Croom CMA Ride Report

Trail Information:
(Note that Red indicates a link.)

Site: Withlacoochee State Forest, Croom Motorcycle Area (CMA) OHV
Address: 6420 La Rosa Road, Brooksville, Florida 34602
Total Area: 2,600 Acres
Surfaces: Unimproved Single Track OHV
Wet/Mud Potential: High
Overall Difficulty: Moderate
Child Friendly: Two Dedicated Under 15 Riding Areas (90cc vehicle limitation); one has a large pavilion and picnic tables for parents to set up.
Fees:
(1) Annual Pass $80 per vehicle (July to June each year); prorated to $40 between January and June
(2) Daily Use Fee $15 per vehicle
Camping:
(1) Buttgenbach Mine Camping Area, 6420 La Rosa Road, Brooksville (on site)
(2) Silver Lake Campground, 31475 Silver Lake Road, Brooksville (6.2 miles)
Nearby Trail Networks: Croom WMA, Richloam WMA, Citrus WMA
Nearby Restaurants/Fuel: The entrance to the CMA is right at Exit 301 of I-75. There are fast food and sit down places (e.g. Beef O'Badys) right there, as well as fuel stations.

Croom Confusion

The Croom CMA is adjacent to the Croom Wildlife Management Area (WMA) on the east between the WMA and Interstate 75. The Croom CMA is a dedicated OHV Park for motorcycles and ATVs. The Croom WMA is a 21,000 acre area riddle with Forest Roads usable by only plated motorcycles.

Map and Rules Brochure

The map below from the brochure shows the layout of the CMA. The map only sets out the primary "lettered" trails. In fact, the area is riddled with hundreds of miles of single track in virtually all surface forms.

Parking is widely disbursed throughout the park, concentrated at the Sand Hill Day Use Area....

...and the Hammock Day Use Area. Another parking location is the Oak Hill Parking Area, but it has no amenities.

Each day use area has bathrooms. The Hammock has covered pavilions and picnic tables. Other parking areas along the main road typically have picnic tables.

Camping

Buttgenbach Mine:

The CMA is home of the Buttgenbach Mine Camping Area that contains 51 large sites, all with electrical hookup. 5 sites are walk-up for $25 per night. The remainder are subject to reservation and have seasonal rate variation. The reservation site is Reserve America-Buttgenbach.

The Buttgenbach Campground has two very nice bathhouses with three showers in each. The other nice thing is that they have enclosed trash collection stations designed to keep the raccoons out; those guys can get very aggressive.

The one thing I've found at State Run facilities is that they really do a good job putting the campsites together and keeping them maintained.

I was here in July so naturally it was hot. It was so hot the thermometer on the side of my toy hauler exploded.

This is my toy hauler set up for camping. It's an old utility trailer that I converted into a toy hauler/camper. I go all over with it, but my issue is usually dealing with "cold" weather.  I don't usually take on mid-summer Florida heat, but I did in this case. A large fan helps in the heat, but being able to go get into a cold shower is a better way to cool off after a day in the forest.

Camping fees, including the electrical, at Buttgenbach range from $15 to $25 per day varying for seasonal and discounted use, plus there are state and local fees and taxes that in my case were under $10. There are discounts for senior and military. Camping fees do not include the OHV use fee.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Campers at the State-Run Buttgenbach Mine Camp Ground are required to either have an effective annual CMA Pass or purchase an annual CMA Pass per vehicle at the time of entry, even if their stay is as short as a day. This fact is not disclosed in any brochures that I could find and could catch a traveler off guard. The alternative is to camp at nearby State-Run Campsites and trailer in (or ride in if plated) vehicles and pay the $15 day use fee. Here are the two campsites that I recommend.

Silver Lake Camping Area: 6.2 miles from the CMA
Hog Island Camping Area: 14.5 miles from the CMA

Both the Silver Lake and Hog Island Camping Areas lie between the CMA and the Croom WMA opening up expanded riding opportunities in the area. Both camping areas are nice; Hog Island is right on the Withlacoochee River.

Riding Croom CMA

All tracks and trails are two-way. See rules in the brochure linked above.

The Croom CMA is a 2,600 acre enclosed park intertwined and riddled with hundreds of miles of single track; some very rugged. Trails other than the principle lettered trails are not marked. You should expect to be constantly turned around by the trail network and lose track where you are. However, since the park is enclosed with a trail all the way around the perimeter you'll never get lost. That is, if you go in any direction, you'll eventually encounter either the perimeter trail (it'll be obvious for being straight, long, whooped up and deep sand) or the main road into the park.

If you're like me and like to know where you're going, your best bet is a compass. This is my Garmin GPSMAP 64ST in compass mode. What I do is pick a point someplace on the map and then navigate to the spot using the compass settings. Then another point, and so on.

Here is a video that I took navigating from the Hammock Day Use to the Sand Hill Day Use Areas.

CMA_Banana_Spider
17:42
Low hanging trees, whoops, vines and a banana spider in the face:

Here are some photos of the CMA trail network:

This is the sand pit at the Sand Hill Day Use Area:

Looking down into the old mine located in the northeast corner of the park.

The sandpit is a large area that had developed over the years into the equivalent of a track, with banked turns and flats and lots of sand!

If camping at Buttgenbach, there's a single entrance into the OHV park. This sign will get you pointed in the right direction.

A good shot of a banana spider down in the mine.

As you enter the sand pit from the north side.