Why Medard's Boat Ramp Is Still Closed, and What Still Floats Near HawkStone This Fall
October 29, 2026
October 29, 2026
The boat ramp at Edward Medard Conservation Park closed on June 9, 2025. Seventeen months later it is still closed, and nobody has published a date for reopening it. The cause isn't drought. On October 25, 2026, the Southwest Florida Water Management District's structure report had the Medard Reservoir at 54.43 feet. That is about two feet below its 56.6-foot low operational level, and the District is holding it there on purpose while it works out a dam drainage problem it now plans to take to court.
For anyone in HawkStone who keeps a kayak in the garage, the practical point is simple. This season, the water within a short drive runs on gauge readings. One of those numbers is low by design, and the other moves with the rain.
The reservoir sits on a former phosphate mine site on Turkey Creek Road. The water management district owns the property and runs the dam for flood control, and Hillsborough County operates the park. Here is the sequence, from the public record:
The February item, which you can read in the District's board materials, says neither firm has offered to fix the problem. That means the District expects to spend more money finding the root cause and repairing the defects. The item authorizes litigation. It is not a filed lawsuit, and none of the public documents set a schedule for repairs. Until repairs happen, the reservoir has no reason to rise back to normal. The County's Medard park page still says the ramp will reopen "once water levels have reached a safe level for boats to operate in." The page links a District email list for updates on the reservoir, dam and structure. That list is the place where any change would show up first.
The ramp closure applies to trailered boats. The County has said from the start that canoes and kayaks "should not be affected," so the paddling side of Medard has kept going through the whole drawdown. If you don't own a boat, the entry station rents canoes and kayaks for $25 for up to four hours, plus $10 for each additional hour, tax included.
The land side of the park has also been changing while the water stays put. The Plant City Observer reported in August 2026 that a new playground with multilevel accessible play structures had replaced the old one. It also reported that a musical walkway with outdoor instruments was planned for later in 2026. The Osprey Observer put the playground inside a $900,000 improvement package that also covers restroom and volleyball court work. Those reports don't agree on the park's closing time, so check with the County before planning a late-afternoon paddle.
For HawkStone households, the trip to Medard now looks like a morning paddle on flat water, a new playground and a picnic shelter. Launching a powerboat isn't an option this year.
Closer to home, the Alafia River has its own number to watch, and it moves faster than the reservoir does. Here are the two readings that set the season, side by side:
| Water | Reading | What it's measured against |
|---|---|---|
| Medard Reservoir | 54.43 ft as of Oct. 25, 2026, 6:30 a.m. | 56.6 ft low operational level |
| Alafia River at Lithia Pinecrest Road | 4.36 ft as of Oct. 25, 2026, 11 p.m., provisional | Alafia River Canoe Rentals closes when its linked Lithia gauge reads above 7 ft |
The reservoir is being held below its normal range. The river was sitting well below the level where the local outfitter shuts down. The USGS gauge on the Alafia at Lithia Pinecrest Road posts readings around the clock. A gauge reading is a measurement, though, not a safety advisory.
The usual put-in near HawkStone is the canoe launch entrance at Alderman's Ford Conservation Park, 9625 Canoe Launch Loop in Lithia, which opens daily at 7 a.m. The County rents boats at several conservation parks, but its canoeing and kayaking page does not list Alderman's Ford among them. You bring your own boat to this launch.
From there, Florida Rambler describes a downstream trip of about 12 miles that ends at the docks of Alafia River Canoe Rentals. Because of the current and rapids, the site recommends paddling it downstream. The outfitter at 4419 River Dr. in Valrico has been on the river since 1976, according to the Osprey Observer. The paper advised calling ahead at 813-689-8645 to confirm the river is navigable. After hurricane damage, the business announced plans to reopen on March 8, the Osprey Observer reported. Its current link page carries a rental agreement to fill out before launching and a link to the live river gauge. Call for current rates, since published prices go back to earlier seasons.
The land next to that stretch of river just got a ten-year roadmap. On October 12, 2026, the Plan Hillsborough Planning Commission took up the Alderman's Ford Nature Preserve Management Plan update, sent over by the County's Conservation and Environmental Lands Management Department for a consistency review. The preserve covers about 980 acres and takes in about five miles of the Alafia.
Anyone hoping for new amenities will find the plan is mostly about the land. It proposes no new recreation facilities. It does say discussion has begun on bringing back the water-accessible canoe stops that hurricanes damaged. Those were primitive stopovers where paddlers could pull up on designated sandy banks, and if they come back they would stay primitive. For the 12-mile run, that's the change that matters. A place to stretch your legs partway down the river is under discussion, but there's no build date.
The plan follows the same small-steps approach as the reservoir. A five-year restoration contract started in 2020 for about 300 acres of pasture overrun with invasive cogon grass. Bad weather kept the contractor from finishing on time, and the contract was cancelled in 2025. The new approach breaks the work into smaller subcontracts that County staff can monitor phase by phase. The plan also describes prescribed burns. Prep work includes notifying homeowners who may be affected, and the plan notes that growing neighborhoods to the east limit the days when smoke can safely drift.
With the reservoir on hold and the river changing day to day, the fixed dates near HawkStone this season are on land:
Lithia Springs Park keeps a steadier schedule than either body of water. The County's park page lists two daily swim periods, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 to 6 p.m. Each is capped at 200 swimmers, and swimming can close for thunderstorms or other bad weather. The County also ran an evening swim on Oct. 24 for a $7 event fee on top of the $2 entry per car, which covers up to eight people. Check the County's events listings for any more evening swims.
If you're weighing how close you want to live to the river, the reservoir or the trailheads, Amanda Winsor knows the drive from each side of Lithia and can walk you through it. Schedule a consultation and bring your list of the places you plan to use most.
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