Withlacoochee River (Florida) facts for kids

Withlacoochee River route

Withlacoochee River, looking east in Hernando County, just north of the Pasco County border.

The Withlacoochee River (or Crooked River) originates in central Florida's Green Swamp, east of Polk City. It flows west, then north, and then turns northwest and finally west again before it empties into the Gulf of Mexico near Yankeetown. The river is 141 miles (227 km) long and has a drainage basin of 1,170 square miles (3,000 km²). It is believed to have been named after the Withlacoochee River to the north.

Along its route are the 46-mile-long (74 km) Withlacoochee State Trail, the longest paved rail trail in Florida, the Cypress Lake Preserve, a 324-acre (1.31 km²) park with approximately 600 feet (180 m) of frontage, and Nobleton Wayside Park, a 2-acre (8,100 m²) park in Nobleton that includes a boat ramp, shelter, basketball court, and picnic tables.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District has a 5,484-acre (2,219 ha) nature preserve and recreational area with 3.7 miles (6.0 km) of frontage on the Withlacoochee River in Citrus County. The property was purchased for $13.5 million in 2005 from the South Florida Council, which had used it as the "McGregor Smith Scout Reservation".

The Withlacoochee River flows through Pasco and Hernando counties, and then forms part of the boundary between Hernando County and Sumter County, and all of the boundary between Citrus County and Sumter County, between Citrus County and Marion County and between Citrus County and Levy County (including Lake Rousseau). The largest city close to the river is Dade City.

Etymology

"Withlacoochee" probably stems from a Muskhogean dialect, which suggests that its application is comparatively recent. It is compounded of Creek we (water), thlako (big), and chee (little), or little big water. This word combination signifies little river in the Creek language, and as we-lako or wethlako may also refer to a lake, it may signify a river of lakes, or lake river. The Withlacoochee flows just to the eastward of Tsala Apopka Lake, and the St. Johns River which flows through a series of large and small lakes was called welaka by the Seminoles. An alternate etymology holds that Withlacoochee is a Native American word meaning "crooked river", which accurately describes the river as it makes its 70-mile journey from the Green Swamp in northern Polk County to the Gulf of Mexico at Yankeetown.

List of crossings

Crossing	Carries	Image	Location	Coordinates
Headwaters (Green Swamp)				28°21′39″N 81°49′8″W / 28.36083°N 81.81889°W / 28.36083; -81.81889
160210	SR 33		Lake-Polk County Line.	28°21′39″N 81°49′8″W / 28.36083°N 81.81889°W / 28.36083; -81.81889
140018	SR 471		Sumter-Pasco-Polk County Line.	28°18′47″N 82°3′21″W / 28.31306°N 82.05583°W / 28.31306; -82.05583
	River Road (The Lanier Bridge)		Withlacoochee River County Park, East of Dade City
	Former ACL Railroad Bridge (Orange Belt Railway)		Withlacoochee State Forest Richloam WMA
140031	SR 575		Lacoochee	28°28′34″N 82°9′22″W / 28.47611°N 82.15611°W / 28.47611; -82.15611
	CSX S-Line (Ocala Subdivision)			28°28′39″N 82°9′46″W / 28.47750°N 82.16278°W / 28.47750; -82.16278
080030	US 301			28°28′48″N 82°10′40″W / 28.48000°N 82.17778°W / 28.48000; -82.17778
140066	US 98		Trilby	28°28′36″N 82°11′45″W / 28.47667°N 82.19583°W / 28.47667; -82.19583
	US 98-SR 50 Cortez Boulevard		Ridge Manor	28°31′8″N 82°12′34″W / 28.51889°N 82.20944°W / 28.51889; -82.20944
Confluence with Little Withlacoochee River			River Junction State Park	28°34′21″N 82°12′0″W / 28.57250°N 82.20000°W / 28.57250; -82.20000
080026 (NB) 080025 (SB)	Interstate 75		Silver Lake	28°34′47″N 82°13′2″W / 28.57972°N 82.21722°W / 28.57972; -82.21722
184019	CR 476		Nobleton	28°38′40″N 82°15′26″W / 28.64444°N 82.25722°W / 28.64444; -82.25722
184006	CR 48		Bay Hill	28°43′26″N 82°14′31″W / 28.72389°N 82.24194°W / 28.72389; -82.24194
020004 (EB) 020003 (WB)	SR 44 Gulf-Atlantic Highway		Rutland	28°51′6″N 82°13′17″W / 28.85167°N 82.22139°W / 28.85167; -82.22139
020008	SR 200		Stoke's Ferry	28°59′19″N 82°20′59″W / 28.98861°N 82.34972°W / 28.98861; -82.34972
	Former San Jose Boulevard Bridge		Dunnellon-Citrus Springs	29°2′34″N 82°27′26″W / 29.04278°N 82.45722°W / 29.04278; -82.45722
	Dunnellon Trail Bridge Abandoned Seaboard Air Line Railroad line		Dunnellon-Citrus Springs	29°2′34″N 82°27′26″W / 29.04278°N 82.45722°W / 29.04278; -82.45722
	CSX Citrus Springs-Dunnellon Bridge		Citrus Springs-Dunnellon	29°2′43″N 82°27′51″W / 29.04528°N 82.46417°W / 29.04528; -82.46417
Brittan Alexander Bridge 020026	US 41 Main Street		Citrus Springs-Dunnellon	29°2′45″N 82°27′53″W / 29.04583°N 82.46472°W / 29.04583; -82.46472
020920 (NB) 020005 (SB)	US 19 98		Red Level-Inglis	29°1′31″N 82°40′9″W / 29.02528°N 82.66917°W / 29.02528; -82.66917
Mouth (Gulf of Mexico)				28°59′39″N 82°45′30″W / 28.99417°N 82.75833°W / 28.99417; -82.75833