Was a partially shaded trail so nice for the Florida heat. A lot of facts too on the walk tooread more

This is a small but pleasant preserve with an observation tower. The view from the top of the…read moretower is impressive. The preserve is located on Rt 64 just east of Anna Maria Island. Most of the trail is pretty wide and paved with crushed rock. In fact, it's pretty much wheelchair accessible. We heard some birds but didn't see any wildlife. It's a nice place to take a stroll and there isn't much traffic noise. There is a a small parking area at the entrance that has a porta-potty. Allow about an hour to walk the trail.

In the past 6 months the Seminoles built a large tiki pavilion, tables going in 4/10. The bird…read moreblind offers seats and multiple options for photos. 5 feeders are setup and the painted bunting is a big attraction. There is a second smaller tiki hut set in the meadow with multiple bird houses. This summer we will clear and reclaim part of the trail along the north end of the park. It's free and entirely supported by volunteers and donations. Come visit!

I really wanted to give this a five star rating but I couldn't because the only birds I saw were…read moretwo ducks. I went around 3pm so not sure if timing has anything to do with it. I did enjoy the nature preserve trails, lots of butterflies but also lots of dragonfly's. I would bring but spray just in case but I didn't need it. I would like to come back here another day because it says this is a bird sanctuary so sad I didn't see much.

This is a nice lil preserve area with a few interpretive signs (apparently an inn was on the site),…read morea water overlook, a short trail, and quite a bit of poison ivy. The water overlook face a bit of 41 so quite a bit of road noise. Otherwise it's a peaceful little wildlands area with some pine, live oak, and palm trees. I found the history interesting. Also a sign about estuaries.

Doing some research on Long Boat Key, and this park came up. It was perfect for what I was looking…read morefor. It is a dog friendly park, has inter-coastal water views and is perfect if you are looking for a place to walk and take in nature. Since it has been quite windy this week, even with the nicer weather, the wind is too intense for me at the beach. Plus it's not dog friendly. They have a boardwalk and gravel trails so it's easiest to wear gym shoes. There's a number of trails but some entries were closed. The trail that we took took you on the board walk where there were an abundance of benches along the way as well as garbages and poop bags for your fur baby. It was so clean and organized. There are also signs that say to Pavillion and parking lot. So don't think you will get lost bc that will always take you back. There are picnic tables, bathrooms and a playground a a nice adult swing to swing on as well as the kiddy swings. It was super peaceful, and away from the hustle and bustle of the beaches. Definitely check it out for that ideal quiet chill spot with nature and your family and fur babies!

A few years ago, while on my morning walk from White Sand of Longboat, along Gulf of Mexico Drive,…read moreI took a short detour into this park. At the time, I thought it was a small pocket park and that I had seen the whole thing. It was nice, but unimpressive. Well, during our annual week in Longboat Key, we decided to explore the park a little more. Boy, was I wrong with my first impression! The park's 34 acres wrap around homes, utilities, the firehouse, many municipal buildings and a few retail establishments, with paths weaving through dense mangroves to Sarasota Bay. You can drive in to a parking area, adjacent to a pond, Pavilion and playground. Behind the pavilion is a large, well groomed grassy field. There are cleared dirt and gravel paths and in the wetland, mangrove areas, boardwalks weaving through the trees, over ponds and streams. The scenic overlooks on the bay were comfortable. Benches were in many places along the trails. And to my delight, there were birds everywhere. We spent a delightful couple of hours there and will be back.

Fantastic Kayak Launch...prepare for short carry to the slide in ramps…read more Lot's & Lot's of wildlife.... If it EVER reopens after Milton!! Let go Sarasota County, please reopen this very special park!!

Not to be confused with the state park with a similar name, this is a lil park at the end of Laurel…read moreRd past some new developments. It has a kayak, canoe boat launch. Nice paved trail and picnic tables and lots of side trail views of Myakka River. Quite lovely. No animals or dogs allowed. Beware of gators. We saw a lil one. I let it nibble on my toes. The only garbage is by entrance gate. Please take out what you bring in. Take only.photographs. Bathrooms by entrance. Closes at sunset.

You know when you are planning a trip to Anna Maria Island and you see the manatee pictures? Then…read moreyou show your kids and they ask umpteen million times... when are we going to see a manatee? Often they will come past you when you are in the ocean but this is one of those places that you are ALMOST guaranteed to see one. We stopped here on our "day out of the sun" and there were two playing in here. It was 90+ degrees so there weren't going to be many since the ocean waters are plenty warm enough, but during the winter I'm told there are TONS. It isn't easy to capture pictures but I was able to capture some anad you can see where we stood. It is 100% free and the kids shouting in joy seeing it was so worth it!!! It is just a couple miles off island in a neighborhood and super easy to find with ample parking.

It's not a real park, per se. there is only a single bench. It's more like a boat slip for the…read morehouses near by.

Great place to hike. Make sure to wear shoes that can get soaked. There are also cows out in the…read morehiking area so keep your distance.

This is a well kept softball park with four fields and staff to take the fields and keep things…read moremaintained. It's got covered dugouts, bleachers, and restrooms. There's plenty of parking on weekly game days but I've never been here for a larger event. The parking does have some hills that fill up with rain in the low spots and the back field has some issues with drainage sometimes.

A nice and busy fenced dog park with four softball fields located adjacent. The "park" is build on…read morean old landfill, and it is like a "fun house" with the sidewalks, parking lot and surrounding area rolling and heaving. The softball fields are relatively level and well maintained but require periodic work. It is rumored that occasionally the old landfill belches gas and one of the senior softball players disappears into the fiery void below. So, if you plan on going there, make certain you attend church first.