Skip to main content

Florida Friday; Rock Ridge Road and Green Pond Road from US 98 through the Green Swamp to Florida State Road 33

By
Back in 2014 I was looking for a different way to get from the Tampa Area back to Metro Orlando.  That being the case I took Rock Ridge Road east from US 98 through the southern Green Swamp of Polk County via Green Pond Road to Florida State Road 33.





Rock Ridge Road and Green Pond Road are both very narrow but paved through the entirety of the Green Swamp.  The only significant junction between US 98 and FL 33 is at Dean Still Road pictured above.  Northeast of Dean Still Road the alignment of Rock Ridge Road crosses through a small community known as Rock Ridge. 





At Poyner Oaks Road the alignment of Rock Ridge Road becomes Green Pond Road.  East of Poyner Oaks Road the alignment of Green Pond Road crosses over the Van Fleet Trail.  The crossing of Green Pond Road and the Van Fleet Trail was once the location of the community of Berry.  Berry was a siding of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's spur Florida Western and Northern Line.  The Van Fleet Trail occupies approximately 29 miles of former right-of-way through the Green Swamp which was once occupied by the Florida Western and Northern until the late 1980s.  Berry now serves as Green Pond Trail Head for the Van Fleet Trail.



Approaching FL 33 the routing of Green Pond Road enters Green Pond.  Green Pond dates back to 1879 when it was founded around local citrus groves.  The Green Pond Cemetery has a historic marker dating it back 1879 but I've seen reports that say that there was grave stones present there since the 1850s.









Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rep. Sue Myrick's letter to Gov. Easley and Sect. Tippett published in Charlotte Observer

By
US. Representative Sue Myrick's (R-Charlotte) letter to North Carolina's Governor Mike Easley and NC Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett was published in the Friday, November 30th edition of the Charlotte Observer . Why are we delaying the completion of 1-485 in Charlotte again? I read in The Charlotte Observer how rising prices of materials are leading to the delay. Why didn't these same rising costs delay the loops in Fayetteville and Wilmington? Why are we building loops in Fayetteville and Wilmington before we complete the one in Charlotte? We were working on the one in Charlotte back when I was mayor. That was 20 years ago! ... Last I looked Charlotte was the largest city in the state. There seems to be no recognition of that fact in Raleigh. No recognition that we are at a standstill with traffic. No recognition that we have a traffic problem. Nor is there any recognition of the fact that the state DOT utterly botched up the southern leg of our yet to be completed ...
Post a Comment
Read more

New River Gorge National Park & Preserve - Sandstone Falls

By
The New River, which runs through New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, is best known for its dramatic rapids and whitewater adventures.  Those features begin at one of the river's widest points: Sandstone Falls. From the Sandstone Falls Boardwalk a look at just a small part of the falls. Though the vertical drop of roughly 20 feet is less than many other well-known waterfalls in the state, the falls' expanse, where the river approaches 1500 feet wide, makes Sandstone Falls impressive.   The Boardwalk Trail leads to a better vantage point of the overall falls. It is a great spot for photography, fishing, or laying out in the sun. Access to the falls is relatively easy: from Hinton, cross the New River on Highway 20, then turn right onto CR 26 and follow New River Road to the Sandstone Falls Parking Area. The Island Loop Trail is a short detour off the Boardwalk Trail and shows a quieter side of the area. At Sandstone Falls, you will find a variety of activities fr...
Post a Comment
Read more

I-90 in Albany, New York and the Berkshire Spur

By
Today's Albany Times Union has a segment in their weekly Getting There? column that explains some of the history behind how I-90 is designated in the Albany, NY area as well as the Berkshire Spur. The long and short of the article was that I-90 was originally designated on the unsigned portion of the Berkshire Spur, but as free I-90 was built, the designation was moved onto the free portion of road. Additionally, there were talks in 1999 between state and federal officials about the possibility of moving I-90 back onto the unsigned portion of the Berkshire Spur, while extending I-88 onto what we know as free I-90. There would have also had been an I-88/I-90 multiplex between Rotterdam and Albany as a result. http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=916307
Post a Comment
Read more