hlee, we still don't know if this is public or private property.
How quick would you be to shoot someone because you saw him on a state preserve?
There are places, mostly along the souther border, where trespassing on large cattle/game ranches is common and where these trespassers are not averse to breaking and entering. On some of these ranches
POSTED
NO TRESPASSING
VIOLATORS WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT
is more than hyperbole.
I hunt public land. Land that I know I can be on, because I have taken the time an effort to research and scout public access areas.
The consequences of trespassing on a posted state preserve are not necessarily any less real than trespassing on a large cattle ranch. Maybe not a bullet, but perhaps a less than pleasant ride to a police station and maybe even a state sponsored stay. The point is that the signs are put up for a reason. Even local, state, and federal agencies have some amount of reason behind their decisions. You may not agree with the decisions, but you must obey them or pay the consequences. You may think that it is not fair that the state can bar access to PUBLIC land, and to some extent I agree, however, life is not fair.
There is a tract of BLM land (Public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management) a couple of hours south of where I live. It is completely off limits to the public. Just seeing a sign denying access may not give the reason that the mean ol' government is barring access to someone that just wants to spin the tires of his 4x4 for a few hours on some back country trails. The reason is a very large, and natural, concentration of asbestos in the very dry, loose, and sandy soil.
The original poster has basically posted that there is a tract of land that he/she does not own, but that s/he would like to hike around on and explore. The land, whether state owned or privately held is posted No trespassing. The OP does not have permission to be on this tract of land, however, the OP would like to justify trespassing on the basis that...
... I just want to enjoy the woods. That's all. I never get to experience that.
Let me paraphrase that... "You should let me do this because I've never taken the time an effort find a place where I am actually allowed to do it."
It sounds a bit different if you cast this entitlement attitude as "Give me money because I don't have any."
Regardless of whether the land is private or state owned, it is posted. State and Federal game refuges also belong to the public, but are not necessarily public access. Military instillations are public lands with restricted (very restricted) access (many allow hunting, though restricted to time, place, and total access). Even Federal buildings are ostensibly owned by the public, yet public access is restricted if not denied.
10 seconds on google pulled up a map showing the following...
Appalacicola National Forest
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
Ocala National Forest
Osceola National Forest
Big Cypress National Preserve
Everglades National Park
No less than 20 State and local parks/forests/preserves
All within the state boundaries of Florida
To be fair, the Okefenokee is mostly in Georgia, but seems to extend south into Florida.
Yet, the OP wants us to grant him permission to trespass on posted land, "because he never gets to experience that."
Given the dearth of public access land in Florida, perhaps the OP would feel compelled to woods bum around Eglin or Mac Dill AFB.
There are a few things that I feel strongly about. Trespassing is one.
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