Bradenton, between Sarasota and St. Petersburg, on the south side of Tampa Bay, has hikes to explore among the southernmost reaches of Hillsborough County – which offers some offbeat natural lands – as well as all of Manatee County, where there are city parks, beachfront parks, and parks along the Little Manatee and Manatee Rivers.
Coquina Baywalk - Explore Leffis Key on a series of trails and boardwalks through mangrove tunnels on the Coquina Baywalk. A unspoiled sliver between the Gulf of Mexico and Sarasota Bay, Leffis Key sits between Bradenton Beach and [...]
De Soto National Memorial - Commemorating the landing of Spanish explorer and conquistador Hernando De Soto, the De Soto National Memorial is a significant archaeological site where the Manatee River flows into Tampa Bay. The Riverview Point Trail offers perspectives [...]
Emerson Point Preserve - Where the Manatee River meets the Gulf of Mexico, Emerson Point Preserve protects a significant archeological site: the Portavent Mound. More than 150’ long and 80’ wide, this artificial flat-topped hill shaded by ancient live [...]
Fort De Soto Park – Arrowhead Nature Trail - Explore several coastal habitats on the Arrowhead Nature Trail at Fort De Soto Park, an interpretive walk with plenty of stops where you’ll learn all about the salt-dependent plants along the rim of Mullet Key [...]
Fort De Soto Park – Barrier Free Trail - Dangling like an anchor into the southern waters of Tampa Bay, Mullet Key is known to the world as Fort De Soto Park, home of a rare find: unspoiled, uninhabited Suncoast beaches. During the Spanish-American [...]
Fort De Soto Park – Soldier’s Hole Nature Trail - Its name comes from legends of soldiers deserting the fort in the dead of night, slipping through the mangrove swamps to freedom. Soldier’s Hole is a cove in the mangrove forest, abuzz with mosquitoes and [...]
Little Manatee River Hiking Trail - Diversity, scenery, and botanical wonders: all key to a great Florida hike. Laid out as two loops on the northernmost portion of Little Manatee River State Park, the Little Manatee River Hiking Trail is one [...]
Mosaic Peace River Park - The site of an open-pit phosphate mine until the early 1980s, this reclamation project borders the Peace River floodplain, where the boardwalk winds through the floodplain forest out to the river. Interpretive signs give background [...]
Myakka River State Park – Canopy Walk and Boylston Nature Trail - Other than the Bird Trail, a boardwalk out into the Myakka River, the Myakka Canopy Walk is the most popular short trail in Myakka River State Park in Sarasota, one of Southwest Florida’s largest state [...]
Myakka River State Park – Myakka Hiking Trail - For immersion in Florida’s central prairies, the Myakka Hiking Trail is a serious backpacking destination. A 39-mile loop in the heart of Myakka River State Park, it provides a mosaic of habitats to explore, including [...]
Robinson Preserve - A 487-acre mosaic of mud flats, mangrove swamps, and beaches, Robinson Preserve is a testament to the spirit of Aldo Leopold. Formerly farmland in a district of Bradenton known for its tropical plant nurseries, this [...]
