Getting Lost In Flatwoods Not As Crazy As It Sounds!

The most recent hikers lost in Flatwoods Park were found by HCSO’s  Aviation Unit (top) with help from the light from their cell phones.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) rescued two hikers from New Tampa’s Flatwoods Wilderness Park on June 4, a fact that could make those who regularly use the popular 7-mile biking loop wonder: 

How did that happen?

Social media teased the hikers, who were not identified, although some also sympathized with them. 

But hikers, particularly inexperienced ones, getting lost in Flatwoods Park — which has entrances on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. and Morris Bridge Rd. — or even one of the area’s hidden gems, the New Tampa Nature Park (which can be entered off Dona Michele Dr.), isn’t really as crazy as it sounds. 

This past December, an avid hiker made the news when she got lost for two hours in Flatwoods, and had to call the HCSO, which sent in a helicopter to help with the search.  

“It happens now and again,” says Jan Kirwan, the City of Tampa’s conservation parks coordinator. 

Combined, the two parks, which are connected, have more than 31 miles of wilderness hiking trails. While most of the trails are marked, Kirwan says that some are more primitive than others.

HCSO’s Aviation Unit, which is used to assist in rescues and arrests, was able to locate the most recent hikers to get turned around at Flatwoods thanks to their cell phone lights. The aviation unit then directed park rangers to their location.

According to the 9-1-1 call, a man and his friend were on the popular Panther Path, one of the park’s off-road trails, but ended up near a swampy area on the west side of the park towards I-75.

While Kirwan says people can get lost, “If you are familiar with following a trail then you shouldn’t have any problem.” Sometimes, hikers will inadvertently follow an animal trail that bisects the regular trails.

But, if you venture off the beaten path, be prepared.

Kirwan says cell phone service is not always available in the park, and if you are relying on maps on your phone, you could find yourself without any directions. It’s always smart, she says, to have a compass on hand.

Mostly, however, inexperienced hikers sometimes find themselves misdirected when they try to stretch their trip out.

“People don’t realize how dark it can get,” Kirwan says. “It’s not like there are lights out there, and under the trees there’s not much moonlight that gets through. It looks very, very different in the dark.”

That’s why the hours of the park are generally dawn to dusk. The recent hiker rescue began with a 9-1-1 call at 9:24 p.m., after the park had closed.

While neither Flatwoods or the New Tampa Nature Park are advanced hiking areas, they are a step up from, say, Lettuce Lake Park off Fletcher Ave., which is only 240 acres. Lettuce Lake, Kirwan says, is more of a gateway park into the wilderness parks in New Tampa, which offer a plethora of trails and wildlife.

“You see a lot of bird (watchers) in the morning, and there’s plenty of other animals like deer, turkeys, hares and wild hogs,” Kirwan says. “It should be a fun little hike. Just remember, it’s always good to let someone know where you’re going. Then, if you don’t get back, they know where you were.”

Drought Conditions Continue Following Flatwoods Brush Fire

Fueled by dry conditions and a recent lack of rain, three brush fires spread and burned more than 200 acres in Flatwoods Park between Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and Morris Bridge Rd., creating smoky conditions and temporarily shutting down parts of I-75 over the weekend of May 6-7.

The fires began near Fletcher Ave. and BBD Saturday afternoon, with heavy smoke forcing the closure of I-75 northbound between those two exits as Hillsborough County Fire Rescue (HCFR) fought to contain it.

The fires spread quickly from 20 acres to 200 acres, aided by high winds.

Flatwoods Park was evacuated and closed, although Hillsborough County Fire Rescue said no homes were threatened.

Around 8 p.m., after roughly six hours, Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) State Troopers reopened I-75, although advisories remained in effect for travelers due to the thick smoke from the fire.

In New Tampa, the smell of smoke was strong enough to keep many people indoors for parts of the weekend, while smoke resembling morning fog could still be seen near I-75, as travelers commuted on BBD.

The 5,000-acre Flatwoods Park, a popular local destination for biking and hiking, has ceased burning after HCFR spent hours pouring more than 30,000 gallons of water over the fire, part of a weekend effort that included the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), Tampa Police Department (TPD) and Florida Forestry Service (FFS) firefighters working in unison to slow the spread of the flames and keep the fire from endangering local residents.

Smoky conditions from the fire spread across much of the Tampa Bay area. The Lakeland Ledger reported that the smoky conditions spread to as far away as Lakeland and much of Polk County Saturday afternoon and evening.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

No matter how many firelines are dug, and no matter how much water is dumped over the spate of recent wildfires, the biggest helping hand would be rain. But, ongoing dry conditions and high winds are making things difficult for area firefighters.

New Tampa was fortunate that the Flatwoods Park fire was contained as quickly as it was. In other areas, like nearby Pasco County, a raging 2,200-acre wildfire continues to cause problems at Starkey Wilderness Park (between S.R. 52 and S.R. 54 near New Port Richey) and other smaller fires in the area have forced local schools to be shut down and caused multiple evacuations over the past few weeks.Â