The Pithlachascotee River, often called the Cotee or "Cootie" River, is a blackwater river in

Pasco County, Florida Pasco County is located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2020 census, the population was 561,691. Its county seat is Dade City, and its largest city is Zephyrhills. The county is named after Samuel Pasco ...

. Originating near

Crews Lake Crews Lake Wilderness Park is located off Shady Hills Road in Pasco County, Florida. The park includes hiking trails, a short paved bike trail, playground, wooden tower, athletic fields, and the gauge Central Pasco & Gulf Railroad. Rides on the ...

, the river flows for over U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed April 18, 2011 to the south and west, flowing through the Starkey Wilderness Park before turning northwest through downtown

New Port Richey New Port Richey is a city in Pasco County, Florida, United States. It is a suburban city included in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was counted at 16,728 in the 2020 census. History B ...

, entering the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

at Miller's Bayou. A Florida State Canoe Trail runs along the river. On a chart representing the west coast of Florida accompanying the annual report of the U.S. Coast Survey for 1851, the name is translated as "Boat Building River". The whole word signifies the place where canoes were chopped or dug out. The Seminole used canoes dug out of cypress trunks. It is derived from the

Creek A creek in North America and elsewhere, such as Australia, is a stream that is usually smaller than a river. In the British Isles it is a small tidal inlet. Creek may also refer to: People * Creek people, also known as Muscogee, Native Americans ...

''pithlo'' (canoe), and ''chaskita'' (to chop out).

List of crossings

References

FDOT Florida Bridge Data 01-05-2010USGS Real-Time Water Data for USGS 02310300 PITHLACHASCOTEE RIVER NEAR NEW PORT RICHEY FL

External links

SWFWMD: Pithlachascotee River

FDEP EcoSummary: Pithlachascotee River

Rivers of Florida Bodies of water of Pasco County, Florida {{PascoCountyFL-geo-stub