Twelve acre, six foot deep Pelican Lake was once a natural marsh. In the early 1950s, Juno Beach…read moredevelopers Bessemer Properties built a small dam into the marsh and turned it into a lake. It was named Pelican Pond by the local Garden Club before becoming Pelican Lake. The developers used the lake as an attraction to draw residents before the town it was incorporated in 1953. Although beautiful to look at the lake also serves an important function. It protects the surrounding buildings from flooding during heavy rain by providing a place for the rain to drain away. Around Pelican Lake is a pleasant one mile loop, perfect for a walk, jog, or bike ride. The lake has a fountain in it. Along the path you will find benches and trees. I even found a Rainbow Eucalyptus tree which you don't usually find out of botanical gardens. There is a gazebo where you can watch the turtles bob their heads out of the water. I think people must feed them because they came swimming right over when they saw me. I also saw fish and birds like the common moorhen, ibis, and ducks. There used to be more wildlife but the chemicals added to the lake through the years to prevent algae blooms eventually reduced the animal and plant populations. Plans are being made to rehabilitate the ecosystem by removing invasive species and adding native plants and fish. They also want to add a shallow nesting area to attract birds. One small part of the walkway around the lake takes you to the sidewalk along Ocean Dr. but it goes back down to the lake. When you finish your walk you can cross the street to Kagan Park where there is some outdoor exercise equipment along with a basketball court and a playground. This is a very nice to exercise and take in the fresh air.

Apparently what I thought was a pond is actually a Lake. On a Saturday afternoon, I encountered a…read morelot of people walking here, some with dogs and others with kids/strollers. The South side of this Walk can serve as a path to get to Juno Beach Access JB-7 from the parking lot at Kagan Park; I definitely passed families carrying beach equipment. This Walk is interesting in part because the path is lined with engraved stones memorializing loved ones or saying something. Many are so worn that you can no longer read them. A couple that I did read were heartbreaking. On the West side of the Lake is a pavilion with a boardwalk going out to it over the Lake. The Lake has fountains. We could see many, many turtles and ducks from this pavilion. Parents beware: the built in benches have a ledge at the top of the seats which are the perfect height for a child to hoist themselves up onto and stand dangerously high up to the top of the barrier. The Western side of the Lake Trail gets larger and has a green area with trees, a bench and a little gazebo. I didn't go too much farther when I saw the road head up to the regular road.

I've been wanting to visit this ERM park ever since visiting its neighbor, Juno Dunes Natural Area…read more The last time I tried to visit, the very small parking lot was full. From the road, this park looks to be all scrub, but like the other park, it contains multiple habitats inside. The first paved walk leads to a very nice pavilion overlooking the River. The view was peaceful and beautiful. Trying to access the unpaved trails, however, proved problematic. We turned onto the red path, only to find that the marker stakes had most of the red faded away and were difficult to find. At one point there is a huge fork in the path with no direction on which way to go. The end of the trail is practically non existent, with no clear path, but it does return us to the park entrance. I insisted on trying to get to Ski Beach- whatever that was! It looked about a 1/3 the way of the yellow trail. The path was very sandy, and difficult to walk on for that reason, and it seemed to take forever! When we finally found Ski Beach, we found another Park kiosk, a garbage can, and a tiny path down to... a beach! and the Intracoastal. We watched fish swim by, and lots of boats go by. This could be a nice place to wade or further explore, if you lugged all of your things here. ERM, would have loved finding a bench here, so we had someplace to take our shoes on and off. We did not continue down the yellow trail due to being exhausted, but I would like to do this again. The landscape was nice- just difficult to walk in due to the white sand. We saw a cactus in bloom, a snake, and a TON of lichen. Lichen everywhere! It really looked like little fairy landscapes to me. I think I finally identified Florida rosemary too! Kudo to ERM for the map/brochures. My kids pore over every aspect of it while we walk, trying to find all the natural items pictured, excitedly matching the pictures to plants. Thank you!

Jupiter Ridge is located south of the Jupiter inlet. It is part of the Great Florida Bird and…read moreWildlife Trail. This natural area is made up of 274 acres of scrub that contain five native Florida ecosystems: scrub, scrubby flatwoods, mesic flatwoods, depression marsh and mangrove swamp, It is one of the few places you can go in Jupiter to see how Florida looked before it was developed. Thirty one plant species live here as well as threatened and endangered species like the large-flowered rosemary, the Florida scrub-jay; and the gopher tortoise. Jupiter Ridge is owned by the state Conservation and Recreation Lands project which is managed by Palm beach County. This natural area has the longest shoreline along the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway of any other natural area in Palm Beach County. There is also 7,600 feet of water frontage along the Intracoastal Waterway along the Loxahatchee River/Lake Worth Creek Aquatic Preserve. There are three hiking trails, the paved Little Blue Heron Trail, (0.2 miles), the sand Scrub Lizard Trail (1.7 miles). and the sand Pawpaw Trail (0.6 miles). The sand trails really give your legs a work out and there is no shade so the sun can be brutal. The natural area has canoe and kayak access from Ski Beach and you may be able to spot manatees. There is also an observation platform on the Little Blue heron Trail that overlooks Old Lake Worth Creek. Jupiter Ridge Natural Area is open to the public, sunrise to sunset, seven days a week.

This was a nude beach when I was a kid. That ended in 1982 when it became a beloved state park…read more They have done a lot to preserve native plants. You can rent kayaks here or swim. It's usually not too crowded. This is where we would go to see sea turtles laying eggs. And that continues to this day. It's a great location and a beautiful park.

This scenic preserve is tucked away in Palm Beach County. The park provides a space for natures…read morebeauty to shine. After a $4 entry fee, you'll drive along a trail to ample parking spaces. We walked about 10 minutes over the long wooden bridge leading from the park to the beach. There is a free golf cart ride available from 10am - 4pm, although I do recommend the walk for the experience itself. It was so beautiful, especially at dusk. The beach was absolute perfection! It was so clean and calm, a welcomed break from the crowds of the popular touristy locations. Perfect for relaxation. The water was perfect a temperature and clear. I plan on returning for their kayaking/paddle board experiences and other activities!

Cool, hidden place to check it out. This beach was better than I expected. The sand was a dark…read morecolor like dark Grey, not what I was used to. It was a great color for pictures. The beach had a nice path connecting to the beach. It was a nice canopy of trees. A very enjoyable path. At the beach you see the beautiful rock formations. It was something different and beautiful. This beach had an education center across from the beach with nice clean bathrooms. This center had nice walking paths around the intercostal, the other side. The parking was free but limited. There was space to park on both sides. If you can find parking. I recommend checking the beach out.

Blowing Rocks is an amazing natural look at what the Florida Shoreline should look like. They have…read moretwo trails you can go through for the maritime hammock one close to the beach and the other by the intercoastal. The beach is unguarded and as the name suggests has exposed rocks. The rocks are super fun to explore. While I enjoyed my time there the parking area is quite limited so getting parking can be a hassle but one that is well worth it.

I was walking this trail for years. I so loved it. Peaceful nature. Solitude, hardly ever saw…read morepeople. I would go many times a week. Now I cannot go anymore. After suffering a mild stroke at 76 I'm not yet able to go, especially alone as I always did. But still hopeful I might get back there. I've walked miles there, it's so peaceful and beautiful.

This trail area is a great spot to enjoy some nature right outside the city. All the pictures in…read morethis review were taken on a single 2-3 hour hike one morning/afternoon but on the Owahee canal trail, not Apoxee. I live right behind this trail, walking distance from my apartment (a rarity in this part of WPB) so I care about it quite a bit. There are certainly plenty of improvements that could be made. If you're not walking the Owahee canal trails on the outskirts, and trying to walk the actual Apoxee trail, it's almost always too flooded by rainfall to make it very far. There has been word of more elevated boardwalks for the trail, but no progress has been visible for a while. Still a great place for a nature hike in WPB.

Soo I had my small ceremony here at coral cove on a Sunday around 6:30pm and it was magical!!!…read moreThere was literally no one on the beach! Which made this more intimate and perfect!! I was soo worried it was gonna be super crowded and I was soo glad it wasn't!!! The draft wood that was there made it that much more perfect for photos! However I do believe it's no longer there but the views are just as amazing! It doesn't even feel like you're in Florida with the rocks all around you!! It's truly a beautiful spot that me and my husband love so much!! It's definitely become our spot for intimate moments! This is also the location he proposed to me and we took family photos!!! If you're in town and want to check a location that's not as crowded and scenic this is the spot!!

Great beach and not crowded. Also great spot for shelling. Located between Blowing Rocks and the…read moreinlet. Parking on street with short walk to beach.

Nice little walk on a paved travel about .5 miles in covered shade. You can go longer on unpaved…read moretrails too. No bathroom, water station and small parking lot with only about 7 spots. A lot of people park on the side. We saw a tortoise right when we walked in which was cool. One was eating and the other was by its home which looked like a hole in the ground. Also saw some zebra butterflies. Would come back again and walk more.

Frenchman's forest more like gopher tortoise forest! we saw 3 gopher tortoises on our hike around…read morethe yellow, blue, and red trail. Very easy and gorgeous! We loved the boardwalks that are here and the beautiful scenery. oui oui we will be back

Every time we come to this Park we are just so delighted. The trails are in great condition. The…read morestaff is always helpful friendly and respectful. It is an hour drive for us but we find it so worth while. The food concession is a tremendous value and the food is great. They have bikes, kayaks and a river tour. Or you can pay the $6.00 per car and pack a lunch for one of the best values for a family. Great place to spend a day.

Cool park! We drive by often and it's always something we've wanted to stop and check out. I had no…read moreidea this park is so huge! You could drive for 30 minutes and still not see everything! We stopped by on a weekday and the park was pretty and relaxing. Not too many people on the couple of trails we did. The observation tower is closed but they still have a nice boardwalk up to that area that makes for a great walk! It's pretty highly elevated for Florida - kind of impressive in person! Entry is $6 per car, and the lady provided a map and recommended her favorite trail. We checked that trail out as well (the white trail), but the height of the observation tower trail was really the star! We decided to drive around after doing both trails, and we saw their campgrounds. So surprising at how busy this place was! It seemed there was hardly an empty spot! Must be a happening place to camp! We'd definitely return for more adventures, as this is a cool park!

Great place to relax and get some nice biking in or walks on the trails . Wide hard gravel bike or…read morewalking trails . At least 10-12 miles on the east side of the park and more by the lake and west side . Very clean , safe an

I've been here in the past for kayaking. Ran into some alligators while canoeing as well…read more Last year I came for a 5k and a deer walked right across the trail in front of us. It was a magical Disney princess moment. This year deer were right at the entrance as we arrived for the 5k. There was one spot on the trail where my nose was amused by the scent in the air. Smelled like there were mint plants close by but I did not want to go rouge touching the flora and end up with a poison ivy story. We also spotted a rabbit on the trail. I always look forward to coming here to take a break from the city life and enjoying all of nature's beauty.