Gainesville

Exploring Gainesville

Home to the University of Florida, Gainesville is surrounded with outdoor recreation opportunities. This is a bike-friendly city, with bike commuters and students using its many dedicated bike paths.

The City of Gainesville has set aside many smaller public lands within city limits to conserve unique natural features.

Beyond city limits, you’ll find plenty of places to play, especially to the east, where conservation lands protect portions of the shorelines of the many lakes within Alachua County.

To the west are the springs of the Santa Fe and Suwannee Rivers in High Springs, Bell, and Trenton.

The biggest and most obvious destination for outdoor recreation is Paynes Prairie. It’s a landform defining the south rim of the city, protected by a string of parks and preserves.

The popular Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail extends east from Boulware Springs, the city’s original water source.

It’s an access point for both the trail, Sweetwater Preserve, and the northern portion of Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park. Several state parks also surround the city and nearby communities in Alachua County.

Trails and Parks near Gainesville

Alfred A. Ring Park Featuring a dense slope forest along Hogtown Creek with old-growth trees and rare wildflowers along Appalachian-style ravines, this is a scenic hike in the heart of Gainesville.

Barr Hammock Preserve Circling Levy Prairie at Barr Hammock Preserve provides a glimmer of understanding of the chain of prairies that William Bartram saw during his 1774 traverse of the region.

Barr Hammock Preserve South Miles of crisscrossing trails span strikingly different environments from shady swamps and hammocks to open pine forests in the southern portion of Barr Hammock Preserve.

Bivens Arm Nature Park The City of Gainesville's very first nature park, Bivens Arm Nature Park surrounds a marshy arm of Paynes Prairie where mature pines tower above the network of nature trails.

Blues Creek Ravine Preserve A pair of loop trails connected by a bridge over Blues Creek wander rolling landscapes under the shady canopy of an upland hardwood forest.

Buck Bay Flatwoods Preserve An excellent example of conservation of natural lands, Buck Bay Flatwoods provides a pair of loop trails through a gradient of habitats including restored pine flatwoods.

Chacala Trail For the longest loop hike in Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, tackle the Chacala Trail for a 6.2-mile circuit that brings you to a view of Chacala Pond.

Cofrin Nature Park One of Gainesville's urban nature parks, Cofrin Nature Park is right near the Oaks Mall on Newberry Rd and features a half-mile trail in a shady forest.

Devil’s Millhopper Nature Trail The Devils Millhopper Nature Trail circles the lip of an enormous sinkhole before plunging down into it on a series of staircases and landings with views of natural waterfalls.

Devils Millhopper Geological State Park It's the trickle of water that catches your attention, the steady drip and splash down the rocky rim and into the depths of one of Florida's largest sinkholes at Devils Millhopper Geological State Park

Dudley Farm Historic State Park For a ramble through a authentic Florida pioneer homestead, visit Dudley Farm Historic State Park, which interprets the life of the 1800s Florida family that lived here.

Ecopassage Observation Boardwalk Providing the easiest-to-reach panorama of Paynes Prairie, the Ecopassage Observation Boardwalk encourages you to stop and take it all in.

Fox Pen Preserve In the forested countryside between Gainesville and Palatka, little-known Fox Pen Preserve features a 1.9 mile loop traversing the Orange Creek basin to Moss Lee Lake.

Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail One of North Florida's oldest bike paths, the Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail provides a mostly shaded rural ride.

Hogtown Creek Greenway As Hogtown Creek threads its way through modern-day Gainesville, step into the past along a string of urban nature preserves.

Hogtown Creek Headwaters Nature Park Encompassing forested wetlands north of downtown Gainesville, this 84-acre park pairs a loop of less than a mile with a large family play area.

John Mahon Nature Park Ten acres isn't a lot for a natural area, but at John Mahon Nature Park in Gainesville, it's plenty for a quick, refreshing walk in the woods off Newberry Road.

Kanapaha Botanical Gardens One of the most beautiful and complex gardens in Florida, Kanapaha Botanical Gardens sits beneath grand live oaks with two dozen themed gardens on 68 acres.

La Chua Trail Where Paynes Prairie drains into the Floridan Aquifer, alligators gather. Watch them from above along the La Chua Trail in the home of the Gators, Gainesville.

Lake Alto Preserve North A well-marked system of trails weaves around wetlands and across upland pine forests to a dock overlooking scenic Lake Alto.

Little Orange Creek Preserve Protected uplands and wetlands converge where a set of trails lead to observation platforms overlooking scenic vistas of the Little Orange Creek watershed.

Loblolly Woods Nature Park Protecting 159 acres of lush forests along the confluence of Possum Creek and Hogtown Creek, Loblolly Woods Nature Park is a beauty spot in urban Gainesville.

Longleaf Flatwoods Reserve A worthwhile wander on water management lands, this loop hike at Longleaf Flatwoods Reserve hits the highlights of this colorful 2,850-acre preserve.

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic Site Step back in time within the homestead of Pulitzer-prize winning novelist Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings on pathways she once trod in Cross Creek.

Mill Creek Preserve Slip through a curtain of pine plantation to discover a folded karst landscape with towering American beeches, spruce pines, swamp chestnut oaks, and a small waterfall on a 5.3 mile hike.

Moonshine Creek Trails Delicate Appalachian wildflowers bloom in the deep shade of a slope forest surrounding Moonshine Creek, a stream that vanishes into an enormous marshy sinkhole.

Morningside Nature Center Since 1970, Morningside Nature Center has been Gainesville's flagship nature park, protecting the largest stand of longleaf pine savanna remaining within city limits.

Newnans Lake East Hiking Trail Well-marked hiking and biking trails lead to a dugout canoe replica at the edge of a lake once known as Pithlachocco, "the place of long boats."

Newnans Lake West Hiking Trail A set of connected loop trails explore wet flatwoods, sparrow-filled pastures, and planted pines on the western slope of Newnans Lake State Forest.

Paynes Prairie Lake Trail Along the Lake Trail at Paynes Prairie Preserve, Lake Wauberg and the wildlife that lives in it is the star attraction.

Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park Protecting a massive natural basin of prairie between Micanopy and Gainesville, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park combines panoramic views with wildlife watching along its trails.

Poe Springs Park At Poe Springs Park, the Poe Springs Nature Trail carries you across a landscape shaped by water acting on limestone, where surface rock is obvious and studded with fossils.

Prairie Creek Boardwalk Under the dense canopy of a hardwood forest, the Prairie Creek Boardwalk provides a unique perspective on the creek that links Paynes Prairie and Newnans Lake.

Prairie Creek Preserve In the deep shade of the floodplain of Prairie Creek near Gainesville, Prairie Creek Preserve is a beauty spot provided to the public by the Alachua Conservation Trust.

Saarinen Preserve At Saarinen Preserve near Newberry, a series of color-coded loops wander across mixed pine and hardwood hammock communities teeming with wildlife.

San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park Florida's weird karst geology meets a forest of towering hardwood trees in this botanically significant preserve on the edge of Gainesville.

Santa Fe River Preserve Gracy Trail Peaceful pathways wind alongside a tranquil creek through shady woodlands, offering a quiet hike among the timid wildlife that call the Santa Fe River Basin home.

Serenola Forest Preserve Among shaded woodlands north of Paynes Prairie, a mile of marked trails wind through forested landscapes, passing quiet picnic spots along the way.

Sweetwater Preserve On the eastern side of Sweetwater Preserve, hike a gentle loop through the woods along Sweetwater Branch.

Sweetwater Wetlands Park A gem for Gainesville, Sweetwater Wetlands Park offers a unique perspective on Paynes Prairie.

UF NATL Nature Trails Circling restoration and natural areas on the campus of the University of Florida, the UF NATL Nature Trails provide an excellent orientation to Florida's native trees, plants, and grasses.

Wacahoota Trail Savor the view from five stories up as you scan the horizon for wild horses from the observation tower on the south rim of Paynes Prairie.

Watermelon Pond Preserve With more than 4,200 acres in this FWC Wildlife Environmental Area, Watermelon Pond Preserve offers both solitude and scenery along a vast system of prairie habitats.

Recent Articles

Paynes Prairie: A North Florida Gem (7/31/2019) A natural landform between Gainesville and Micanopy, Paynes Prairie is an immense and ever-changing basin.

The Moon Tree Garden (7/14/2019) Florida's most unique arboretum features a circle of sycamores honoring the Apollo missions, all here thanks to an Apollo 14 project for the U.S. Forest Service to take tree seedings into orbit around the moon.

NEARBY: Alachua, Archer, Bronson, Cross Creek, Hawthorne, High Springs, Lake City, Micanopy, Ocala, Trenton, Waldo, Williston | ALONG: Paynes Prairie | PART OF: North Florida