So beautiful!! Easy walking trail with observation deck along the way. Saw a gator and lots of…read morebirds! No shade really along the trail. Take your binoculars! This was really a lovely treat to find such different terrain, wildlife from Colorado. Would definitely recommend!

A great hiking trail to see wildlife. Parking is somewhat limited but no admission charge. Some…read moreparts of the trail are wide open and allow for great views of the Everglades and its inhabitants. I saw a ton of birds and a few gators. Other parts are surrounded by thick mangroves. The tower allows for great views from above.

This place is nicely snuggled between a Gass station and Gators Cross Roads restaurant…read more It is not to easy to spot from the outside. As you first walk by. The first thing you will see is probably the gators. There is a cage/pit with two different size gators, pretty cool right. Next to the gators is the entrance. The place is not very big. I saw goats, chickens,very happy roosters, chick's, eggs, ducks and white mice, and doves. I think I also sometimes that looked to me like a white Peacock. I could be wrong. I got talking to someone that was working the gators. He seemed friendly. He offered more information on the place and a little bit on gators knowledge. It seems the place was larger once upon a time but do to a hurricane damages had to downsize and donate some of the animals. This was truly an unexpected find at Tamiami trail next to a Gass station. I was glad today's adventure took me here.

I come here almost every day to walk my dog. It is a huge park, friendly to all visitors with…read moreplaygrounds, sports fields, and nature trails. The visitors generally do a very good job of behaving themselves, which I personally am thankful for because the park rangers do absolutely nothing. Several times I have seen people fishing in the lakes around the park (which is also a STATE PRESERVE WITH CLEARLY POSTED NO FISHING SIGNS), and every time the rangers have been completely unaware. They rarely venture outside of their station. As a result of this the quality of this park is slowly degrading. Aside from illegal fishing there is now graffiti and other signs of vandalism in multiple places throughout the park. Come here while you still can, before long it will be a much worse place because of lazy rangers.

Great spot for birdwatching. Often see black skimmers, black necked stilts, black bellied…read morewhistling duck, gallinules, ibis and lots more

This park has pickleball it has basketball it has a playground it has an inground pool and a kiddie…read morepool it has water slides it has backgammon it has so many different things to do it's absolutely amazing. You can walk around the whole outside of the park with its walking trail right by the water. There's a boat dock in the back right of the park. There are baseballs fields as well.. this park has it all. It's great for early morning walks or late night walks or anything in between.

All of the parks in Naples are gorgeous and the Golden Gate Community Park is no exception. This…read morepark serves the Golden Gate community located in the far northeastern part of the Naples. Golden Gate began as a development in the 1950s and 1960s from 175 square mile of Everglades swampland purchased in the late 1950's by Jack and Leonard Rosen, founders of Gulf American Corporation. Before Golden Gate, the Gulf American Corporation had success in developing Cape Coral. Neighborhoods in Golden Gate include Golden Gate City, Golden Gate Estates, Forest Park, Berkshire Village, and Safe Harbor. Unlike many west coast neighborhoods,, Golden Gate has no gulf coast access. It does however have many miles of canals. Golden Gate Community Park is located on one of the canals and has a launch for the type of small watercraft the canals are ideal for. Another draw to the park is the aquatic facility that has a 25-yard by 25-meter heated pool, a children's activity pool, a wading pool, a 177-foot open slide, a 122-foot closed slide, one 1-meter springboard and one 3-meter springboard. The aquatic facility charges a nominal entrance for residents. There is also a fitness center with treadmills, ellipticals, free weights and weight machines. You can purchase monthly and yearly fitness memberships. Other park amenities include a lighted little league field, lighted baseball field, lighted soccer/football fields, lighted basketball court, 4 lighted tennis racquetball courts, shuffleboard courts, bocce court, playground, restrooms, and picnic pavilions which can be rented. As a visitor, my favorite part of the park was the nearly one mile paved fitness trail. I love how this park offers something for all ages. Take the kids to the pool or playground, exercise at he fitness center, participate in team sports at one of the fields, or enjoy a picnic in one of the pavilions. The options for recreation are endless in this well appointed park.

This is trail not to far from Everglades National Park. It's located within Fakahatchee Strand…read morePreserve State Park. It's an easy walk and suitable for all ages. It was not busy at all, very quiet. You are able to see some wildlife and many different trees, like cypress trees and royal palms. This is not a loop trail. We did see a baby and an adult alligator. The boardwalk ends at the lake and if you continue to walk the sandy road you will see a gift shop. The parking lot is a nice size and does offer handicap parking as well. The first part is shaded and there are a few viewing stations. I did pay the $3 not sure if it's mandatory, but it goes towards the preservation of the park. It's a very nice path, but definitely remember to bring your sunscreen!

Well worth the $3 for parking. Saw several gators. Took about an hour to walk through including…read moretime to look at wildlife like turtles and birds.

Winterberry Park is an athletic park in Marco Island. Park amenities include a baseball/softball…read morefield, concession stand, open field for play, restroom, and a soccer/football field. Locals use the park to kick around a soccer ball, practicing baseball and softball, throw a football, and play cricket. This park is also the home of the Marco Island Senior Softball Players who play on the field year-round. Many of the players retired to Marco Island just for the ability to play senior softball year-round where it has an almost cult-like following from the players, their family members, and friends. I stopped by the park not for a baseball game but to look for eagles. A nest was reported a few years back on a pole in the park but I didn't see any eagles on my visit. Another great spot to try and view eagles nearby is the Marco Island Nature Preserve and Bird Sanctuary.

This small visitor center has a lot to offer. They have a large parking area and the moment that…read moreyou start heading to the building a lot of gator welcomed you. They have a nice walking area close to gators. They easily have over 10 gator sitting around. Inside the visitor center the staff is friendly. They have many souvenirs themed with the everglades.

This was such a nice visitors center with lots of gators and wildlife to check out. There's a…read moreboardwalk where you can view the wildlife, and the building has some informational/educational items inside, along with merchandise, and the employee there was welcoming guests and helping anyone that needed help or advice with their travels in the area.

Florida panthers are a subspecies of mountain lion and the only one to still exist in the eastern…read moreUnited States. They used to roam from Florida to Louisiana throughout the Gulf Coast states and Arkansas. Today they are only found in the southwestern tip of Florida in the Everglades and here in Big Cypress Preserve. They are usually solitary unless mating and eat white-tailed deer, feral hogs, raccoons, birds, and other medium-sized mammals and reptiles. Hunting has decimated their population and they were added to the endangered species list in 1973. Today there are only 120 to 130 panthers left in the wild and with so few left they are also susceptible to disease, genetic disorders, and car accidents. The land that is now the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge was once owned by the Collier family who were the largest land owners in Florida in the 1920's. They used the land for private hunting cattle grazing. In 1989, the US Fish & Wildlife Service purchased 24,300 acres from the Collier family for $10.3 million dollars to create the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, under the authority of the Endangered Species Act for the purpose of protecting the the Florida panther and its habitat. Another 2,000 acres were purchased from the Collier family in 1996 to expand the preserve. It is believed that 12 to 16 panthers currently roam the refuge along with black bears, bobcats, white-tailed deer, Big Cypress fox squirrels, alligators and wood storks. You can access the hiking trails through the Leslie M. Duncan Memorial Trails in the southwest corner of the preserve by taking the Everglades City exit off of Alligator Alley. The preserve backs I-75. This is one of those places that I have wanted to explore but never had the time. How fast things can change in two weeks. At the gravel parking lot there is a port a potty, a board with trail information and access to two trails, one a third mile and one that is one and a third mile. You are only allowed access to a small portion of the preserve in order to not disturb the panthers. Bring your own water. I read the U,S. Fish and Wildlife Service Service website regarding this trail before attempting it because it seems like it could be dangerous to hang out with panthers. According to them "Panthers are rarely seen on the refuge. I have since learned that panthers are most active at night, during the day the rest. However, if you do see a panther, follow these guidelines: *Keep children within sight and close to you. Pick up small children. *Give the panther space. Give them a way to escape. *Do not run. Stand and face the animal. *Avoid crouching or bending over. *Appear larger. Open your jacket.(it was pushing 90 degrees, I didn't have a jacket) *Throw stones, branches, or whatever you can reach without crouching or turning your back." I chose the one and a third mile trail. You can access it through a gate in a fence from opposite ends of the parking lot. There is one look out area with a bench on the trail which is very narrow on natural ground. The trail is cut out from Big Cypress Preserve and meanders through the refuge through tropical hardwood hammocks, acres of slash pine, and wet prairies. Over 700 species of plants have been recorded here including lobelia, tickseed and prairie milkweed. Rare orchids and bromeliads are also found here. At times the plants and trees were as tall as my head on either side of me as I walked the trail. I didn't come across any panthers and didn't see so much as a footprint. In fact the only creatures I saw were some grasshoppers, bees, and a vulture. The path is in full sun and some shade but I was very hot by the time I got done. If you are looking somewhere off the beaten track to explore than this would be a good choice. The hike is not difficult and you can social distance safely. Although I saw a couple of cars in the parking lot I never encountered anyone on the trail.

Nice little park. It's right off I75 at fl29. The preserve its much larger than your access to it…read more The area you can hike is two trails, one .3 miles and the other 1.3 miles. It's next to big cypress preserve, so expect plenty of muddy parts. In November there were still some blood sucking insects, but the hordes of mosquitoes were gone. The policy of national parks was not lost on Florida Panthers. They left only footprints! I saw two prints and they followed prints by a deer. The prints were clear and probably hours old. There are little lizards everywhere. The flowers were long gone at this time of year.