Nice boat launch, plenty of parking& areas to fish off dock. Beautiful views of the water.And…read moreyou'll probably see some dolphins and or manatees swimming by.

Love this little park! Just the right amount of parking spaces. Restrooms nearby. Boat launch…read more There is plenty of parking for trucks and trailers too. They have a dock overlooking the water that you can also fish off of. Playground for the kiddos. Plenty of beach area for swimming and for launching kayaks. The boat ramp was pretty active with decent sized boats coming in or launching so we felt more comfortable using the beach. Out in the water we saw jellyfish, dolphins, crabs, hermit crabs, oysters, and lots of fish. There are a lot of sandbars and oyster beds out here so it's a good idea to have water shoes so you don't slice your foot open on an oyster shell. You can manage without them if you're really careful, but I don't recommend it. We had to get out a couple times and carry our kayak over a sand bar. We saw some in a small boat have to do the same. If you are kayaking be mindful of the motorboats and stay by the shore. Bug spray! We forgot to bring it. it wasn't terrible but I think we were fortunate. Fishing. We didn't go fishing but fish were literally jumping out of the water all over the place. If I owned fishing gear I would absolutely fish in this area. We did see a few out fishing. Even heard someone exclaim "another one!!!" With great excitement from across the bay. Haha. If you enjoy bird watching, you'll enjoy going through the nearby mangroves.

A great piece of Florida history. This historic site is inside the Canaveral National Seashore park…read moreand so has a national park entrance fee for the vehicle. After entering you travel about 1.25 miles (just past the Apollo Visitor's center to the River Road turnoff on the right-hand side of the road. This road will take you by the parking areas 7 and above. There are signs for the turnoff for this site. I believe that it is about parking lot 8. Parking lot for this location is a fair distance (about 300 yards down the road) from the physical structure and the river. It is a beautifully restored house to museum for the time period. Upon entry we were greeted by a park ranger. He offered and we watched a 13 minute video. Following that we looked at the displays in the first two rooms of the house. The staff member was very friendly. Outside the house there is a dock to the north and a walkway and trail to the south. We did not go very far along the walkway. If you are a Florida history fan, this is a must-see!

Riverwalk Park in Port Orange, Florida is located right on Ridgewood Avenue, yet it is a great…read morelittle park to escape the rigors and stress living in the modern world. If you have children, there is a great splash park on the property and you can also rent Kayaks to go into the Halifax River. It also has a pretty good view of the Halifax. The property is spaced nicely and it is an attractive and peaceful place they come and spend some time. There is plenty of parking and the property is well-maintained. I would definitely recommend a visit here. I also have to give it five stars (). If you find yourself in Port Orange, come by and check it out.

Love this park. It's right on the Halifax River. Has a splash pad, jungle gym stuff for the kids…read more Covered picnick tables with grills at each one and a huge open field to play in, fly a kite or whatever your heart desires

We did a quick stop in New Smyrna Beach on a drive from Fort Lauderdale to St Augustine. I was…read morecurious to visit this town since my grandparents came here to rent a place for years to escape the New York winters. Having lived in California for a bit, I grew to love seaside cities with a shopping/dining district. You can definitely find that beach city vibe here too. When we first got to town we visited Canal St, which was a little underwhelming, but did have some shops and restaurants. I liked seeing some of the older historic buildings. If you love pizza, check out Panheads. We next headed over to Flagler Avenue, which I loved! This street is chock full of eateries and shops, plus the beach is at the end. If you only have limited time in town, come here instead of Canal. We had our little dog with us, I felt like it was fairly pet friendly here. We chatted with some friendly people while we took a stroll down the street and saw other dogs as well. I got a kick out of the large number of shuffle boards located on Flagler Ave, I remember coming to FL as a kid and messing around on the court. At the end of Flagler, you can check out the mini boardwalk and catch some views of the beach. Overall, I liked this spot better than I thought I would.

Had a great time with a lovely bonfire at the beach! Not…read moreour first time here, but it was our first time having the bonfire here. Huge beach, wide open space, huge fire pit. Trash cans, recycling bin and restrooms nearby. City is lovely with plenty of amenities. Grocery, restaurants, gas stations and convenience stores, etc.

Is there is a paradise in Florida it must be Black Point Drive and it's soundings! This is a…read morepeaceful place with an enormous amount of wildlife, mostly birds but you might also encounter from Alligators to Bobcats! There are no tables or benches to do picnic, it's like a scenic drive though, it takes about 30-45 min to do the whole thing nonstop, but it you take a few stops it can easily be about 2 hours (to half a day) of peace and beauty...!

This is actually a very cool drive-through Park. There are…read moretrails cut through the area and filled up above the swampy area so she may drive on them. is there a few different stops where you can stop and walk on different trails. The amount of wildlife encounter here is pretty interested. I was able to see a lot of different birds the birds are used to the cars slow stand that lets you take pictures of them. Supposedly there's also a lot of alligators you can see out here. with polarized sunglasses you can also see a lot of fish swimming around when you're walking. Their educational sign boards all over the areas you walk around in. This is all so very close to cape Canaveral where they launch rockets and space shuttles. There's a few spots that would make a great observation deck. The only negative part is it the road is narrow and hard to pass other vehicles. sometimes you get stuck behind somebody going very slow to go around area.

Dead cows and lots…read moreand lots of poop. The Brickyard Slough Tract is actually the eastern end of the Lake Monroe Conservation Area. A huge place with hundreds of acres that was a flood plain for the St John's River in wetter times. The area is indeed a beautiful place with lots of pristine wilderness and weird trees, plants and critters that call it home. Unfortunately SR 415 is under going some major construction and the whole area is now under siege. Huge trucks and lots of noise and dust everywhere. The area is still assessable but takes a bit to find it through all the construction. The huge parking lot is basically just a field but there is a nice board with info and a cool map. Unfortunately the cool map is now basically useless because of all the changes due to the construction. The first part of the hike leads through a huge field that is shared by many cows. Make sure you close the gate if you actually hike here. Of course lots of cows means lots of cow poop and the field is quite literally covered with it. Hard in places to find a clean spot to put your foot. The whole west side is blocked due to the construction and I suspect that's where the turns for the main trails are. We certainly couldn't find them because a fence blocked the way. We had to go straight into more open fields and more cow poop. Saw a whole lot of cows along with the cow poop and even the remains of one dead cow. The buzzards were through with it and it was just bones and hide. The hike was interesting with lots of cool and mature trees and plants but much of it was open field covered with the cow poop. I saw lots of cow tracks, deer tracks, buzzard tracks and even some raccoon tracks but not one single human track. I suspect this place isn't hiked very often. Just as well. As lovely as it is the area is best left to the cows until the construction on SR 415 is completed.

I entered at the Jones East Trailhead, which has plenty of parking and also has restrooms at the…read moreentrance to the trailhead. Walking the trailhead was relatively simple and relaxing. I did encounter a few other people (they were either walking like myself or on a bicycle). The path itself is somewhat narrow, but it was enough for us to pass each other with no real inconvenience. Little Big Econ State Forest is a pretty cool place to check out. Walking the path, it was easy to forget that you were just outside of a major United States city in the twenty-first century. I seek out these spots where I can walk through the trees and forget the troubles of living in a modern city in today's modern world. Little Big Econ State Forest is a cool place to seek out if you are looking for a respite from the hustle and bustle of the modern world.

This state forest is about a 25 minute drive from downtown Orlando. We highly recommend it. They…read moreoffer maps at the start of the trail. So lush and peaceful. The stream along side most of the trail is beautiful. There are many benches along the path that offer a nice view of the scenery with shade. We took our pups and hiked for about 2 miles. The hikes range from 3 - 10 miles. I saw they do offer camping as well. Make sure to pack some water. It was nice to see many tamiles and couples enjoying the outdoors. We loved the variety of scenery and that it has lots of natural shade throughout the hike.

WOW!!! The coolest thing I have done here in FL since moving here in 1999…read more Myself and 5 others embarked on a Saturday morning stand up paddle boarding adventure! Being that this was my first time paddle boarding, or really any water sport outside of tubing, I was really nervous. However, this could not have been more of a perfect setting for my first adventure. Tim, and our guide, Todd were amazing! You could feel their energy just approaching the dock. We met up at JB's Fish Camp & Seafood Restaurant as all of the tours leave from this dock. Just walk to the end of the dock on the left and you will be greeted by East Coast Paddle! The weather was working against us this day with a bit of wind, however, Tim and Todd were prepared and took us on the best route possible. We boarded the boat and took off into the glorious Saturday and immediately we were greeted by the local dolphins - it was AMAZING! We were told we would see them throughout the day and we sure did, manatees too! After a quick ride, we stopped and began instructions on the basics and before I knew it, I was hopping up on a paddle board. At first I was terrified but the tips they give you (keep your eyes on the horizon, wiggle your toes etc) were perfect for a first timer. We also had someone with us who has done this various times and she was impressed with East Coast Paddle! They event make their own boards which was awesome as well, they were sturdy and had amazing grip. We were paddling for about an hour and it was the most relaxing and exciting thing I have done in as long as I can remember. Dolphins were literally swimming next to us and then when we hit the cove, manatees were all over the place playing. It was amazing. Todd was so informative of various species of birds, nature and history of where we were. He was sharing some awesome info that just added to the experience. It's definitely a work out too, your core is used the entire time, but so fun! When my out of town friends and family visit me, I know our first item on the to-do list! Huge props to East Coast Paddle!

The guys that run this place are awesome! Earlier in the summer I was invited to participate in a…read moreYelp event with East Coast Paddle, and while I was a tad nervous at first, the outcome was a most enjoyable experience with some awesome folks (talking Yelpers AND the East Coast Paddle crew). I'm a somewhat athletic person (nowhere near where I'd like to be, though), so I wasn't daunted by the experience, and was excited about doing something new. Our guides rocked, and were both catering and educating all at the same time. I actually enjoyed East Coast Paddle so much I went again with a couple of friends over the Labor Day weekend. Due to wind direction the "route" this time was extremely different than the one I'd experienced earlier in the year, and that speaks to the fact that someone can go numerous times and have a different experience all times. I definitely will go back to East Coast Paddle at some point in the future. It's a unique experience for tourists and residents alike.