GET ACTIVE IN Florida’s Sports Coast

Words Catherine Renton

With its blend of nature, adrenaline-filled activities, beaches, and culture, Florida’s Sports Coast is one of the state’s best-kept secrets. Located in Pasco County, just north of Tampa, a trip to Florida’s Sports Coast promises memory-making adventures among wildlife preserves, thriving state parks, and a shoreline of seagrass and salt marshes to protect the marine biodiversity.

Located on the Gulf of Mexico, Florida’s Sports Coast covers four major towns: New Port Richey, Wesley Chapel, Dade City, and Zephyrhills. Nearly half of the county is open space, water or agricultural land, and there’s something to please everyone, whether you’re an active traveller, dedicated foodie, thrill-seeking family or fishing enthusiast.

Where To Begin

The best way to enjoy the historic downtown of New Port Richey is on foot, with charming shops, art galleries, cocktail bars and cafes to check out. The area is a seafood lover’s paradise, with fresh catches filling the local restaurants. The town has an eye on eco-tourism, and visitors can explore the area on e-scooters or take a kayak or paddleboard for a trip along the Pithlachascotee River.

Wesley Chapel is home to Epperson Lagoon – a 7.5-acre man-made, crystal-clear body of water. A first-of-its-kind in the United States, the lagoon’s ultrasound technology uses thousands of sensors to efficiently keep the water pure, using 50 times less water than a park of the same size and 30 times less water than an 18-hole golf course. At the lagoon you’ll find areas for swimming, paddle boarding, and kayaking, as well as sandy beaches, a swim-up bar, cabanas and a floating obstacle course for all the family to enjoy. In Florida’s Sports Coast you’ll find the West Tract of the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve. This 37,350-acre wildlife management is home to alligators, white-tailed deer, bobwhite quail, armadillos, grey squirrels, feral hogs and numerous bird species. Although portions are subject to seasonal flooding, a large part of the preserve is not swamp land but upland hardwoods, pine flatwoods, and open prairie land. Hikers will appreciate the many miles of marked trails, and kayakers can launch near the entrance of River

Cleaning up in Florida’s Sports Coast

Every March, Pasco takes part in a national litterpicking event. In 2023, 780 volunteers picked up 14.48 tons of trash.

In 2021 Keep Pasco Beautiful established a Fertilizer Education and Outreach Program to help protect seagrass, a key food source for manatees.

Road and paddle the Withlacoochee in either direction.

Saddlebrook Resort, a 480-acre resort in Wesley Chapel, is purposely planned as a car-free walking village, encouraging resort guests to walk everywhere. Every Earth Day, a household hazardous waste collection takes place, accepting items including light bulbs, batteries, oil, gas and paint.

The islands of Anclote Key house the Anclote Key State Preserve, whose beach dunes form a vibrant coastal ecosystem. These secluded islands, accessible by boat, are a favourite gathering place for nesting birds and returning sea turtles. In addition, the seagrass grown around the islands is a flourishing site for manatees, bottlenose dolphins, and marine invertebrates. While there, you can sunbathe on the powder-soft beach, search through the abundance of shells, wade in shallow waters or watch the sunset over the horizon.

ACTIVITIES A GO-GO

Those seeking high-octane thrills will love Skydive City in Zephyrhills, where novices can take part in a tandem skydive, or veteran jumpers can enjoy one of the United States’ best drop zones. At the Treehoppers Aerial Adventure Park in Dade City, you and the rest of the family can navigate through 10 courses with more than 100 unique elements, including cable walkways, wood obstacles and adrenalinecharged zip lines.

The waters off of the western side of Pasco

County are rich with grouper, snapper, cobia, tarpon and blue marlin, and many local fishing charters now operate a catchand-release policy to limit the stress on marine life.

While the coast attracts anglers, paddlers and even divers, inland cyclists are typically found cruising along the Suncoast Trail, a 42-mile paved trail that runs parallel to the Suncoast Parkway, passing by rivers, wetlands, and wildlife crossings.

Between the area’s parks, vibrant nature trails, local seafood, exhilarating zip line courses and nearby islands, Florida’s Sports Coast is the ultimate sustainable adventure destination for all the family.

Scalloping Season

Scalloping season in Pasco County is an annual mollusc extravaganza, this year running from 1 July to 6 August. With limits set and controlled by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to maintain the sustainability of local scallop populations, it’s often compared to an underwater Easter egg hunt. Book a fishing guide who will provide you with everything you need for your adventure, including snorkels, mesh bags and the necessary licences, as visitors are limited to two gallons of whole bay scallops per person or a maximum of 10 gallons per boat per day.