Florida Hikes

Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

A dry cypress strand

CREW Flint Pen Strand Big Loop

Plunge into a wild landscape of verdant pine forests and mysterious cypress swamps on a series of connected loops stretching from Flint Pen Strand to the Bird Rookery Swamp Trail.

Estero (26.332694, -81.680667)   7.7 miles   CREW Flint Pen Strand

One of four publicly accessible properties managed by the CREW Land & Water Trust, Flint Pen Strand offers a collection of trails suited for hiking, bike riding, and equestrian use.

Short for Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed, this expansive conservation land is critical for flood control, groundwater recharge, and wildlife habitat.

In addition to maintaining trails and restoring habitats with prescribed fires, CREW Trust provides educational programs, guided hikes, and wet walks during the cooler half of the year.

Wooden bench along trail Trailside bench

The trail system within Flint Pen Strand can be accessed from three separate access points, and all routes are well marked with colors corresponding to a detailed trail map.

Separate from the interwoven yellow and red trails accessible from the Main Trailhead, the Lakes Trailhead presents a string of connected trails.

They form a big loop stretching to adjacent Bird Rookery Swamp and back.

In addition to these day hiking explorations, a scenic primitive campsite along the Kehl Canal is available for an overnight stay.

Picnic table and fire ring and seats adjoining a pond Kehl Oaks Campsite

Resources

Resources for exploring the area
South Florida Explorers Guide book cover 50 Hikes in South Florida book cover Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover Paddlers Guide Florida
 
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: Bonita Springs
Length: 7.7 miles
Trailhead: 26.332694, -81.680667
Address: 14934 Bonita Beach Rd SE, Bonita Springs
Fees: Free, donations accepted
Restrooms: Portable restroom at the trailhead.
Land manager: South Florida Water Management District
Phone: 239-657-2253

Open one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset. Dogs are allowed on a leash.

The Kehl Oaks Campsite must be reserved online and can be driven to.

Seasonal hunting occurs on some of the northern portions of the property. Check the preserve website for dates.

Directions


 
From Interstate 75 in Bonita Springs, head east on Bonita Beach Rd SE for 2.6 miles. Continue eastward at the traffic circle, staying on Bonita Beach Rd SE for another mile before turning left onto a dirt road. Follow the signs indicating the Lake Parking, which is 0.6 miles east at the end of the dirt road.

Hike

Starting at Lakes Parking Area, take a moment to look over the information kiosk and pick up a paper trail map.

Turn left onto the Orange Trail, following a well-worn pathway across a small clearing before entering a thicket of slash pines.

Kiosks at a trailhead Trailhead signage

In a quarter mile, the trail climbs over a berm before reaching a fork. Stay to the left to begin the loop in a clockwise direction.

Wind across grassy pine savannas dotted with saw palmettos, cocoplum, and cabbage palms.

At 1.2 miles, orange blazes lead across a dirt road, entering an area where seasonal hunting may occur.

Footpath between wiregrass and pines Pine savanna

The route heads northward, passing a quiet picnic spot before taking a sharp turn to follow alongside the Kuhl Canal.

Glimpses of this linear waterway appear through gaps in dense vegetation, where herons and cormorants mingle among a scattering of spatterdock.

Before reaching the Pinewoods Parking Area at 1.8 miles, turn left to join the White Trail, then follow blue blazes along a short side route to the Kehl Oaks Campsite.

Picnic table next to a pond Picnic spot

White and purple blazed posts lead the way eastward in 0.1 mile, tracing the perimeter of grassy wetland.

At 2.6 miles, stay on the purple trail as it branches off the white loop to follow an access road into a forest of cypress and pine.

In a half mile, continue straight at a junction where the purple blazes become darker, and a blue connector trail heads southward.

Trail junction at sand roads Directional trail markers

Turning northward onto the Bromeliad Loop at 3.6 miles, the trail crosses over a small pine island before taking a noticeable drop into a cypress strand that is often flooded in the rainy season.

The trail follows a wide cut in the forest for 0.4 mile, then delves into the woods on a narrow path connecting a series of upland communities with the swamps between them.

Cypress strand Cypress strand

Ascending onto the Bird Rookery Swamp Loop near the five-mile mark, head south along the tram road.

Follow the raised causeway flanked by primordial wetlands for a little less than a half mile, then turn right onto the southern half of the Bromeliad Loop.

Grassy berm in a swamp Bird Rookery berm

The trail lives up to its name here as it weaves westward through stands of cypress covered in showy epiphytes of all sizes.

Distinct waterlines on flared tree trunks show evidence of the often-wet conditions in this dynamic ecosystem.

Alligator flag and bromeliads at a trail junction Bromeliads

Near the six mile mark, cross a road between the Bromeliad to Cypress Loops, where alligator flag flourishes in a nearby low spot.

Cypress trees outnumber the pines at first, but this ratio gradually flips while heading westbound, passing a few well-placed benches along the way.

Footpath among skinny tree trunks Mixed pine and cypress

Emerging from the forest at 7.1 miles, turn left onto the White Trail to follow a wide doubletrack around a borrow lake with an island in the middle.

Although this body of water is not a natural feature, it draws a surprising number of aquatic birds and alligators.

The last bit of trail follows an edge of the property for 0.4 mile before returning to the trailhead.

Windswept lake with island Island on the lake

Trail Map

Map of both Flint Pen Strand color coded trails and Bird Rookery Trail in green
L to R: Red Trail. Orange Trail. White Trail. Purple Pine Loop. Cypress Loop. Bromeliad Loop.
Green: Bird Rookery Swamp Trail. Dashed: Flint Pen Strand Big Loop. Blue: connectors.

Explore More!

Learn more about CREW Flint Pen Strand

Bromeliad on a tree at a trail junction CREW Flint Pen Strand Just four miles east of Interstate 75, get your feet wet in one corner of the vast the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed on the trails of Flint Pen Strand.

Video

Hiking the CREW Flint Pen Strand Big Loop

Nearby Adventures

Levee in Big Cypress Swamp CREW Bird Rookery Swamp Rich with wildlife, CREW Bird Rookery Swamp near Naples provides up to 12 miles of hiking/biking in Big Cypress habitats on tramways through a primordial swamp
Cypress dome CREW Cypress Dome Trails On this 4.4 mile loop, experience an impressive array of habitats in Florida panther habitat - from sandy flatwoods to flooded cypress swamps - in the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed.
Blaze post on prairie trail CREW Marsh Trails At CREW Marsh, a network of well-marked paths crisscrosses the northwestern tip of the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed, providing loops of up to 3.1 miles along a vast marsh.
boardwalk to big cypresses in Corkscrew Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Weaving beneath a canopy knit by old-growth cypress trees in a majestic swamp forest, the boardwalk at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is one of Florida's best hikes.

Trail Map (PDF) Official Website

Chris Stevens
Latest posts by Chris Stevens (see all)
Category: , , , , , , , , Tag: , , , , , , , , , ,