Day Hikes

Part of an extensive corridor of natural lands – more than 10,000 acres worth east of Tampa – protecting the flow of the Alafia River, Alderman’s Ford Nature Preserve offers a surprising treat for a Central Florida hike– whitewater. The Alafia River flows over limestone boulders as it winds through a deeply eroded channel, forming [...]

Many footsteps have pressed into the sands of Anastasia Island, from the most ancient peoples who thrived on its bountiful shores to the Timucua who explored the coastline in their canoes, and the Spanish explorers who claimed this coast for Spain in 1565, establishing what is now the oldest continually occupied European settlement in America, [...]

Mind the “Beware of Cows” sign as you enter this trail system in the heart of Babcock Ranch, where cattle roam free across thousands of acres of open prairie and cypress swamps east of Punta Gorda. These wet flatwoods drain into the Telegraph Swamp, a vast system of cypress sloughs and strands northeast of Fort [...]

The St. Johns River runs broad and deep near Green Cove Springs, where Bayard Point Conservation Area preserves an untouched Florida riverfront, bottomland floodplain with dense stands of bald cypress, sweet gum, and red maples. More than 15 miles of trails wander through the John P. Hall Nature Preserve portion of the conservation area – [...]

Little known except to those who frequent this beautiful campground in the Salt Springs Recreation Area in the Ocala National Forest, the Bear Swamp Trail provides a glimpse into the ancient forest that undoubtedly crowded the shores of Salt Springs when botanist and explorer William Bartram visited the “amazing crystal fountain” in 1774. The easy [...]

Between Pensacola and Perdido Key, Big Lagoon is best known for its (really big) lagoon, high observation tower, and campground, but the trail system is a delight for hardy hikers. It’s easy to make short forays out along the lakes and to the observation tower on the criss-crossing nature trails, but a circuit around the [...]

When you think about Florida’s rivers and streams, the image of raging, foaming water never springs to mind. Yet up on the Suwannee River, just a few miles outside the historic town of White Springs, the Suwannee hides a secret that canoeists and kayakers kept to themselves for many years—Big Shoals. Inside Big Shoals State [...]

THIS TRAIL IS CURRENTLY CLOSED DUE TO CONSTRUCTION OF A MULTIUSE TRAIL BISECTING IT. SIGNS SAY IT WILL REOPEN IN JULY 2012 A barrier island on the Atlantic Coast between Amelia Island and Little Talbot Island, Big Talbot Island is best known for its unusual rocky shoreline called Blackrock Beach. One step on this beach, [...]

Jones Cut provides a meander into the heart of the maritime forest that carpets Big Talbot Island, but it’s not the easiest trail to find. It lets you explore the heart of a dense maritime forest which was once home to the Timucua. The trail follows a broad old forest road through a mature forest [...]

Remnants of the Atlantic Coastal Ridge, ancient dunes that once marked the oceanfront in Southeastern Florida, pop up now and again in the most unexpected places. Blazing Star Preserve is one of those spots. It’s in the thick of an older residential community in Boca Raton, so it’s downright puzzling that it survived decades of [...]

Stretching more than a mile along Jupiter Island, a tall limestone terrace dominates the meeting of sand and sea, the longest and most dramatic stretch of rocky shoreline in Florida. Preserved by local residents in 1969 and turned over to The Nature Conservancy, the Blowing Rocks Preserve protects 73 acres of Jupiter Island, from the [...]

Boyd Hill Park originally began its life as a zoo and botanical garden for the city of St. Petersburg. It has since evolved over the decades into a mosaic of natural habitats and wild tropical landscapes along the shores of Lake Maggiore. From the outer Main Trail, there are five side trails (mostly loops) showcasing [...]

Protecting a windswept shoreline and a variety of habitats on a barrier island off the historic coastal community of Dunedin, Caladesi Island State Park is undoubtedly one of the gems of the Florida State Parks system. It’s been named the top beach in the United States, thanks to its quiet and remote location, the view [...]

Circle a cypress lined pond in the Apalachicola National Forest on the Camel Lake Loop. It’s a short hike on high ground in a place where most habitats are downright swampy. Despite the name of the Camel Lake Recreation Area, this body of water is Camel Pond, one of many large ponds in this part [...]

At Cary State Forest, you have the opportunity for a highly accessible, close-up look at carnivorous pitcher plants in the wild. While the 3,413-acre forest has dozens of miles of multi-use trails and is popular with local equestrians, the 1.4-mile Cary Nature Trail is hiking only, a great short walk for kids and persons of [...]

Showcasing the interface of freshwater and saltwater habitats along Charlotte Harbor, Alligator Creek Preserve in Punta Gorda is an outreach center and living laboratory of the Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center at Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park. Here, the stir of a salt breeze riffles across cypress domes close to the sea. Resources Overview Location: Punta [...]

Resources Overview Location: Brooksville Length: 1.6 miles Lat-Long: 28.599042, -82.377272 Type: loop with spurs, shortcuts, and connection to larger trail system Fees / Permits: none Difficulty: Easy to moderate Bug factor: Low to moderate Restroom: None Open sunrise to sunset. For more information, see the FWC website Big Pine Trail Guide Directions Head north from [...]

Sitting along Lake Hancock between Lakeland and Auburndale, Circle B Bar Reserve is a success story that Aldo Leopold would be proud of. Formerly a cattle ranch, the reserve encompasses more than 1,200 acres being successfully restored to its original wetlands habitats feeding the Peace River basin. An extensive network of trails with an outer [...]

Imagine a wonderland of bright red blossoms and lacy white-veined trumpets reflected against reflections of the sky, where everywhere you turn, beauty surrounds you. You’ll find it near Milton at the Clear Creek Nature Trail. When I arrived at the peak of pitcher plant blooming season at the Clear Creek Nature Trail (early April) and [...]

Call it the Ocean-to-Lagoon Hike: this loop trail through one of Brevard County’s most diverse natural lands connects the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian River Lagoon in Melbourne Beach. Showcasing an array of habitats that change as you step up and down from coastal dunes to the shores of Florida’s largest lagoon, Coconut Point Sanctuary [...]

You’ll find Florida’s best and most extensive boardwalk hike at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, meandering 2.3 miles through an old-growth cypress forest. Managed by the National Audubon Society since 1912, Corkscrew Swamp, encompassing 315 square miles, is one of the most important breeding grounds for wood storks and one of the few places you can see [...]

In Crystal River, you can immerse in the beauty of a palm and cedar hammock right across the street from the Crystal River Mall. A wooden boardwalk leads into jungle-like cabbage palm flatwoods, with a staircase to access the natural portion of the trail (called “Pathway to the Past”) that meanders through a bottomland hardwood [...]

Hidden behind a screen of mangroves along the Indian River Lagoon, D.J. Wilcox Natural Area is an offbeat place to find a hike. You wouldn’t expect it as you drive down the entrance road, which is lined with canals edged with mangroves on both sides. You still wouldn’t expect it as you walk along the [...]

The coast of Walton County is home to rare coastal dune lakes, an ecosystem that only exists in Florida and in Australia and Africa, and you’ll find them at Deer Lake State Park. As the freshwater lakes become too full, they naturally spill over and flow into the Gulf of Mexico. At that time seawater [...]

On the northern edge of Gainesville, Devil’s Millhopper Geologic State Park showcases a geologic formation known to generations of visitors to the area. You’d think you were in the Amazon, or Hawaii, when you hear and see the tumbling cascades behind a screen of dense vegetation. But the ephemeral waterfalls that occur at Devil’s Millhopper [...]

One of the lesser-known trails of Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge is at the Bailey Tract, separate from the other nature trails that are found along Wildlife Drive. This separate tract of the refuge is closer to the Gulf of Mexico and includes a series of impoundments that make for excellent early morning birding. Since [...]

Trail update: Disney Wilderness is no longer open on weekends. Managed by The Nature Conservancy, the Disney Wilderness Preserve is a 12,000 acre showcase for habitat restoration and conservation in a region where development continues – with major loss of habitat – at a startling pace. Purchased to replace habitats erased by the construction of [...]

In the heart of Pinellas County, Eagle Lake Park is the legacy of the Taylor family, who helped to found Largo – then known as Citrus City – with their groves and citrus packing plant. Surrounding their homestead was one of the last significant pine forests in the most densely urban county in Florida, as [...]

Sluicing its way through high bluffs and low flatlands, Econfina Creek is one of Florida’s most beautiful and unsung waterways. The Florida Trail follows it for nearly 20 miles through Washington and Bay Counties. This easy day hike will give you a good taste of the geologic wonders to be savored along its shores. Although [...]

Ancient magnolias, massive tulip poplars, and sinuous alluvial streams are all part of the delights of Phipps Park, the city of Tallahassee’s most expansive and wild urban park. With 670 acres along the shores of Lake Jackson, Phipps Park provides recreation for all, with separate hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian trail systems. Part of the [...]

One of the tougher places to hike in Southwest Florida, Estero Scrub Preserve State Park, established in 1966 as Florida’s first aquatic preserve, has several loops through wet flatwoods and tidal marshes along the rim of Estero Bay. Much of the hike is in full sun, and portions can be very deep in water, no [...]

Paralleling the former Homestead Canal, an attempt by early developers to drain the coastal prairies around Cape Sable, the Bear Lake Trail takes you on a journey down an old road built of limestone fill scooped from the canal diggings. Starting at the trailhead, the trail leads you down a corridor surrounded by tropical forest, [...]

Ready for a hard-core Florida wilderness challenge? The rangers at the Flamingo Visitor Center don’t recommend you hike this trail, but they’ll still issue you a backcountry permit for camping if you insist. Consider it a survivalist’s destination—you’ll battle mosquitoes, unrelenting sun, and dreadfully deep and stick marl mud for the prize of camping along [...]

Opened in 1922 as the first motorway to Flamingo, the Old Ingraham Highway saw its share of Model Ts and other roadsters as intrepid motorists made their way down to the small fishing village on the edge of Florida Bay. After Everglades National Park was dedicated in 1947, the road continued to provide the park’s [...]

Unnamed, un-blazed, and wild, following an old jeep road, the Pinelands Ecotone is an extraordinary hike along the ecotone between two rare habitats – pine rocklands and sawgrass prairies. It immerses you in one of the most intriguing parts of the Everglades: its rocky, pitted karst. Created by the steady erosion of the limestone bedrock, [...]

Iconic as the home of Florida’s tallest waterfall, Falling Waters State Park is a showcase for Florida geology. The park sits atop a high ridge, offering steep slopes on its short but delightful trail system and scenic views, when the leaves are few, from the picnic area and campground to lower elevations. The highlight of [...]

Near the mouth of the Matanzas River, Faver-Dykes State Park is a popular launch point for paddlers eager to explore the estuaries between the barrier islands and the coast. Nestled in oak hammocks along Pellicer Creek, this peaceful park also has an easy nature trail for landlubbers to trace the route of the creek through [...]

Most people come to see the stalactites and stalagmites at Florida’s only show cave. But the hiking’s even weirder at Florida Caverns State Park. One of the best parts of Florida Caverns State Park is its Caverns Trail System, an interconnected group of nature trails that surround the big show cave. Most folks don’t step [...]

Get acquainted with Big Scrub on this 8.4-mile stretch of the Florida Trail in the Ocala National Forest as it rises through longleaf pine forests to meet the world’s largest sand pine scrub, punctuated by a variety of ponds and prairies. Connecting a first-magnitude spring with one of the more beautiful lakes in the Ocala [...]

With Florida’s only Class III whitewater and the beauty of a Florida waterfall along a stretch of trail that is rugged but extremely scenic, this new section of the Florida Trail is a real winner. Although the full segment is still “thru hiker only” from its eastern access point along the back roads near Deep [...]

Part of the new corridor that the Florida Trail follows in its arc around the east side of the Orlando metro area. Bronson State Forest – a new addition to the Division of Forestry – now includes a segment of the Florida Trail that replaces the old roadwalk down Fort Christmas Road. Spanning from Orlando [...]

The oldest section of the Florida Trail is one of the prettiest, as well. First blazed in the Ocala National Forest in 1966 by a hardy crew of trail maintainers led by Jim Kern, the Florida Trail between Clearwater Lake Recreation Area and Alexander Springs Recreation Area traverses beautiful, moderately hilly stretches of longleaf pine [...]

On the Disappearing Creek Loop off the Florida Trail along the Suwannee River, watch Camp Branch burble through rapids and cascade into a giant sinkhole. Rapids between cypress knees? That’s what you’ll see when “surf’s up” along the Suwannee after a good rain. This region has spectacular geology thanks to its karst topography. Karst occurs [...]

This segment of the Florida Trail near Destin is on a swath of public land with a long and storied history. Established concurrently with the Ocala National Forest in 1908, the Choctawhatchee National Forest protected a vast swath of old growth longleaf pine forest. In 1940, the Federal Government decided to make the area a [...]

Protecting nearly 9,000 acres of between Palatka and Keystone Heights, Etoniah Creek State Forest is home to a segment of the Florida Trail where backpackers and day hikers alike can get out and explore. This hike describes the western segment of the Florida Trail between the two major trailheads of Etoniah Creek State Forest, the [...]

One of Florida’s oldest state parks, the Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park opened in the 1930s, its facilities built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It is one of the few state parks that the Florida Trail traverses, and a pleasant place to camp thanks to its many camping options. You can rent a [...]

With its spreading moss-draped oaks and tall hickory trees, dark floodplain forests of cabbage palms and beautiful riverside campsite, the Hickory Hammock section is one of the jewels of the Florida Trail System. This is one of South Florida’s most spectacular hikes, thanks to the old growth forest along the Kissimmee River floodplain, including dense [...]

While the Ocala National Forest is best known for having the largest expanse of scrub forest in the world, a lesser known facet of the forest – unless you hike the Florida Trail – are its wide, open prairies fringed with scrub forest. Here, sandhill cranes gather in groups, kingfishers buzz above small ponds, and [...]

For a real blast, hike south on the Florida Trail from Juniper Springs in the Ocala National Forest. Back in the 1940s, Jimmy Doolittle and his squadron trained here for their bombing runs on Japan; today, you’re still likely to see or hear low-flying bombers on their practice runs throughout the bombing range that this [...]

As the Cross Florida Greenway sweeps through Ocala and along the edge of Belleview, it provides access to a series of forests broken by unobtrusive road crossings in the heart of horse country, canopied roads that are a joy to drive between the two trailheads. Bordered by horse farms, this section of the Florida Trail [...]

Tarzan’s signature cry once echoed along the crystalline Silver River less than a mile from this section of the Florida Trail, which leads you through a dense, dark floodplain forest beneath a canopy of deep green palm fronds and ancient live oaks. Between 1932 and 1942, Johnny Weissmuller swung from tree to tree for the [...]

In the Osceola National Forest, this short loop adjacent to Olustee Battlefield is one of the easiest places in the state to see red-cockaded woodpeckers. It’s part of the statewide Florida Trail, and provides a prime spot to watch these endangered birds around their nest holes in ancient longleaf pines. It also has is a [...]

*** Hiking south of Port Mayaca to Pahokee is currently prohibited due to reconstruction work on the dike. Thru-hikers should use the western route around Lake Okeechobee. *** The sweep of Lake Okeechobee curves away from your perch on the Herbert Hoover Dike as you walk this section of the Florida Trail along the eastern [...]

As a protected corridor south of Ocala, this section of the Florida Trail is the westernmost segment on the Cross Florida Greenway, showing off the unusual terrain created during construction of the Cross Florida Ship Canal in the 1930s. It’s one of the few places in Central Florida you’ll find switchbacks along a hike, and [...]

As a protected corridor south of Ocala, this section of the Florida Trail on the Cross Florida Greenway offers delights you just can’t imagine from the roads that bisect it—CR 484 and SW 49th Avenue. It may look like your typical forest of scrubby-looking turkey oaks, but once you get inside it, what a surprise. [...]

In its mile-wide sweep across a swath of Central Florida, the Cross Florida Greenway hits an interruption just a few miles to the north of Belleview. The community of Santos was “in the way” during the construction of the Cross Florida Ship Canal in the 1930s, and emptied of its African-American residents; only the name [...]

One of the older sections of the Florida Trail near Orlando is also one of its finest. A hike through Seminole State Forest leads you through the kind of vast, open spaces that you’d never imagine, driving along SR 46A or SR 46 or SR 44 around the forest, actually existed on this grand a [...]

Explore a pre-Colombian village lost in Florida’s past – and uncovered again in modern times, thanks to the efforts of curious archaeologists – by following this trail in Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area. The Fort Center site is documented as possibly the first place in the eastern part of our continent where people crew corn. [...]

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 Bayou. Several openings in the mangroves enable you to enjoy scenic views with a wide sweep of the shallows of [...]

It’s the birthplace of the St. Johns River, a mosaic of wet prairies, cypress swamps, and hardwood hammocks in the wide open spaces between Yeehaw Junction and Vero Beach—waiting for you to explore. Zipping along SR 60 between Florida’s Turnpike and Vero Beach, you just don’t think about hiking. Orange groves, perhaps, or prairies or [...]

Hugging the shoreline of Rocky Bayou, an important aquatic preserve, Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park near Niceville has one of the prettiest campgrounds in the Florida State Park system – well air-conditioned by a cross-flow of breezes between the bayou and Puddin’ Head Lake – and one of the most picturesque trail systems. The [...]

Try one of Florida’s toughest day hikes on for size: local legend has it this was the Garden of Eden, and from the lush forests and rare flora along this trek, they might be on to something. This is one hike that’s no walk in the park. In fact, I’d rate it the second most [...]

My first visit to Geneva Wilderness was also my first Florida Trail activity. I’d driven two hours to meet up with the group and got there as the heavens opened. So we packed it in and went out to dinner at a great fish camp. Luckily, the hike leader – now a dear friend – [...]

Protecting a sheet flow of rainfall moving steadily southward and parallel to the Atlantic Ocean, Grassy Waters Preserve bears a striking resemblance to the Florida Everglades. It’s hard to imagine now, with the crush of humanity along this coast, but this shimmering sheet of sawgrass once was part of the River of Grass, feeding directly [...]

Circling a peninsula of land between the Guana River and the Tolomato River, the extenstive trail system at GTM Reserve is open to biking and hiking. Enjoy a walk through maritime forests riffled by a salt breeze. The trail traverses a broad variety of habitats, including open freshwater savannas, scrub, live oak hammocks, salt marshes, [...]

As the St. Johns River snakes its way north from the Canaveral Marshes, it passes through a series of vast marshes and lakes well-known to Central Florida residents – Lake Harney, Lake Jesup, and Lake Monroe. What you rarely see, however – unless you’re a boater – are the connections between the lakes and marshes. [...]

In Tate’s Hell State Forest, the High Bluff Coastal Trail along US 98 near Carrabelle leads you over relict dunes covered with scrub plants like Florida rosemary and scrub mint, partially shaded by a canopy of sand pines. Since this is a scrub habitat, expect some sand in your shoes. You’ll walk a linear trail [...]

Resources Overview Location: Tampa Length: Up to 5.8 miles in a round-trip and two loops Lat-Lon: 28.1491, -82.2273 Type: Balloon Fees: Florida State Parks entrance fee Difficulty: Easy to Moderate Bug Factor: Moderate Restroom: Yes, near suspension bridge Watch for poison ivy along the trail. Directions Take I-75 to Tampa exit 265 (Fowler Avenue). Head [...]

Get lost in the woods in the heart of old Gainesville while getting in touch with the past. Ever since I went to the Hogtown Medieval Faire for the first time, I’ve wondered about old Hogtown. I’ve seen the signs for Hogtown Creek—poor thing, encased in concrete culverts and shunted beneath lanes and lanes of [...]

On this barrier island just north of Clearwater Beach, the Osprey Trail at Honeymoon Island State Park offers a close-up look at a rookery of “sea eagles,” the noble osprey. There are nesting colonies of osprey and pelicans along the Osprey and Pelican Trails, and sweeping views across the sound and the Gulf of Mexico. [...]

Call it arrested development. Sitting between Fort Pierce and Vero Beach, Indrio Savannas was a gleam in a developer’s eye more than a decade ago, but thankfully this particular subdivision never came to fruition. Only a mile from the Indian River Lagoon as the heron flies, the savannas of Indrio are expansive freshwater wetlands where [...]

James E. Grey Preserve is a hidden treasure on the outskirts of New Port Richey, a quiet rural breather along the Pithlachascotee River. It’s in a most unexpected place: surrounded by modern-day subdivisions, a tiny patch of rural Florida exists down a bumpy one-lane limerock road, a handful of residences deep in the woods and [...]

For backpackers headed to the urban southeastern part of the Florida, Jonathan Dickinson State Park provides more than 11,000 acres to roam on a series of three trails maintained by the Florida Trail Association. Although the East Loop took some severe battering during the hurricanes of 2005, losing the sand pine scrub canopy along the [...]

Diversity is the name of the game along the trail at Juno Dunes, where you’ll find not just coastal scrub atop the Atlantic Coastal Ridge but an interesting mosaic of wetlands among the swale between ancient dunes. Juno Beach is a small seaside community north of West Palm Beach, and this preserve encompasses a nice [...]

Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park is truly a botanical treasure, with the highest concentration of champion trees in one place in the United States—and none are over 45 feet tall. Current and prior national champions include crabwood (Ateramnus lucidus), Bahama strongback (Bourreria ovata), spicewood (Calyptranthes pallens), wild cinnamon (Canella winterana), milk-bark (Drypetes diversifolia), Guiana [...]

Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park protects a remnant of what was once the great Indian Prairie stretching to Lake Okeechobee, a mosaic of wet and dry grasslands where wildflowers flourish Look into the grasses to see the colorful blooms of meadow beauty, blazing star, and wild bachelor’s button. Walk the nature trails, ride the forest [...]

Two trails, one trailhead. The Lake Eaton Trail is in the heart of the Big Scrub, part of the “Lake Eaton Trails” on the northeast side of Lake Eaton in the Ocala National Forest, halfway between Salt Springs and Nuby’s Corner along CR 314. From the air (or satellite photo) you can see Lake Eaton [...]

Protecting 845 acres of the whitest, brightest sand on the Lake Wales Ridge, this passive preserve has one of the highest concentrations of rare and endemic plants in North America. A pristine snapshot of Florida’s scrub, the land is an ancient sand dune. A short nature trail follows Tomoka Run, a fern lined waterway {crosslink}, [...]

Most visitors to Lake Kissimmee State Park never see the lake. Certainly, they see the marina, and the Zipprer Canal that connects Lake Rosalie and Lake Kissimmee. Alligators sun on the canal banks, and you can hear airboats buzzing in the distance. But even from the very top of the observation tower, Lake Kissimmee is [...]

In the rolling hills of the Lake Wales Ridge south of Clermont, Lake Louisa is the southernmost lake in the Palatlakaha River chain of lakes, its waters flowing northward to feed Lake Susan, Lake Minehaha, and Lake Minneola. Extending between the park entrance and the recreation area along Lake Louisa, the hiking trails showcase the [...]

If you think Florida doesn’t have steep trails, this one will dispel the myth. To the west of Tallahassee, The Ravine Trail at Lake Talquin State Forest is part of the Terry Rhodes Trail System at the Bear Creek Educational Center south of Quincy, and is notable for clinging to the edges of a rather [...]

It’s an unexpected find, this quiet preserve down a dirt road not far from the waves of suburban sprawl pushing south from the Polk Parkway, letting Lakeland flow towards Bartow. One of the first acquisitions for Polk County’s Environmental Lands Program and undoubtedly one of the more heavily used, the Lakeland Highlands Scrub protects 160 [...]

At the north edge of Tampa, Lettuce Lake Park protects 240 acres along the Hillsborough River, providing a getaway for hikers, bicyclists, and picnickers. Trapped between tall cypress trees in ponds dense with water lettuce, Lettuce Lake is a bend in the river creating a haunting swamp. Boardwalks lead you through this wild place. Best [...]

Resources Overview Location: Wimauma Length: 2.9 miles or 6.5 miles Lat-Long: 27.675111, -82.349814 Type: loop Fees / Permits: state park entrance fee Difficulty: moderate Bug factor: moderate Restroom: No You must visit the Little Manatee River State Park entrance first and get the gate combination (and map) from the ranger before heading up here to [...]

A coconut palm plantation. An exclusive fishing resort. Long Key has been many things over the past century. We can be glad it’s now a Florida State Park, a place where you can camp along the oceanfront and wander its interesting habitats. The Golden Orb Trail starts and ends near the campground, offering a loop [...]

As one of several “Sandhills Trails” throughout Florida, the Sandhills Nature Trail at Lower Wekiva Preserve State Park lives up to its name. It’s a 2.2-mile loop through longleaf pine and wiregrass, an ecosystem that once covered the uplands of Central Florida. While the scrub along the Wekiva River basin attempts to seep into the [...]

Bordering and managed by the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge – the first wildlife refuge in America established to protect sea turtles – Maritime Hammock Sanctuary showcases maritime, or coastal hammock, marshlands, and mangroves along the Indian River Lagoon. It’s 150 acres preserved from the residental development that has otherwise spread up and down A1A [...]

North of Gainesville, the northern forests make their southern stand. Mill Creek Preserve, north of Alachua and part of the Alachua County Forever registry, encompasses nearly 1,200 acres of unexpected delights in an area well-known for its sinkholes and disappearing streams. By taking a hike, you pass through the curtain of pine plantation you see [...]

This short and easily accessible loop in the Osceola National Forest showcases an old growth longleaf pine forest with a population of red-cockaded woodpeckers best viewed in the early morning. Some of the pines sport catfaces, evidence of the turpentine industry that flourished around Lake City in the early part of the last century. Spanning [...]

Naval Live Oaks Preserve outside Pensacola was our nation’s first tree farm, established in 1828 by President John Quincy Adams to protect a significant coastal stand of live oaks for military use. In those days, our navy’s ships were made of wood, and Pensacola was a significant deep-water coastal port. Once a supply of live [...]

One of the closest trail systems to Florida’s Turnpike, Oakland Nature Preserve showcases 128 acres of natural shoreline on Lake Apopka, Florida’s third largest lake and, like Lake Okeechobee, one that has undergone dramatic change due to human intervention. Part of the purpose of this preserve is to educate visitors about the damage done to [...]

Winding northward from Lake Griffin, the Ocklawaha River was once a meandering river through vast marshes, cypress swamps, and floodplain forests as it worked its way towards the St. Johns River near Palatka. But channelization by the Army Corps of Engineers radically altered its flow in many places, including around Moss Bluff. There are two [...]

The granddaddy of wetlands parks, Orlando Wetlands Park is a City of Orlando wastewater reclamation project that’s become a world-class haven for waterfowl. The project began in the mid-1980s with the acquisition of a dairy farm. Converted to a series of wetland “cells” of varying depths, open pastureland became marsh in which treated wastewater would [...]

Protecting more than 1,300 acres of uplands in a region where development has swarmed across the natural landscapes, Oscar Scherer State Park is a stronghold for the Florida scrub-jay, a colorful species found only in Florida. Opened in 1956 near Venice, the park began as a bequest from Elsa Scherer Burrows in memory of her [...]

A lesser-known part of Withlacoochee State Forest, the Oxbow Trail is on the northernmost tract of the forest along the Withlacoochee River, the trails and campsites all Eagle Scout projects. While the easy-to-follow big loop trail is a popular circuit for families and folks taking their dogs on a walk, the tougher-to-follow but more visually [...]

At the new Palatlakaha Environmental and Agricultural Reserve Park south of Leesburg, work is underway to transform what was once an University of Florida agricultural research center for watermelon and grapes to a working farm, restored upland habitats, and recreational facilities. What’s remained untouched is the focus of this hike. A ribbon of green defines [...]

A showcase for the colorful pine lily (Lilium catesbaei Walter), a threatened species that thrives in wet flatwoods, Pine Lily Preserve protects 409 acres in the Econlockhatchee River basin. Connecting directly to Hal Scott Preserve and Long Branch Preserve, it’s part of a much larger corridor for wildlife to roam north from the prairies of [...]

[set_id=72157623538587832 ] With a nature trail showcasing Florida’s weird karst geology and a cypress swamp along the Santa Fe River near High Springs, Poe Springs Park provides a glimpse into Florida’s fossilized past. A second-magnitude spring, Poe pours out a very short spring run into the cypress-lined Santa Fe River. Poe Springs has been a [...]

At the confluence of Pellicer Creek and the Matanzas River, Princess Place Preserve is a Flagler County park protecting the oldest homestead in the county, Cherokee Grove. In 1791, this land grant from the King of Spain was quickly planted in orange groves. By 1886, it passed into the hands of Henry Cutting, who constructed [...]

More than a century ago, the forests surrounding first-magnitude Rainbow Springs were a beehive of activity as miners dug pits in the limestone to find nuggets that made Dunnellon a boomtown—phosphate. This area was the first place where phosphate was commercially mined in Florida. The deep pits and spoil piles left behind were recovered by [...]

Although the Osceola District Schools Environmental Study Center is only open to the public on weekends, its trails provide an up-close look at more than a dozen old growth cypresses and wildlife along Reedy Creek. With its headwaters in what is now Walt Disney World, Reedy Creek flows sluggishly southward through cypress swamps into pristine [...]

Riverbend Park has been more than a decade in the making. It’s been more than a decade since Riverbend Park was first established, and now that it’s open, the 680 acre preserve is an ideal destination for hikers who want a taste of the wilds of Southwest Florida without getting their feet wet. More than [...]

An oasis of tropical hammock in a sea of suburbia, Rocky Point Hammock is perched along the Atlantic Coastal Ridge in Port Salerno, south of Stuart. This unique location creates an appealing mix of scrub and tropical habitats, with diminutive plants atop the higher elevations and a dense ring of tropical forest and ancient trees [...]

An urban park just on the fringe of the industrial area east of downtown Lakeland, Saddle Creek Park draws a lot of attention for its primary attraction—fishing. Like those at nearby Tenoroc Fish Management Area, the oddly shaped lakes are remnants of phosphate mine pits, filled with water and stocked with game fish like largemouth [...]

Seabranch Preserve State Park encompasses nearly 1,000 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway south of Stuart, and protects several critical habitats in an area overrun with coastal development. In addition to supporting populations of Florida scrub-jays and gopher tortoises across its many acres of diminutive scrub forest, Seabranch Preserve contains one of South Florida’s rare bayhead [...]

Silver River State Park has plenty of hiking, and these two trails are probably the most popular of the bunch. Walk under the “River Trails” arch to start your adventure into the cypress swamps and floodplain forests of the Silver River basin along two very different trails. The Swamp Trail offers a round-trip and loop [...]

Take a hike around a giant sinkhole and explore the uplands above the Silver River at Silver River State Park. Near the environmental education center and Pioneer Village, start at the Sinkhole Trail archway for this 2.5-mile loop through sandhills, sand pine scrub, and oak hammocks surrounding a giant sinkhole. This trail offers both diversity [...]

Sitting right on the state line southeast of Folkston, Georgia, the Ralph E. Simmons Memorial State Forest is certainly a place to get away from it all. The sluggish tannic waters of the St. Marys River form the state boundary, snaking around bends marked by sandy beaches. The dips and slopes where upland and riverine [...]

As the wind whips across a broad, sweeping peninsula reaching out towards Ponce Inlet, you can hear the squawks of shorebirds and the rustle of gopher tortoises intermingle with engines gunning and dogs barking. At New Smyrna Beach, Smyrna Dunes Park is one of those rare places where most recreational users are accommodated. The 2-mile [...]

One of Central Florida’s most scenic and easy-to-follow day hikes, the St. Francis Trail traverses the southeasternmost corner of the Ocala National Forest to lead you through what was once farms, fields, and a bustling commercial center on the St. Johns River. It’s hard to believe, as you walk under bowers of live oaks and [...]

For a sampling of the fragile coastal habitats protected along St. Joseph Bay by St Joseph Peninsula State Park, take a short walk on this spectacularly scenic coastal trail. You’ll meander through a diminutive scrub forest where the delicate Florida rosemary, myrtle oak, and Chapman oak are gnarled and wizened like bonsai thanks to the [...]

Hugging the “Forgotten Coast” of the Big Bend, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge encompasses a broad sweep of salt marshes and tidal flats, brackish impoundments, cabbage palm hammocks, and pinelands. The Mounds Pool Interpretive Trail offers an excellent spot for birding along the man-made impoundments, melding a shady walk along one pool to a breezy [...]

Tucked away behind a suburban St. Augustine neighborhood, Stokes Landing Conservation Area is a hidden gem of the St. Johns Water Management District, providing an outdoor classroom for local schools and beautiful panoramic views of the salt marshes along the Tolomato River for hikers. Pick up a map and interpretive guide at the trailhead kiosk, [...]

The prairies of Central Florida are fascinating places, rich with wildlife. Here, you’ll see flocks of wild turkeys and sandhill cranes, and that unusual looking falcon, the caracara. Protecting more than 4,000 acres of this habitat and purchased in 1997 as part of the Polk County Environmental Lands Program, SUMICA opened just a few years [...]

Two different faces, two different spaces: the 125-acre Sweetwater Branch Preserve, acquired in 2006, is a unique natural land in the city of Gainesville. It provides a buffer and wildlife corridor on the northern rim of Paynes Prairie along a historically important waterway, part of a 50,000 acre conservation buffer between Gainesville and Hawthorne. While [...]

Tarkiln Bayou State Park offers wheelchair accessible trails leading to pitcher plant bogs along a bayou on the Alabama border, west of Pensacola. In 2003, The Nature Conservancy assisted the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with the purchase of this critical wetland along Tarkiln Bayou, known as the Perdido Pitcher Plant Prairie. Adjoining wetlands [...]

Looping through pine flatwoods in the middle of suburbia, the Friends Trail at Brooker Creek Preserve offers an escape from busy Pinellas County life. This was the first trail to open on the county’s largest nature preserve and remains a quiet getaway at the end of a dead-end road. While less than 2 miles long, [...]

With a big, beautiful nature center and trails that are perfectly groomed or swept, Tibet-Butler Preserve offers a spot of wilderness in the dense urban mass to the west of Orlando. The trail system loops through many of the major habitats found in this region, including longleaf pine forest and scrub, bayhead swamp and cypress-lined [...]

Protecting 509 acres in an otherwise crowded urban area, a large swath of floodplain forest and pine flatwoods along the Ortega River – a tributary of the St. Johns River – Tillie K. Fowler Regional Park sits right along US 17 across from the Jacksonville Naval Air Station. While the Nature Center and its trails [...]

One of the most rugged hikes in Florida, the Torreya Hiking Trail treats you to an billowing landscape of bluffs and ravines, rising to 300 feet above the Apalachicola River at Logan’s Bluff. The unusual landscape means unusual plant communities as well, including some of the rarest species in the state in the ravines. You’ll [...]

Surrounded by suburbia in Palm Bay, Turkey Creek Sanctuary is a precious preserve of 117 acres, protecting the gentle bends of Turkey Creek as it carves a deep path through sandy banks on its winding course to the Indian River Lagoon. With boardwalks carrying you over a variety of habitats, including sand pine scrub, river [...]

If you’ve ever wanted to scramble up and down Florida dunes, here’s your chance! This part of Santa Rosa Island is a coastal desert that the Florida Trail weaves up and over. The Florida Trail is the only National Scenic Trail to meander along a beach—the beaches of Santa Rosa Island—and this is one of [...]

At lush Washington Oaks Gardens State Park, a treasure along the Atlantic coast, the Bella Vista Trail leads you along its white-blazed Timucuan Loop through a shady maritime hammock of red bay, southern magnolia, and cabbage palms. The patchwork of habitats along this sliver of barrier island are fully explored along this 1.8 mile loop, [...]

Preserving more than 30 acres of tropical hammock north of Islamorada – saved from condo development in the 1980s, with support from local residents – Windley Key Fossil Reef is a very unique place. In 1908, during the construction of the Overseas Railroad, Henry Flagler purchased this land and opened a quarry for crushed limestone. [...]

At Wright Lake near Sumatra, a day hiking loop along the western edge of the Apalachicola National Forest features an unusual bridge and numerous pitcher plant bogs This well-kept loop along the western edge of the Apalachicola National Forest was a real surprise to me. I expected pine plantations (and there were many), but did [...]

Resources Immediately north of Garcon Point Preserve, Garcon Point Rd (CR 191) is a delight to drive in early April. Pitcher plants bloom roadside, edging the ditches in astounding quantity as you draw closer to Blackwater Bay and Yellow River Marsh Preserve State Park. Overview Location: Bagdad Length: unknown—no marked trails Lat-Long: 30.484300, -87.071500 Type: [...]