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Centrally located on the
West Coast of Florida, Hernando County stretches out over 312,000 acres
bordered on the west by the Gulf of Mexico & the Withlacoochee River on
the East. Considered the Northern Gateway to Tampa Bay, Hernando County is
only 45 minutes to the Tampa -Airport. It's the peaceful suburban way of
life combined with commercial growth and progress that makes Hernando
County a pleasant Florida Lifestyle.
The natural beauty of
Hernando Counties geography balances the bustling growth of a community in
progress. To the west lies the Gulf of Mexico, a recreation Mecca for
boater, fishermen & swimmers, while the crystal waters of the Weeki Wachee
River provide a unique scenic panorama for the water enthusiast. Rolling
Hills of pastures and dense forests for the horse rover and hiker are
located on the Eastern side of the county. The Withlacoochee State Trail
continues through Hernando County and is celebrated by walkers, joggers,
skaters and bikers from throughout Florida.
Located just 10 minutes away from Glen Lakes is Pine Island. This beach
offers the sun lover the opportunity to enjoy the gulf breezes everyday.
At the northernmost of the island sits the county beach a place for residents and visitors to enjoy another breathtaking sunset and a day at the
shoreline.
Aripeka, traditionally a fishing village dating back to the 1800's still
evokes an era of days gone by. A drive south on Shoal Line Boulevard leads
you past an expansive view of saw grass and over a small bridge from where
you can view a great Florida sunset.
On the mouth of the Weeki Wachee River sits Bayport, one of the original
settlements in the area. At the tip of the community is the popular
waterside pier, favored by locals and visitors for fishing, boating and
sunset watching.
Chosen as the county seat in 1856, Brooksville is one of the two
incorporated cities in Hernando County. As the southern belle of Hernando
County, Brooksville is rich in history and charm with its Victorian homes,
cobble stone streets, antique shops and classic courthouse.
Weeki Wachee is one of the smallest cities in the State of Florida and the
second incorporated city in Hernando County. It is home to the famous
Mermaids and houses a unique water park at the Weeki Wachee Springs origin.
Local attractions include the Citrus Attraction at Boyette Groves, antique
shops, Rogers Christmas House, Weeki Wachee Springs Water Park. For
information on attractions in Hernando County, contact the Hernando County
Tourist Development Council at 1-800-601-4580. Request a calendar of
events for the current year.
Hemando County has thousands of acres of glorious nature preserves, grand
southern belle of a county seat and a thriving new home market. Yet its
national claim to fame is a spring full of faux mermaids.
For nearly 60 years, tourists have come to Weeki Wachee Springs'
underwater theater to watch the mermaids perform a variety of underwater
feats, discretely breathing through air hoses placed strategically in the
scenery. Operated by the City of Weeki Wachee, population nine, and owned
by the Southwest Florida Water Management District, the vintage
attraction is showing its age and struggling to survive. Led by the tiny
town's mayor, mermaid Robyn Anderson, supporters have initiated a "Save
Our Tails" campaign to keep the doors open.
Brooksville, the only other incorporated city in Hernando, is the county
seat - and its history reaches back more than a century before mermaids
began cavorting in the Weeki Wachee River.
Fort DeSoto was built on the northeastern edge of present-day Brooksville
around 1840 to protect settlers from Indians, but it also functioned as a
trading post and a stop on the Concord Stage Coach Line, which ran from
Palatka to Tampa.
In 1864, during the Civil War, Brooksville withstood a raid by Union
troops trying to stop locals from shipping supplies to the Confederacy.
Each January, the city commemorates the raid with a reenactment and a
festival. Originally known as Melendez, Brooksville was renamed by county
residents in honor of South Carolina Congressman Preston Brooks, a states'
rights advocate before the Civil War famous for beating an abolitionist
senator over the head with his cane after a U.S. Senate debate.
Today, Brooksville, population 7,500, retains much of its historic charm.
Victorian homes line brick streets near the picturesque downtown, which is
packed with antique shops, a variety of restaurants and the distinctive
brick courthouse. So, with only two municipalities ranging in size from
small to miniscule, where do all the people live in Hernando County?
Plenty of them live in unincorporated Spring Hill, on the county's west
side. First developed in the 1960s by the Deltona Corporation, Spring
Hill's population has more than doubled, from a little more than 30,000 in
1990 to nearly 70,000 by 2000. Much of that growth is a result of homes
popping up on infill lots left over from the community's early days.
That may change in coming years, as master planned communities invade
central and eastern Hernando County, thanks in part to the Suncoast
Parkway, a 57-mile toll road that runs from the Veteran's Expressway near
Tampa International Airport to the Citrus County line.
Hernando Oaks, the county's first large development in more than a decade,
was approved in 1999. It was followed by Sterling Hill, Trillium and the
Villages at Avalon. A handful of others are also ramping up.
With development poised to boom in Hernando, substantial portions remain
dedicated to pristine nature preserves. The Chassahowitzka National
Wildlife Refuge comprises a portion of Hernando's northwest boundary,
while the Withlacoochee State Forest and the slow-flowing Withlacoochee
River frames its east side.
Nearer the coast, the 6,000-acre Weeki Wachee Preserve provides a home for
black bears and bald eagles. And just off the coast lies a long expanse of
shallow water stretching far out from land, creating excellent "flats"
fishing. Hernando Beach, in fact, is thought to be adjacent to the finest
tarpon fishing grounds in the world.
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