Marion County is a county located in the North Central region of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 375,908. Its county seat is Ocala. Marion County comprises the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. It includes part of Ocala National Forest, which also extends into three other counties.
Lake County is a county in the central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 383,956. Its county seat is Tavares, and its largest city is Clermont. Lake County is included in the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Dunnellon is a city in Marion County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,928 at the 2020 census, up from 1,733 in 2010. It is part of the Ocala Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Ocala is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Florida, United States. Located in North Central Florida, the city's population was 63,591 as of the 2020 census, up from 56,315 at the 2010 census and making it the 43rd-most populated city in Florida. Ocala is the principal city of the Ocala metropolitan area, which had a population of 375,908 in 2020.
Silver Springs Shores is a census-designated place (CDP) in Marion County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,846 at the 2020 census, up from 6,539 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The Villages is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sumter and Marion counties in the U.S. state of Florida. It shares its name with a broader master-planned, age-restricted community that spreads into portions of Lake County. The overall development lies in central Florida, approximately 20 miles (32 km) south of Ocala and approximately 45 miles (72 km) northwest of Orlando. As of the 2020 census, the population of the CDP was 79,077.
Silver Springs is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Marion County of northern Florida. It is the site of Silver Springs, a group of artesian springs and a historic tourist attraction that is now part of Silver Springs State Park. The community is part of the Ocala metropolitan area. It was first listed as a CDP for the 2020 census, at which time it had a population of 2,844.
The Ocala National Forest is the second largest nationally protected forest in the U.S. State of Florida. It covers 607 square miles (1,570 km2) of North Central Florida. It is located three miles (5 km) east of Ocala and 16 miles (26 km) southeast of Gainesville. The Ocala National Forest, established in 1908, is the oldest national forest east of the Mississippi River and the southernmost national forest in the continental U.S. The word Ocala is thought to be a derivative of a Timucuan term meaning "fair land" or "big hammock". The forest is headquartered in Tallahassee, as are all three National Forests in Florida, but there are local ranger district offices located in Silver Springs and Umatilla.
The Apalachicola National Forest is the largest U.S. National Forest in the state of Florida. It encompasses 632,890 acres and is the only national forest located in the Florida Panhandle. The National Forest provides water and land-based outdoors activities such as off-road biking, hiking, swimming, boating, hunting, fishing, horse-back riding, and off-road ATV usage.
The 74-mile-long (119 km) Ocklawaha River flows north from central Florida until it joins the St. Johns River near Palatka. Its name is derived from ak-lowahe, Creek for "muddy".
State Road 40 is a 91.8-mile-long (147.7 km) east–west highway across northern and east-central Florida, running from U.S. Highway 41 (US 41) in Rainbow Lakes Estates eastward through Ocala over the Ocklawaha River and through the heart of the Ocala National Forest to SR A1A in Ormond Beach. Names of the road include Silver Springs Boulevard in Ocala, Fort Brooks Road from Silver Springs through Astor, Butler Road in Astor, and Granada Boulevard in Ormond Beach. Former sections in Ormond Beach are named "Old Tomoka Road" and "Old Tomoka Avenue."
The Florida Trail is one of eleven National Scenic Trails in the United States, created by the National Trails System Act of 1968. It runs 1,500 miles (2,400 km), from Big Cypress National Preserve to Fort Pickens at Gulf Islands National Seashore, Pensacola Beach. Also known as the Florida National Scenic Trail, the trail provides permanent non-motorized recreation for hiking and other compatible activities within an hour's drive of most Floridians.
Marion Oaks is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Marion County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Ocala Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,034. The community is currently exploring becoming an incorporated city.
Orange Lake is an unincorporated community in Marion County, Florida, United States. It is located on US 441, on Orange Lake south of McIntosh.
Rainbow Lakes Estates is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Marion and Levy counties, Florida, United States, established as a Municipal Services District. The Marion County part of the community is part of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Levy County portion is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was first listed as a CDP for the 2020 census, at which time it had a population of 3,438.
Juniper Springs, located in the Ocala National Forest east of Ocala, Florida, is a natural spring that forms the headwaters of Juniper Creek that winds its way to Lake George in the Saint Johns River. It is one of the oldest and best known recreation areas.
The Lake George State Forest is a designated protected area and state forest in the U.S. state of Florida. The 21,176-acre (8,570 ha) forest is located in northwestern Volusia County, Florida, near Lake George and the communities of Pierson, Barberville, and Volusia. It is overseen by the Florida Forest Service within the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Rutland is an unincorporated community in Sumter County, Florida, United States. The ZIP Code is 33538, which it shares with Lake Panasoffkee, over nine miles to the southeast.
Orange Creek is a small stream in north-central and northeast Florida, that drains Orange Lake to the Ocklawaha River. Privately owned Orange Springs provides part of the water volume.
The Indian Lake State Forest is approximately 4,466 acres of gently rolling sandhills and pastures just north of historic Silver Springs in Marion County, Florida. This property was acquired in 2007 and 2008 under the Florida Forever program, with additional money from Marion County and help from The Nature Conservancy, Silver Springs Working Group, and the Department of Environmental Protection.
