Summer birding at Sunnyhill
Birding at Sunnyhill Restoration is best along the Levee Trail adjoining the Ocklawaha River and in the marshes beyond it. A round-trip walk leads to a purpose-built bird blind in a hot spot.
Summer in Big Cypress
Vibrant, green, and blooming - there's no better time to visit Big Cypress National Preserve than in the summer months, when the gentle flow of collected raindrops across the landscape nourishes the sawgrass prairies and cypress strands
Thanks for the Trails
While hiking through Mills Creek Woodlands on the Florida Trail, I came across these memorials to long time trail maintainers who have spent decades working on the trail in the Orlando area.
Prep before you go in fire season
Florida is dry. Downright crispy. And these conditions make it easy for fires to spark and spread. Have you noticed smoke in your neighborhood lately? I’ve seen it for weeks here in Ocala – first from the big fires in the Okeefenokee Swamp, and …
Explore Ochlockonee River State Park
For a breezy place to camp and trails to explore, head on up to the "Forgotten Coast" and track down Ochlockonee River State Park outside of Sopchoppy.
Remembering Rainbow Springs
Ready for some nostalgia? Here's a peek at what Rainbow Springs was like back in the 1960s.
The Weeks Act: a Century of Conservation
A follow-up to the conservation legacy of Teddy Roosevelt's administration, The Weeks Act was signed by William Howard Taft in March 1911. It authorized the Federal government - for the first time - to purchase private land to protect watersheds throughout …
Butterfly Magic at EPCOT
The magic is floral at EPCOT each spring when Walt Disney World trots out the International Flower & Garden Show with its thousands of blooms.
New perspective on the St. Johns River
Just east of Osteen, Hickory Bluff Preserve provides a new perspective on the St. Johns River from above, its loop trail winding along bluffs and down to a riverbank.
Sunnyhill in the sunshine
Today was my third visit to Sunnyhill Restoration Area, more than 4,400 acres managed by St. Johns Water Management District, and finally, I found the right entrance for a pleasant hike. There are so many entrances to this vast preserve!
Yellow River Marshes in bloom
Yellow River Marsh Preserve is an easy place to see pitcher plants along unmarked trails that ramble through the wet flatwoods near Blackwater Bay.
Head out on a Florida Trail adventure
Take an armchair journey up the Florida Trail by reading my feature article starting on page 17 of the Winter / Spring 2011 issue of the official magazine of the National Forest Foundation.