The wilds of the Big Cypress Swamp have yielded many interesting species, from ghost orchids to freshwater sponges. Just last week, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission announced a surprising and unexpected find during their first-ever bat monitoring program at Picayune Strand State Forest, part of the Big Cypress ecosystem. - the bonneted bat.  [...]

On June 5, take the plunge into the Big Cypress Swamp on a guided walk led by the Happy Hoofers Chapter of the Florida Trail Association. It’s the perfect time of year to cool down on a swamp tromp, and you’ll have the expertise of local hikers in the lead on a 4 mile walk, [...]

A Grand Opening in the swamp! Join the Big Cypress National Preserve and the South Florida National Parks Trust to celebrate the grand opening of the new Big Cypress Welcome Center just east of the intersection of SR 29 and US 41 north of Everglades City in Ochopee. This new welcome center presents the integrated [...]

Rangers at Oasis Visitor Center in Big Cypress National Preserve note that this is one of the deepest water starts for Florida Trail thru-hikers that they’ve seen yet. The hiker register bears out tales of extremely deep water in Robert’s Strand. and backpackers who went 10 miles north found waist deep water. It’ll be cold [...]

The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission sent out notice this past week that they’re expanding their Burmese python hunting to all hunters on state and federal lands in South Florida - including Big Cypress National Preserve. That’s good news to Florida hikers, since stumbling across one of these monster snakes in the wilds isn’t [...]