Great walking trails through the forest, & paved biking trails. Saw lots of friendly bicyclists…read more Air pump & bicycle tools available for bicyclists near the restrooms. Parking gets full, but there's additional parking north on Fatio. Saw small wild blueberries. A tiny red tick dropped from the trees & landed dangling in my hair. Only saw that one. Great shade & lots of plant diversity. Fun seeing the different trees & plants. Saw a Giant Leopard Moth caterpillar also.

I love Lake Beresford. My favorite place to get my outdoor time in. I love how quiet and shady this…read moreplace is. A paved 1.8 mile path to run and even have the option to try the spring to spring trail if you dare. Can't wait for the expansion that's coming.

This playground is incredible! A community funded project, this playground is not to be missed - it…read morehas designs and features I haven't seen anywhere else! We love stopping to play here if we are in the Deland area. Freedom Playground has plenty of parking, bathrooms, pavilions with picnic tables, and playground equipment that can be used by a wide range of ages and body abilities. I love that the park has one main entrance gate to keep kids contained and also has the little kid area separate from the big kid area. There are accessibility features like wheelchair accessible ramps for the playground equipment and a ground level merry-go-round. There's plenty of slides, climbing and obstacles, a zip line, pirate ships, pretend play houses, and all the features you would want in a playground. I love the nods to Florida with multiple gators throughout! Freedom Park is a Florida gem!

From what I've read online, DeLand faced the exact same issue that so many municipalities around…read morethe country have faced and continue to face regarding what to do with their playgrounds. At one point in time it was a thing to build these large destination playgrounds made out of wood. While a nice idea on paper, eventually the upkeep proves to be problematic and expensive. Eventually the municipality is faced with the hard choice of costly renovations that will need to be redone in the not too distant future, demolishing the structure or trying to replace it with something more modern/contemporary. Either way it equals a lot of money that usually is nowhere to be found. Thankfully a few years ago DeLand along with residents, area companies, school children and a newly formed non-profit committee figured out how to replace the original wooden structure. Amazingly over 300K in private donations were raised along with DeLand kicking in the rest and what you have today is an amazing structure/facility. In my own area there have a been a few success stories with places like this: www.savekidscastle.org/ But there have also been a few mismanaged disasters with places like this: articles.mcall.com/2004-11-19/news/3571642_1_playground-jungle-gym-time-capsule What works here: * Lots of parking * Solidly clean bathrooms * Lots of shaded areas * Super safe recycled rubber ground which means no tracking mulch into the car * A very needed water fountain * Lots of different structures/play areas/misters that offer a ton of diversity What doesn't work: * At least when we were here the zipline was in sad shape. It needs to be raised up or just gotten rid of it because it was way too low to be enjoyable. I don't want to lay on the hyperbole but honestly aside one other park (Kids Castle in Doylestown, PA) this place is the nicest that I've ever seen and even though my kids are arguably a bit on the too old side to be enjoying a place like this, they still did. Great job DeLand! What an awesome place for the community!

Such a beautiful place to spend a day with endless activities! You can walk the boardwalk, swim,…read moresnorkel, scuba, tube, kayak, or paddleboard down the spring. Fishing is permitted from the fishing dock on the St. Johns River. There is also camping, cabins for rent, hiking, and manatee viewing. You can even rent an all-terrain tracked wheelchair for accesible hiking! You can find a gift shop and a concession stand inside the park. Follow the Blue Spring State Park Facebook page to stay up to date on fun activities and events like Manatee Bingo, Meditate & Move with the Manatees, guided moonlight hikes, and the Junior Ranger Program. My favorite event of the year is Firefly Nights from around mid March to mid April. You get to walk the boardwalk after the park closes to see thousands of Florida fireflies! It is absolutely magical, and a little surreal. Weekdays are less crowded, but honestly if you can only go on a weekend it's worth braving the crowd. It's a separately-ticketed event, and it does sell out some nights so make sure to get your tickets in advance!

Who doesn't want to swim with the manatees! Driving to the state park, you would never think this…read morebeautiful place, this wonderful gem, is nestled back in a residential area. WOW! When we arrived and set up chairs, etc. we walked down the path to the St John's river where we first saw the gentle giants gliding through the water. The water is crystal clear and is slightly chilly when first getting in but this is what you expect from a spring fed river. Tubing down the river and then just hanging out was amazing but was highlighted by a manatee swimming directly under me. So Cool! Please remember, do not to touch them. This is a must do if time allows. You must make a reservation online but the price is per car and was crazy reasonable. Just go, enjoy!

The island is very busy around 11am but the island shop is nice, but it only has Dasani water…read more Fishing is fun but I would recommend to bring a fan but there are all sorts of species to catch. The pontoon ride is fun but can get crowded with wheelbarrows. Would recommend!

We hiked and it was an adventure We saw a lot of woodland…read morewildlife. The weather was perfect. Low humidity with pleasant temperatures. The ferry operator was informative and the ride was smooth from the parking lot dock to the island. If you want to experience the real Florida I highly recommend Hontoon Island. Make sure you don't miss the museum and gift shop.

This park is HUGE. A lot going on! But it's convenient for parties, BBQ's , family get-togethers,…read morereally any event you have going on this park can handle it! From the play ground area (which is nice and clean) to the pond ( which you can stroll around the walking path) heck, you can even go see some turtles or ducks. Feeding the ducks is always a memory that brings a smile to my face!!

Nice park great walking area even with my dog. Love feeding the ducks. Good shade. Easy path paved…read moreto walk.

Lake Colby Park is beautiful! If you've never been, you need to go. The energy around here is…read moreamazing. It's just quiet and peaceful. It's definitely a place that you come when you want some respite.

We checked this spot out for fishing with the kids (beware of gators and snakes) and it was…read morepeaceful and secluded. We got to see a variety of bugs and tons of beautiful deer! There's a little walking path hidden off to the side when you're exiting to circle so don't miss it! Cute little walking paved path we did with the kids and got to see deer, turtles and so many butterflies. If you go out here take a lunch as they have many picnic tables to sit at.

A lonely little…read morepark Cypress Lake Park is a little park on a little lake. Not really a lake, more of a hole with some water. Probably even less water than usual lately because of the lack of rain. It does have a boat ramp but I suspect not very many people use it because there are probably all kinds of nasty things living in that water. All you could is just go around in small circles. The park does have a little playground, hoop court, picnic area and a barbecue grill but not a whole lot more. I suspect some local people bring their kids to the park but probably not a whole lot going on here. The area is actually a pretty lonely place too. It was going to be a new development that was started a while back and then stopped suddenly when the housing market crashed. Some of the roads around the park are still unpaved and houses unfinished. Maybe now that the economy seems to be improving the park and area will start to grow again. It is a pleasant place that just needs a bit of TLC.

This is my DPE deland awareness group meeting place a beautiful place to watch the sunset and go…read morefishing..... watch out for the Gators!!!!

Nice little park. Not a large parking lot. But easy to get to. Nice. Clean restroom facilities…read more Only complaint is poop on docks. You would think when they open the restrooms and park in morning they would have someone rinse them off.

This a nice park with lots of amenities with restrooms, boat ramps and a nice pavilion it's known…read moreas a fishing park and it seems to live up to its name with a numer of regulars that find this the best place in the area to wet a line. Also known as Crow's Bluff and was the site of the original ferry crossing between Deland and Eustis ca.1900. It also seems to be a very popular place for the locals to spend their lunch hour in the shade during the week.