West end of the ravine

Banana trees and azaleas in the ravine

Descend down a curving set of stairs, past a planting of sago palms and between two pillars. Turn right, walking down one more staircase to the trailhead for the Bamboo Springs Trail. Just for fun, cross the swinging bridge to start your hike counterclockwise along the Bamboo Springs Trail. Turn right after you cross the bridge. The trail clings to the hillside and passes staircases leading up – to the road circling the ravine – and down. As you walk through the azaleas, the trail drops down broad steps that take it halfway down the side of the ravine.

There are many paths you can take along the way, but keep focused on Bamboo Springs, where the trail drops down a staircase past sword ferns and azaleas to a set of piped artesian wells, bubbling to create a clear flowing stream pouring downhill under the young bald cypresses. The trail climbs back up the ravine slope from here and clings like a goat path as you get a great view of the wetlands around Bamboo Springs. It continues below the road and above the wetlands. Climbing up under live oaks and southern magnolia, you’re behind and below the visitor’s center. Head up to the suspension bridge where you started, and cross it again to begin your journey down the east end of the ravine.