These unique biological islands form when the elevation rises a little bit just enough to lift the roots of hardwood trees out of the perpetual damp of the prairie.
Cabbage palms cluster together in hammocks as do live oaks that grow to enormous sizes.
Two hikes in the Sebring area let you savor the hammock environment. Foxes and bobcats have been spotted along the trail, as have deer and alligators. Nearby Highlands Hammock State Park, established in 1935 to preserve a virgin hardwood forest from development, is one of Florida's original state parks. Follow US 27 north 128 miles to Sebring. Turn left on Bluff Hammock Road to reach the northern trailhead.