The Whole Family Riding Recumbent Bikes, Withlacoochee State Trail

It was family bike ride day. My wife Christie, our dog Phoebe, and I loaded up two recumbents in November 2025 for a ride on the Withlacoochee State Trail - one of my favorite stretches of trail in Florida, and this time everyone came along.

Starting at Lake Townsen

We started at Lake Townsen Regional Park, just east of Brooksville, which turned out to be a great staging point - restrooms, water fill-up, pavilions, basketball courts, plenty of parking, and a small parking fee to handle before rolling out. From there the plan was simple: 15 miles north on the Withlacoochee State Trail to Inverness, then back the same way for a 30-mile round trip.

Two Bikes, One Trailer

I rode my front-wheel-drive Cruzbike S40 with Phoebe riding in her Schwinn pet trailer behind me, while Christie rode her Bacchetta Giro 20 - a rear-wheel-drive recumbent she's had for years, garage-kept and freshly fitted with new Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires. Her Bacchetta has that famously comfortable, adjustable-angle seat, bottle holders, a kickstand, and a reflector and light setup, while my Cruzbike runs Schwalbe Pro One tires at 28mm wide.

Rolling Into Inverness

The trail itself - an old railroad bed converted to multi-use path - is as close to idealistic as cycling gets: heavy shade, gentle grades, and a relaxed, friendly crowd the whole way. We passed an old railroad marker reading "Richmond 802 miles," a nice callback to the line's original route. About 14 miles in we rolled into Brooks Park in Inverness, with its pier, swimming area, and view over Henderson Lake, before continuing into town for a stop at the old Seaboard Railway train car near the trail head.

A Pretzel Break

We refueled in Inverness with a hot pretzel - cheese and mustard - before turning back for the return leg. There happened to be a craft fair going on in town that day, giving the stop some extra buzz. Phoebe, a little tense at the start of the ride like she sometimes is, settled in and even chased down a squirrel along the way.

Perfect November Weather

We started in the high 50s and finished in the low 70s by around 1pm - about as good as Florida weather gets for a long ride. Christie, riding the Withlacoochee for the first time, wasn't disappointed: tree canopy for most of the route, gentle inclines and declines rather than real hills, and only a few pockets of heavier foot traffic near the trail heads. A fun, easy 30 miles with the whole family along for the ride - tired puppy included.