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Many herons and egrets in a mud flat

Black Point Wildlife Drive

Winding along a narrow dirt road, Black Point Wildlife Drive offers from-your-car birding in the marshes and mud flats of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Merritt Island NWR  |  Titusville
( 28.657507, -80.754484 )      7.0 miles

Following levees between vast shallow impoundments in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Black Point Wildlife Drive offers some of Florida’s best birding.

While most visitors loop the mangrove-lined hardpacked limestone drive in their car, cyclists are welcome to ride the road as well.

You can stop at pulloffs between the marshes to spend time birding from your vehicle, or simply pull off the road at broader spots.

There are also two locations where you can get out of the car and wander down a trail to an observation deck, as well as one long hike, the Cruickshank Trail.

Observation deck in mangroves Easy to each observation deck at the Cruickshank Trail


Resources

50 Hikes in Central Florida Central Florida Orlando 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: Titusville
Length: 7 miles linear
Trailhead: 28.657507, -80.754484
Fees: $10 per vehicle or $2 per bicycle
Restroom: Portable toilet at Cruickshank Trailhead. No drinking water.
Land manager: Merritt Island NWR
Phone: 321-861-0669

Open dawn to dusk. A National Parks Pass, Duck Stamp, or Federal Public Lands Pass covers your parking fee.

Plan at least an hour for the drive, two hours if you expect to walk around a little at the trailheads, and 4-5 hours if you hike the entire Cruickshank Trail loop as well.

Roseate spoonbills in a mangrove mud flat pond

This is a one-way loop. You cannot turn around and exit. Please follow posted speed limits and expect most visitors to be going even slower.


Directions

 
From Interstate 95 exit 220, Titusville, follow SR 406 east for 8 miles to cross the Max Brewer Bridge and the causeway to Merritt Island. Stay left at the divide in the road to continue on CR 406. Watch for the well-marked entrance on the left.

Hike

Stop at the entry kiosk to pay your fee (or display your pass in your windshield) and pick up a copy of the interpretive brochure.

It explains different points along the route and is keyed to the numbered plaques you see along the road.

Cars parked along road in mangrove swamp Cars stopped at one of the pulloffs along the drive


As the narrow road twists and turns between dropoffs into mangrove marshes and open lagoons, pay attention to the edges of the road while scanning the skies and the trees.

Distraction can’t be helped when roseate spoonbills wing overhead in a blur of pink, but that’s why there are pulloffs here and there along the route.

Tri-color heron You can take photos like this from inside your car


Be courteous to other drivers and use them, or at least pull to the side to let others pass when you stop for a picture.

On our drives along Black Point Wildlife Drive, we’ve found the best diversity of birds to be essentially during hiking season, between October and early April.

Many different wading birds in one spot A surprising diversity of birds gathers on the mud flats


The first few miles are through large shallow impoundments where depending on water conditions, the flats may be dry and muddy with ponds, or a sheet of water.

When the water ponds, the birds – and alligators – gather in tight clusters.

Many different species of white birds in a very small pond Herons, egrets, and ibis share a pond


Don’t forget to look up in the trees and down along the banks, too. Birds roost above and pick through the grasses below, or stand and preen.

Even without stops for hiking, a birding expedition can take half the day at a slow pace. Especially if you brought a good camera. Use your car like a bird blind.

Sign for Wild Birds Unlimited Trail There is a small parking area for this short trail


The Wild Birds Unlimited Trail is the first of the two trails along the drive. It’s a half mile round-trip out to two bird blinds on two different depths of impoundments.

By comparison, the Allan Cruickshank Trail is a 4.8-mile loop out in the sun. It’s definitely for more hardy hikers and should be tackled early in the day.

Wild Birds Unlimited Trail

Wild Birds Unlimited Trail

An easy walk for birding along Black Point Wildlife Drive in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Wild Birds Unlimited Trail is a short trail with observation platforms

View of mangrove-lined ponds with salt marsh in distance

Cruickshank Trail

The longest hiking trail at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, the 4.8-mile Allan Cruickshank Memorial Trail makes a large loop off Black Point Wildlife Drive

Even if you don’t want to take a long hike, it’s worth a stop at the Cruickshank Trail its three observation platforms, all within a quarter mile of the trailhead.

We’ve observed roseate spoonbills and alligators of every size very close to the trailhead.

Large alligator sunning A large alligator close to the Cruickshank Trail


You can easily spend an hour just observing wildlife between the observation platforms.

The Cruickshank Trail also offers the only restroom along Black Point Wildlife Drive, and the only parking lot.

Two track road into mangroves on levee Nearly 5 miles long, the Cruickshank Trail is on a levee out to the Indian River Lagoon


Once you’re past it on this one way road, there are only a couple more pulloffs before you run out of impoundments.

The last part of the drive is a long straight route paralleling a canal out to SR 3. Rarely is there a reason to stop on this section and there are no established pulloffs.

Dirt road between palms and pines The last stretch of the drive


Once you get out to SR 3, turn right to get to the intersection with SR 406, where another right turn will lead you back past the entrance to the drive and back to Titusville.

Alternatively, you can visit other birding locations in the preserve, like the Pine Flatwoods Trail, the Scrub Ridge Trail, and the Visitor Center Boardwalk.

Male painted bunting Male painted bunting at a feeder along the Visitor Center Boardwalk


Explore More!

Learn more about Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Dummett Cove Merritt Island

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

With recreational activities ranging from hiking to biking, boating, fishing, and bioluminscent kayaking, Florida’s top destination for birding is also home to Kennedy Space Center

Following the Brevard Coast to Coast Trail, it’s a short road ride along SR 406 from its current terminus at the refuge boundary to Black Point Wildlife Drive.

There is no bike lane. Download a copy of the Refuge map, below, for the full route.

Bike on bridge at creek on Brevard Coast to Coast Trail

Brevard Coast to Coast Trail

The eastern terminus of the state-spanning Coast to Coast Trail is in the trail town of Titusville, where a ride on the Brevard Coast to Coast Trail provides cyclists the best ride in the county

How many cyclists does it take to fix a flat?

North Merritt Island by Bike

A bike ride through the northern part of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge from Titusville to the Haulover Canal and back.


Nearby Adventures

More to explore in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Palm trunks in palm hammock

Palm Hammock Trail

Delving deep into the hammocks of North Merritt Island, the Palm Hammock Trail treats you to a lush forest of mature saw palmettos under a dense canopy of live oaks on the way to an island of cabbage palms

Boardwalk between palms and oaks

Oak Hammock Trail

The wildlife-rich interpretive Oak Hammock Trail at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge provides an easy introduction to the hammocks of the island

Boardwalk under oaks with a bench along it

Visitor Center Boardwalk

The only fully-accessible trail at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, the Visitor Center Boardwalk offers many overlooks for wildlife watching and birding

Manatee Viewing Area at Merritt Island NWR

Manatee Observation Deck

Where Haulover Canal connects the Indian River Lagoon and Mosquito Lagoon in Merritt Island NWR, a manatee observation deck makes it easy to watch for manatees drifting by


Slideshow

See our photos from Black Point Wildlife Drive

Refuge Map (PDF) Official Website

Category: Central Florida, Parks, Scenic DrivesTag: Alligators, Best Birding, Birding, Florida's Space Coast, Merritt Island, Merritt Island NWR, National Wildlife Refuges, Titusville, Wildlife Viewing

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