I picked up a new leftover 2009 Kawasaki KL250 Super Sherpa and finally got it out in the forest this morning. We were in the Richloam WMA which is about 35 miles to my north, just east of Brooksville Florida. Thought I’d take my camera along for a few photos.
Quick little story on the Sherpa…I was at my Yamaha Dealer (Barney’s Brandon) getting word about the most recent XT delay and saw this lonely guy sitting in the corner. Not exactly the prettiest bike I’ve ever seen...low fender, square headlight, olive drab. But all that made it kind of retro looking and cool. I have other bikes, but I’d just sold my only dually, a BMW G450X, so was on the lookout. I wasn’t looking to buy new, but I leveraged my disappointment in the XT delay into a nice discount, and I guess plus it’s the fifth bike I bought from them.
Hope you enjoyed the photos…
If you find yourself in the area with your dual sport (or your XT when it arrives), here are links to maps of the Croom, Richloam and Citrus WMAs to get you started. Better yet, look me up and I’ll show you around the forests and WMAs.
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-Croom.pdf
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-richloam.pdf
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-Citrus.pdf
Oh, and perhaps some of the other Florida guys could add their Forest Road info and pics…
You’ll encounter many different surface and trail conditions in the forests, although they’re predominantly fluffy sand and during the summers you can expect a lot of water. But don’t expect a lot of elevations; we’re still in Flatistan here. Lots of primitive camping, too. These places are thousands upon thousands of acres and although I’ve been through them a lot with bikes and my Jeep Wrangler, I always take my map and a good compass.
A few weeks ago, I picked up a new leftover 2009 Kawasaki KL250 Super Sherpa and finally got it out in the forest this morning. We were in the Richloam WMA which is about 35 miles to my north, just east of Brooksville Florida. Thought I’d take my camera along for a few photos.
Quick little story on the Sherpa…I was at my Yamaha Dealer (Barney’s Brandon) getting word about the most recent XT delay and saw this lonely guy sitting in the corner. Not exactly the prettiest bike I’ve ever seen...low fender, square headlight, olive drab. But all that made it kind of retro looking and cool. I have other bikes, but I’d just sold my only dually, a BMW G450X, so was on the lookout. I wasn’t looking to buy new, but I leveraged my disappointment in the XT delay into a nice discount, and I guess plus it’s the fifth bike I bought from them.
Hope you enjoyed the photos…
If you find yourself in the area with your dual sport (or your XT when it arrives), here are links to maps of the Croom, Richloam and Citrus WMAs to get you started. Better yet, look me up and I’ll show you around the forests and WMAs.
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-Croom.pdf
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-richloam.pdf
> http://www.jeepflorida.com/maps/JeepFloridadotCom-Citrus.pdf
Oh, and perhaps some of the other Florida guys could add their Forest Road info and pics…
