Fire and Water Recreation Area

"The Fire and Water trail is a short loop trail that takes you through a Sandhill forest environment. At the low end of the trail is a small stream and there is also an overlook area with a view of Black Creek. The trail itself is firm sand and free of debris for the most part. Trail markers look fairly new and are very clear. The loop also connects to at least one other horse/hiking trail in the forest. This is a great place for a short hike or as an introduction to the area."

"This is a great place for bicycle, ATV, Horseback, cross-country running and even plane spotting. Its fairly close to Cecil field and large, loud aircraft are usually operated during the day. Its not too bad though. Plenty of open space. There are several trail systems available and accessible to hike or horseback. There is a spot for canoe's and kayaks to enter the black creek. I have seen people swimming and successfully fishing. Several historic areas of interest are in the forest. 3 cemeteries and the Nolan church which has a cemetery and working well in the back. I have camped over night here. It makes for great stargazing on a clear, moonless night. My first few visits involved numerous ticks and mosquito's. I have since treated my clothes and pack with premethrin and some mosquito spray. That eliminated the insect issue. Depending when you go, I would advise high visibility clothing as to not be shot by a hunter. Would be good for rc cars/drones/ and dogs. Good place. Far enough away from Jacksonville."

"Great trail for hiking. Made the mistake of taking a jogging stroller and almost couldn't complete the trail. In two separate areas my wife and I had to lift the stroller and carry it, but the trail does have a sign that says "foot traffic only" so I can't really say I wasn't warned. It all worked out though and it was a nice two mile walk."

"This is a review of the Fire & Water Trail/Old Jennings Trail. This was my first experience with Jennings State Forest and while it was great...my second at Dunn's Farm was the best ever (see my review under Jennings State Forest.) I had originally chosen to do the Old Jennings Trail only, but because this trail isn't the best marked, I ended up making my own double loop trail and had a great time. The trails are clearly marked but what makes it tricky in spots is the fact that the map on the forests website has this trail as a different color than the blazes that are actually on the trail. Just a little nit-pick that was confusing...but you can bring googlemaps up and find your way pretty easily ;). (kinda cheating...I know). Anyway, unlike Dunn's Farm this is a vast pine land section of the forest that meanders through some gradient, a few foresty spots, creeks and some great scenery all around. It's fairly high terrain so there's little sogginess though I did run into a few patches here and there by creeks. The trails are wide and sandy at points primarily because they are either roads or for horses. I know people dislike the "sandy trail" thing but don't let that stop you from cranking out this hike...it's quite nice and once you get to Fire & Water it gets very good and lives up to it's name. You'll have the opportunity to cross streams, see controlled burned areas and you'll see copious amounts of wildlife and flora. It's a nice little section of trail and I even had a wild turkey jump/"fly" over me while on Fire & Water. After a confusing start, this turned out to be a great hike that kept me fascinated throughout. It was pretty easy and pretty quiet and I would do it again now that I have a better handle on the area. Recommended."

"Nice trails. Bring bug spray as yellowflies are bad. Black creek is very refreshing after the hike back to it."