I headed out the door at 7 a.m. on a Saturday morning to begin my State Parking journey for the day. My first stop was Fort Cooper State Park. It took me less than two hours to get to the park and the drive time flew by. As I entered the grounds there was a short drive to the walkway leading to a beautiful picnic area with an amazing lake view.
As I hiked towards the end of the Seminole Heritage Trail, in search of the fort, I spotted some logs lumped up together that I jokingly referred to as the fort. Moments later I stumbled upon a sign at a fork in the road. On the sign was a map that showed one way to continue the hike and the other way to the fort. Now the arrow to the fort pointed in the direction I just came from. Those stick were indeed the fort, or what was left of it.
I walked back to Fort Cooper and I stood there in shock for moments, taking a closer look to see how they once constructed the wooden frame. The fort was erected to help keep the wounded officers safe but I am not really sure how it collapsed. I do understand this is Florida history but most of the stories of war pain me. It seems like no matter what there was not a clear winner. Most of the stories about the Second Seminole War share about all of the deaths, on both sides. Rarely do you hear about all of the victories.
Anyhow, It really is a nice park to visit, the lake was gorgeous and the hike was not only manageable but pleasant.
Before you visit, make sure you check out the parks website for all of the up-to-date park information: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/fort-cooper-state-park
