Covering over 1,100 acres, Brooker Creek Headwaters Preserve provides a habitat for numerous native plant and animal species, some of which are endangered.
Multiple points of entry lead to an array of hiking trails that cross the property, presenting plenty of options to explore the immersive natural landscapes within.
Trail winding through the preserveResources
Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.
Overview
Location: Odessa
Length: 3.9 mile loop
Trailhead: 28.136793, -82.555810
Address: 18102 Ramblewood Rd, Odessa
Fees: Free
Restrooms: None
Land manager: Hillsborough County
Phone: 813-264-8513
Open sunrise to sunset. Dogs are allowed on a leash.
Directions
From Interstate 275, head west on E Bearss Ave for 3.1 miles, then turn right onto SR 597. In 3 miles, turn left onto Van Dyke Rd. Continue straight for 3.2 miles, before turning right onto Ramblewood Rd. In 0.6 mile, the parking area is located on the left side of the road.
Hike
Beginning at the parking area, be sure to check out the kiosk for important information regarding the preserve and a trail map.
Passing through a gap in the fence, follow the trail westward on an access road under a canopy of oak and pine trees.
Preserve trailheadInitially, muddy spots along the path are easy to avoid while threading through a low-laying area with water on both sides.
Yellow blazes indicate the trail as it ascends slightly, and the canopy becomes sparser, allowing an understory of grasses, shrubs, and ferns to flourish.
Open understoryReaching a half mile, the trail enters an open area historically used for agriculture.
As the land is allowed to progress towards a more natural state, pine saplings and sumac sprout among swaths of saw palmettos, shinyberries, and blackberry brambles.
Trailside blackberriesAfter turning to the right and crossing an old canal, the trail enters a forest of dense pines.
An avenue of bright green grasses leads the way, bordered by auburn heaps of fallen pine needles.
Pine forestHeading further east, the environment gradually transitions to swamp, and sections of the trail might be seasonally flooded, especially at the crossing of Brooker Creek.
Pond cypresses extend high above the canopy, covered in green needles that turn rusty brown in the autumn before eventually falling. The branches stay bare until the following spring.
Cypress trees in Brooker CreekAt the eastern edge of the property, the trail turns northward to follow along the edge of a neighborhood.
Prominent live oaks stretch overhead while clusters of lichen cling to the forest floor.
Reindeer lichenA loop begins at 1.6 miles, bisected by a cross trail to provide a few hiking options. To complete the loop, follow the yellow blazes northward.
They pass through an open mixed woodland of pine and oak for a half mile to a post marked with the number six.
Yellow blazed postTurning left at the post will continue back to the other side of the loop, passing a section of the trail that is under water as it crosses through a small cypress dome.
Continuing southward, the trail is bordered by bay and cypress trees as it slices through a swamp before finishing the loop at 2.4 miles.
Follow the yellow blazes southward, returning to the trailhead in 1.5 miles.
Swamp trailTrail Map
Explore More!
Video
Nearby Adventures
Brooker Creek Preserve The largest nature preserve in Pinellas County, Brooker Creek Preserve protects a mosaic of vanishing habitats while interpreting their value along 6.2 miles of trails.
Brooker Creek Friends Trail Let the sounds of suburbia melt away just a few miles east of downtown Tarpon Springs on a 1.9 mile hiking-only loop through pine flatwoods in the Brooker Creek watershed.
John Chesnut Sr. Park Weaving through floodplain forests and cypress swamps, the boardwalks and trails of John Chesnut Sr. Park add a place to pause for wildlife along a wild shoreline on Lake Tarpon.
Lake Rogers Park A 2.4-mile loop trail circling Lake Rogers weaves through oak hammocks, shrubs, pine flatwoods, and scenic vistas along the water’s edge. 
- Calusa Heritage Trail - November 5, 2026
- Scherer Thaxton Preserve - October 21, 2026
- Little Awesome Preserve - October 19, 2026