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West Lake Port Everglades

Anne Kolb Nature Center

Whether it’s from the top of a five-level observation tower or at ground level with the land crabs, Anne Kolb Nature Center focuses on the urban mangrove forest that it protects and interprets

West Lake Park  |  Hollywood
( 26.0382, -80.1188 )      4.9 miles

Opened in 1996, Anne Kolb Nature Center is named for the first woman elected to the Broward County Commission. Broward County was established in 1915. She took office in 1974.

During her term and afterwards, she fought for a county land use plan, conservation of open space, and creating the Urban Wilderness Park system in Broward.

She is why this mangrove forest that was slated for development was protected.

A complex with boardwalks, trails, and a tall accessible observation tower, it’s an outpost in one of the largest urban mangrove forests remaining in Florida.


Resources

South Florida Explorers Guide book cover Complete Guide to Florida Wildflowers Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover

Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy these through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.


Overview

Location: Hollywood
Length: 4.9 miles in three round-trips
Trailhead: 26.03870, -80.120017
Address: 751 E. Sheridan St, Hollywood
Fees: Free
Restroom: at the nature center
Land manager: Broward County
Phone: 954-357-5161

The nature center is open 9 AM to 5 PM. Pets are not allowed. Skating and bicycles are not permitted on the boardwalks surrounding the nature center.

Bring mosquito repellent and sun protection. You’ll need both for the trails, which are mostly in the open between the mangroves.

Anne Kolb Nature Center


Directions

 
From Interstate 95 exit 21, drive east on Sheridan Street for 2.6 miles to the park entrance on the left, just before the bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway.
 
Local residents can reach the nature center by bus Route #12 of Broward County Transit.

About the Nature Center

Inside the main building, the centerpiece of the Nature Center is a 3,500 gallon saltwater aquarium.

Extensive exhibits highlight the importance of the mangrove forest and its many inhabitants, from the birds that roost in red mangroves to the crustaceans in the mud below.

Anne Kolb Nature Center Interpretive exhibits and artwork


A portion of the exhibit floor is dedicated to showing off nature-themed work from local artists.

With both volunteer and staff assistance, the Nature Center hosts field trips for local school groups. Visitors can also sign up to take a narrated tour on a pontoon boat out into West Lake.

Anne Kolb Nature Center Pontoon boat for ecotours


The Nature Center complex also includes access to several trails, a five-level observation tower, a fishing pier, and amphitheater where outdoor events are held.

Even if you don’t walk the trails, take the time to go up in the tower for the incredible views. It has both a staircase and an elevator to lift you 68 feet above sea level.

West Lake Port Everglades
Looking over West Lake to Port Everglades from the tower

About the Trails

While paddlers must put in at the West Lake Park entrance about a half mile west on the north side of Sheridan Blvd, you can pick up a guide to the paddling trails here at the nature center.

Only kayaks, canoes, and electric boats are allowed in the wilderness area.

West Lake Hollywood
Reflections on West Lake at West Lake Park, Hollywood

Interpretive booklets are available for the Lake Observation Trail and the Mudflat Trail are also available for a small fee from the nature center desk.

Lake Observation Trail

A round-trip from the parking area out to the end of the Lake Observation Trail and back is 0.7 mile.

It passes by the observation tower before narrowing to a broad boardwalk through the mangrove forest.

Providing the best of the panoramas of open water, it ends at a covered observation platform with great views.

Anne Kolb Nature Center Walking out to the observation deck at the end of the trail


Mudflat Trail

The Mudflat Trail starts at the south end of complex behind the Nature Center buildings. Follow the sidewalk around to the boardwalk where this trail starts.

It leads to an island in the mangroves, punctuated by giant land crab holes, and to a straightaway of a paved trail that ends at a covered observation deck on West Lake. A round trip on the Mudflat Trail is 0.7 mile.

Anne Kolb Nature Center Start of the Mudflat Trail


Fishing Pier Trail

A quarter mile round-trip paved trail leads from the parking area to two fishing piers along the Intracoastal Waterway.

View of the Intracoastal Waterway and Atlantic Ocean from the top of the observation tower

South Trail

Continue past the turnoff to the piers to go under Sheridan Blvd to access the South Trail, a network of loops and spurs with overlooks on both West Lake and the Intracoastal.

The shellrock path through the mangroves can be hiked or bicycled. A trip out to the end and back runs more than 3 miles.

Anne Kolb Nature Center Mangroves along the trail


Trail Map

Anne Kolb Nature Center Trail Map


Explore More!

Slideshow

See our photos from West Lake Park


Nearby Adventures

Learn more about West Lake Park

West Lake Hollywood

West Lake Park

Explore both the wild and mild sides of an urban mangrove jungle at West Lake Park by hiking, biking, or paddling this outstanding Florida Water

More worth exploring while you’re in this area.

Beach at Mizell-Johnson State Park

Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park

With its shores dwarfed at times by the giant cruise ships steaming in and out of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park is well-known as a great nearshore dive spot

Secret Woods tropical forest

Secret Woods Nature Center

Designated the first “urban wilderness area” in Florida in 1978, Secret Woods protects a 56-acre floodplain of cypress strand and mangroves with uplands of tropical hammock

Chapel Trail Nature Preserve

Chapel Trail Park Nature Preserve

Preserving 450 acres on the edge of Pembroke Pines, Chapel Trail Nature Preserve makes an excellent birding destination as well as an easy-to-reach sampler of Everglades flora and fauna

In the live oak canopy at Tree Tops Park

Tree Tops Park

Climb into the forest canopy to browse among the bromeliads amid the ancient live oaks at Tree Tops Park

Friends Group Official Website

Category: Biking, County Parks, Day Hikes, Hikes, Loop Hikes, Nature Centers, Nature Trails, Off Road Biking, Paved Bike Trails, Southeast Florida, TrailsTag: Accessible, Birding, Boardwalks, Family-Friendly, Fishing, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Mangroves, Observation Decks, Observation Towers

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