Trail Shoes Bradenton FL

Activities: Mountain Biking, Road Cycling

Info:
State: Florida
Location: Apalachicola National Forest
Length: Round Trip: Mountain/Dune Trail:7.5 Miles Biking Portion: 4.5 Miles
Trail Surface: Paved
Best Season: All Seasons
Difficulty: Easy
Usage: Heavy

Description: Munson Hills offers two loops amidst sand dunes stemming from a shoreline that has long since vanished. Munson Hills are sand dunes associated with a shoreline located here a million years ago. The sandhills form a foundation for a towering longleaf pine forest intermixed with ponds and wetlands. Frequent burning of the longleaf pine-wiregrass community creates this unique ecosystem. Before roads became part of the area, the fires naturally spread after summer lightning storms. Plants and animals, such as wiregrass and gopher tortoises, have adapted and evolved with fire. Wiregrass is so closely tied to the natural fire cycle that it will only produce seed after a late spring or summer fire. For a spectacular display of new plant growth and flowers, visit a longleaf wiregrass area a few months after a fire. Keep an eye out for the purple blazing star, yellow colic root or perhaps a rare orchid. Most ponds are dry at some time during the year so they do not support fish, but you can find many salamanders, frogs and snakes! Watch for deer and fox squirrels throughout the forest. Notice the many gopher tortoise burrows in the sand near the bike trail. These tortoises are protected by the State because their burrows provide homes to as many as 40 other animals, including the endangered eastern indigo snake. The endangered red-cockaded woodpecker may be seen foraging on the pine trees above the trail.

Activities: Hiking

Info:
State: Florida
Location: Everglades National Park
Length: Round Trip: 0.5 miles
Trail type: Out and Back
Minimum Elevation: 0 feet
Maximum Elevation: 5 feet
Elevation Change: 5 feet
Trail Surface: Paved
Best Season: Spring, Fall, Winter
Difficulty: Easy
Usage: Heavy

Description: The Gumbo-Limbo Trail is a self-guided, paved trail that meanders through a shaded, jungle-like hammock of gumbo-limbo trees, royal palms, ferns and air plants. You’ll also see native orchids and long trailing woody vines reminding you of a lush Caribbean environment. This beautiful hammock is rather dense at times, inviting all types of swarming insects. You should apply bug spray. An interesting note about this paved, wheelchair accessible route is that you’ll see remains of the destruction done by Hurricane Andrew. Be sure to look for the sideways surviving gumbo-limbo trees that have sent out new roots. These tropical trees tend to be highly resilient.

Activities: Hiking

Info:
State: Florida
Location: Everglades National Park
Length: Round Trip: 0.5 miles
Trail type: Loop
Minimum Elevation: 0 feet
Maximum Elevation: 5 feet
Elevation Change: 5 feet
Best Season: Spring, Fall, Winter
Difficulty: Easy
Usage: Heavy

Description: The Eco Pond Trail is a very short 0.5 mile looping walk to a freshwater pond. The trail is located across from the Flamingo Visitor Center on Main Park Road. The Eco Pond is a great area to view to a wide variety of wading birds, songbirds and other wildlife. You can frequently see alligators cruising the pond. Eco Pond has a ramped viewing platform that is often used by bird watchers at sunrise and sunset. Those are among the best times to take the stroll along this path and enjoy the wildlife.

Activities: Hiking

Info:
State: Florida
Location: Everglades National Park
Length: Round Trip: 0.5 miles
Trail type: Out and Back
Minimum Elevation: 0 feet
Maximum Elevation: 7 feet
Elevation Change: 7 feet
Best Season: Spring, Fall, Winter
Difficulty: Easy
Usage: Heavy

Description: The Pineland Trail is a short half mile one-way hike, located about seven miles from the main park entrance. The trail offers examples of lush Caribbean pine, which is native to the Everglades. The pines are abundant on the limestone keys. Along this trail, you’ll also see saw palmettos and wildflowers. This trail has one of the highest elevations within the national park, about seven feet above sea level. Eventually, the pines in this area will become a part of the hammock. This trail is handicapped accessible; though narrow and uneven in places where roots have pushed the pavement up.

Activities: Hiking

Info:
State: Florida
Location: Everglades National Park
Length: Round Trip: 0.5 miles
Trail type: Out and Back
Minimum Elevation: 0 feet
Maximum Elevation: 5 feet
Elevation Change: 5 feet
Best Season: Spring, Fall, Winter
Difficulty: Easy
Usage: Heavy

Description: The Anhinga Trail is a self-guided trail that winds through a sawgrass marsh. This trail is one of the most popular in the park and is named for the ever-present distinctive bird, the anhinga. Wildlife sights extend beyond the anhinga. You’ll also see alligators, turtles, herons, egrets and many other birds, especially during the winter. The anhingas are easy to spot. They are an upright-perching water bird approximately 3 feet long. They are black and their long slender necks extend above the freshwater surface. It is easy to understand why the bird has the nickname, “snakebird.” They are fascinating to watch feed, with their long dagger-shaped, serrated bill catching fish then flipping it into the air and gulping it down. Look for these birds congregating in thick vegetation.