Cross Creek Is Too Low to Cross, So Pick Your Lake Before You Hitch the Trailer

On April 25, 2026, a WUFT photographer in Cross Creek took a picture of a boat sitting idle where it used to be able to get to the water. In normal years, Cross Creek runs 1.8 miles between Lochloosa Lake and Orange Lake, and most boats can get through it. This fall, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's forecast for Orange Lake says the water is too low to reach Lochloosa through the creek.

For anyone fishing out of Hawthorne, that turns one lake system into two separate lakes. The ramp you use is now the lake you fish for the day, and the two lakes are in very different shape for crappie season.

Which Ramps Still Work

The table below uses FWC's current fishing forecasts for both lakes. FWC doesn't date those pages, and low-water conditions change from week to week, so call ahead before you tow.

Twin Lakes Fish Camp lists its own ramp as usable "Water Level Permitting," and it runs as a reservations-only campground.

Lochloosa Is the Lake That Still Works From Town

Lochloosa Lake covers 5,700 acres about five miles south of Hawthorne, and old-growth cypress lines most of its shore. According to FWC's current forecast, it's still "plenty deep to launch." Anglers should still go carefully near the shoreline, where they'll find shallow water, thick vegetation, and submerged hazards.

The same forecast opens with "Fall has arrived" and points straight at black crappie, which FWC also calls specks. FWC lays out the season in stages:

1. Early season: fish offshore, drifting or trolling minnows and jigs.
2. After the first big cold front: move into the large pad fields on the north and southeast ends of the lake.
3. Year-round backup: bluegill and redear sunfish, together called bream. FWC says Lochloosa has some of the biggest in the area, usually caught on grass shrimp or crickets under a cork.

FWC also admits the crappie fishing "took a hit with the drought last season." It says speck fishing should be great if water levels rise substantially. So the fall bite on Lochloosa depends on how much rain the next few months bring.

One more Lochloosa detail is easy to miss. FWC has tagged some black crappie in the lake with rewards. If you catch one, keep the tag and call fisheries biologist Steve Beck at 352-415-6958 to find out how to claim it.

If you don't have a boat, there's the Burnt Island pier at the end of Burnt Island Road, inside Lochloosa Wildlife Conservation Area. You reach it by turning west off US 301, south of Lochloosa and north of Island Grove. The St. Johns River Water Management District, which manages the land, calls the view of the lake shore from that pier one of the property's "special highlights."

Lochloosa Harbor Fish Camp sells live bait and tackle and has boat rentals and a seasonal diner. If you want an answer that's fresher than any web page, the camp's number is 352-481-2114.

Orange Lake Now Starts in Citra

At 12,550 acres, Orange Lake is the largest lake in FWC's North Central Region. It averages 5.5 feet deep, and its water level normally moves about 2 feet a year. With the Kate Barnes ramp at Cross Creek too low to use, the only public launch FWC still calls usable is Heagy-Burry Park on the southwest side of the lake in Citra, in Marion County.

Heagy-Burry has been completely rebuilt, and FWC lists new parking areas, a fishing pier, and bathrooms. At a Marion County Commission update on March 17, 2026, the project was reported to have a finished ramp approach and road base, with grading underway and septic and site lighting installed. Opening day was planned for April 9. FWC's page now opens with "THE HEAGY BURRY RAMP IS NOW OPEN."

Once you're on the water, FWC says Orange Lake is still fishing well despite the drought:

• Crappie: drift or troll minnows, grass shrimp, and jigs as the weather cools.
• Bream: hydrilla is thick, mostly in the southern half of the lake. Anchor near a dense patch and fish grass shrimp, crickets, or worms near the bottom.
• Bass: work thick hydrilla and the lily pads with soft plastics, topwater baits, and bladed jigs, or run the buoy trail in McIntosh Bay.

Bass rules on Orange Lake changed in April 2024 under the Florida Trophy Bass Project. Nobody may keep a bass longer than 20 inches. FWC says the lake is "still producing trophies despite the drought." If you catch a bass over 8 pounds, photograph it on a scale, release it, and you can submit it to the TrophyCatch program. For daily conditions on this side, FWC lists South Shore Fish Camp at 352-595-4241 and Sportsman Cove Fish Camp at 352-591-1435.

What the Dry Creek Means at Twin Lakes

Twin Lakes Fish Camp sits on Cross Creek, so it feels the low water first. In April, owner Michelle Septer told WUFT she was turning away people who came to fish because the camp no longer had water access. In almost two decades at the camp, this was the third time she had seen the creek dry up completely.

"It's going to take a hurricane to get this water back," Septer said.

That interview took place in the spring. FWC's fall forecast for Orange Lake says recent rains have helped. It also says the lake still needs a lot more rain to come up, and that cooler temperatures should help too.

Why a Wetter September Didn't Bring the Lakes Back

The water management district explains the lag. In its September 21, 2026 update, it said lakes, rivers, and groundwater "can take weeks or months to respond, particularly after extended dry periods." As of September 17, Alachua County was 13 inches below normal rainfall for the previous 12 months, and Marion County was 14.06 inches below.

The drought that emptied the creek also sets the rules for Hawthorne yards. The district's Phase III Extreme Water Shortage order was issued May 11, 2026, and was still in effect as of the September 21 update. In Alachua County, the district names Gainesville, Hawthorne, and Micanopy as following its restrictions. The rest of the county falls under the Suwannee River Water Management District. Under the current schedule:

• Residential, odd-numbered address or no address: Saturday only
• Residential, even-numbered address: Sunday only
• Nonresidential properties: Tuesday only
• Any day: no irrigation between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Decorative fountains are banned, and the rules for watering new sod and plantings are stricter than before. The district estimates that an average home uses almost 1,000 gallons of water each time the sprinklers run. Lochloosa flows into Orange Lake through Cross Creek, and the district describes the Lochloosa shoreline as part of the hydrologic connections within the Orange Creek Basin.

When the Water Is Too Low for a Trailer

Some weekends the honest answer is to leave the boat home. Lochloosa Wildlife Conservation Area, reached from County Road 325 and US 301, keeps all of its roads and trails open year-round for hiking, biking, and horseback riding. Many roads open to vehicles during hunting season and may need four-wheel drive. The district says the area is regionally important for bald eagles, ospreys, and wading birds. Visitors may also see sandhill cranes and wood storks, two of the 18 listed species that live there. There are no boat launches on the conservation area itself.

The Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail is another option that doesn't depend on water at all. It runs 16 miles on a paved former rail bed with a grassy equestrian trail beside it. It's open 8 a.m. to sunset, 365 days a year, and there's no fee. On the Hawthorne end, you can park at 2182 SE 71st Ave. or at 7902 SE 200th Drive, off County Road 2082 west of town.

Here at Anson Properties, we work with land and acreage owners across North Central Florida. If you own lakefront property or acreage near Hawthorne and want to know how this drought season could affect a valuation, Stephanie Anson and the team can walk you through it. Start with a Free Home Valuation.