• Trails
  • Parks
  • Beaches
  • Gardens
  • Springs
  • Attractions

Florida Hikes!

Your guide to Florida's outdoors, by Sandra Friend, Florida's hiking expert, and her co-author John Keatley, covering the Florida Trail and other trails throughout Florida.

  • Hike
  • Camp
  • Bike
  • Paddle
  • Florida Trail
  • Travel
  • Gear
  • Books

Cuban chugs in Key West

July 15, 2015 by John Keatley 1 Comment

Cuban chugs in Key West

Sometimes we take history for granted. A walk through the Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden led to a collection of Cuban chugs, which we didn’t know what they were until we learned their story.

Filed Under: Tours Tagged With: Florida Keys, Historic Sites, Key West

Indian Key: An unusual ghost town

August 9, 2015 by John Keatley Leave a Comment

Indian Key: An unusual ghost town

John takes a trip back in time with Florida Keys historian Brad Bertelli to discover the layers of history found on Indian Key, once the county seat of Dade County

Filed Under: Articles, Paddling, Southeast Florida, Tours, Travel Tagged With: Atlantic Ocean, Florida Keys, Historic Sites, Indian Key SP, Islamorada

Kayaking Oleta River State Park

Oleta River State Park
Miami   [25.913598,-80.130534]   

Kayaking Oleta River State Park

Paddling within sight of downtown Miami? Kayak or SUP fromt Blue Moon Outdoor Center in Oleta River State Park to explore mangrove shorelines along Biscayne Bay

Filed Under: Canoe & kayak rentals, Outfitters, Southeast Florida, Tours Tagged With: Biscayne Bay, Miami, Oleta River SP

Rookery Bay NERR

Naples   [26.050804,-81.700656]   

Rookery Bay NERR

Protecting vast mangrove forests and coastal habitats between Naples and Ten Thousand Islands NWR, Rookery Bay NERR encompasses a mind-boggling 110,000 acres.

Filed Under: Nature Centers, NERR, Parks, Places, Southwest Florida, Tours Tagged With: Family-friendly, Gulf of Mexico, Marco Island, Naples

Sailing Fort Lauderdale

Atlantic Ocean
Fort Lauderdale   [26.113559,-80.106010]   

Sailing Fort Lauderdale

For a relaxing cruise along Fort Lauderdale Beach and a chance to snorkel offshore, take a trip on the Spirit of Lauderdale to gawk at Millionaire’s Row and sail on the Atlantic

Filed Under: Tours Tagged With: Atlantic Ocean, Fort Lauderdale

Sea Turtle Walks in Florida

June 6, 2014 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Sea Turtle Walks in Florida

Watching a sea turtle come ashore to lay its eggs is an incredible experience. Here are some of the places where you can join sea turtle walks in Florida.

Filed Under: Articles, Tours, Wildlife Encounters Tagged With: Boca Raton, Fort Pierce, Juno Beach, Jupiter, Melbourne, Melbourne Beach, Sebastian

Spirit of Pennekamp

July 17, 2015 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Spirit of Pennekamp

Cruising on the Spirit of Pennekamp is how landlubbers – and snorklers uncomfortable with ocean swells – get to experience the living coral reefs of the Florida Keys

Filed Under: Tours Tagged With: Family-friendly, Florida Keys, John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Key Largo

Spring hopping around Tallahassee

September 1, 2017 by Sandra Friend Leave a Comment

Spring hopping around Tallahassee

Between Madison and Marianna and across Wakulla County, explore a colorful collection of natural springs for swimming and snorkeling, all within an hour of Tallahassee.

Filed Under: Articles, Featured Posts, Northwest Florida, Springs, Tours, Travel Tagged With: Chipola River, Featured, Florida Caverns SP, Madison, Madison Blue Spring SP, Marianna, Newport, Suwannee River, Suwannee River SP, Tallahassee, Wacissa River, Wakulla, Wakulla River, Wakulla Springs SP

Ten Thousand Islands (and more)

Everglades City   [25.845687,-81.386728]   

Ten Thousand Islands (and more)

Where the waters of Big Cypress and the Everglades meet the Gulf Coast, the Ten Thousand Islands are a maze of mangrove forest: the second largest mangrove forest in the world, bested only by Bangladesh

Filed Under: Tours Tagged With: Birding, Everglades City, Everglades National Park, getoutdoors, Naples, tours, Wildlife Viewing

Hiking Guidebooks for Florida

Guthook GuidesGuthook Guides Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the Florida National Scenic Trail.


Florida Trail Guide 50 Hikes in Central Florida Five Star Trails Orlando Five Star Trails Gainesville & Ocala Hiker's Guide to the Sunshine State 50 Hikes in South Florida

Updates on Florida’s outdoors


The Florida Trail Guide

Florida Trail guidebookThe comprehensive guidebook to planning section and thru-hikes of the Florida Trail.

Get the Guide!

The Florida Trail App

Florida Trail appComprehensive logistics and offline maps all in one: our guidebook is now also an interactive app by Guthook Guides.

Get the App!

The Florida Trail

Florida Trail history book

A comprehensive photo-rich history covering 50 years of Florida's favorite hiking destination. 9x12", 228 pages, full color.

Get the Book!

Latest Articles

KPPSP Pine Island Slough Florida Trail closure in Kissimmee Prairie Preserve
Every Kid in a Park pass Every Kid in a Park
Lafayette Creek, Nokuse Florida Trail, Nokuse
Bridge in Eglin East Florida Trail, Eglin East

Find your way

NORTHWEST FLORIDA
Apalachicola . Apalachicola National Forest . Apalachicola River . Blackwater River State Forest . Blountstown . Crawfordville. Crestview . DeFuniak Springs . Destin . Fort Walton Beach . Ebro . Freeport . Gulf Islands National Seashore . Madison . Marianna . Milton . Navarre . Niceville . Panama City Beach . Pensacola . Ponce De Leon . Port St. Joe . Sopchoppy . St. Marks . St. Marks NWR . Tallahassee

NORTH FLORIDA
Amelia Island . Cedar Key . Chiefland . Fernandina Beach . Flagler Beach . Gainesville .High Springs . Jacksonville . Lake City . Live Oak . Mayo . Micanopy . Osceola National Forest . Palatka . Perry . Salt Springs . St. Augustine . Steinhatchee . Suwannee River Wilderness Trail . Trenton . White Springs

CENTRAL FLORIDA
Apopka . Belleview . Brandon . Brooksville . Bushnell . Canaveral National Seashore . Christmas . Clearwater Beach . Clermont . Coast to Coast Trail . Cocoa Beach . Cross Florida Greenway . Crystal River . Dade City . Daytona Beach . Deland . Deltona . Dunnellon . Frostproof . Geneva . Inverness . Kissimmee . Lakeland . Lake Wales . Leesburg . Melbourne . Merritt Island NWR . Mount Dora . New Port Richey . New Smyrna Beach . Ocala . Ocala National Forest .Orlando . Ormond Beach . Oviedo . Sanford . Silver Springs . St. Cloud . St. Petersburg . Tampa . Tarpon Springs . Titusville . Walt Disney World . Withlacoochee State Forest . Withlacoochee State Trail . Yeehaw Junction

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
Bradenton . Charlotte Harbor . Ding Darling NWR . Englewood . Estero . Fort Myers . Naples . Pine Island . Punta Gorda . Sanibel Island . Sarasota . Venice

SOUTH FLORIDA
Arcadia . Big Cypress . Big Cypress National Preserve . Clewiston . Everglades City . Everglades National Park . Fisheating Creek . Lake Okeechobee . Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail . Lake Placid . Moore Haven . Okeechobee . Sebring

SOUTHEAST FLORIDA
Biscayne Bay . Biscayne National Park . Boca Raton . Coral Gables . Everglades National Park . Florida Keys . Fort Lauderdale . Fort Pierce . Hobe Sound . Homestead . Jupiter . Key Biscayne . Miami . Ocean to Lake . Palm Beach . Port St. Lucie . Sebastian . Stuart . Vero Beach . West Palm Beach

©2006-2019, Sandra Friend & John Keatley | Disclosure | Site Index | Work with Us
Terms of Service and Privacy Policy | Florida Hikes! PO Box 10046 Cocoa FL 32927 | Contact