Econfina Blue Spring
Fountain 0.5 milesOf the dozen picturesque springs along Econfina Creek, the compact recreation area at Blue Spring is one of the easiest to explore.

Best places in Florida to enjoy the outdoors, including parks, beaches, springs, campgrounds, gardens, nature centers, museums, and natural attractions.

Of the dozen picturesque springs along Econfina Creek, the compact recreation area at Blue Spring is one of the easiest to explore.

On the Econfina Creek Nature Trail, discover rugged climbs, steep drop-offs, bubbling springs, and deep crevices into the earth as you walk between two major springs where you can swim.

Protecting nearly 4,400 acres where the Econfina River snakes its way to the Gulf of Mexico through the vast marshes of the Big Bend, Econfina River State Park is well off the beaten path.

Edging a windswept bayou off Choctawhatchee Bay, lush cultivated gardens surround the historic Wesley House, an elegant home built by timber baron William Henry Wesley in 1897.

Tropical gardens from the 1920s grow lavishly around the historic winter homes of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford at the Edison & Ford Winter Estates in Fort Myers.

In Tampa Bay, Egmont Key, an island that was once a Civil War refugee camp, is now a bird rookery and historic site, with trails accessible only by boat.

In the northernmost of the Florida Keys, Elliott Key is the most remote place in Florida where you can take a hike in the shadow of a major city.

Where the Manatee River meets Tampa Bay, Emerson Point Preserve has a network of trails around a complex centered on one of Florida's most ancient temple mounds, the Portavant Mound, near Bradenton.

It's not rocket science: the first and finest of the Brevard Environmental Endangered Lands, Enchanted Forest Sanctuary in Titusville is a fabulous destination for family hiking.

Under the deep shade of mature live oak trees along US 27 in Williston, Epperson Park showcases two historical artifacts in a 1914-era park.

Although Erna Nixon Park is just down the street from one of the busiest shopping malls on the Space Coast, it transports you out of suburbia and into the wilds of Florida's past.

An aquatic preserve, Estero Bay Preserve State Park has mangrove-rimmed flats beloved of flats fisherman and paddlers as well as two upland access points with extensive trails.
