Florida Hikes

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

Waterfront on river with pine trees both shores

Deep Creek State Forest

Well hidden at the north end of St. Johns County, Deep Creek State Forest protects 379 acres along the flow of its namesake to where it meets the Tolomato River.

Ponte Vedra (30.06531, -81.37204)   1.1 miles  

Deep Creek State Forest surrounds the flow of Deep Creek into the Tolomato River, with public access to a peninsula where waters meet.

The riverfront beach has yellow markers to inform boaters they’re on state forest land, but there are no marked trails.

Vast estuary along far shore of river The forest is across the river from Guana River WMA

Despite direct access via the Main Trail of Nocatee Preserve, no signs inform you of the existence of this forest. We determined which forest we’d found after hiking there.

Finding yellow state forest markers and a gate at the south end of the Main Trail, we followed beaten paths to create a 0.7 mile loop along old vehicle tracks and forest roads.

Metal yellow state forest sign on pine tree This boundary sign had us look up what state forest we might have discovered

Resources

Resources for exploring the area
50 Hikes in North Florida book cover North Florida Panhandle Explorers Guide 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: Ponte Vedra
Length: 1.1 miles
Trailhead: 30.06531, -81.37204
Address: 1980 Nocatee Landing Trail, Ponte Vedra
Fees: Free
Restroom: At the trailhead
Land Manager: Florida Forest Service
Phone: 904-797-5073

Open sunrise to sunset. Leashed dogs welcome. Although the forest website mentions an entry fee, there was no signage or fee collection box at the entry point.

Directions


 
From Interstate 95 exit 329 north of St. Augustine, follow Palm Valley Rd (CR 210) east for 3.2 miles. Soon after crossing US 1, merge onto Valley Ridge Rd and continue a mile to Cross Town Dr in Nocatee. Turn right. Drive 0.4 mile and make a right on Preservation Trail. Continue 1.3 miles to a traffic circle. Take the first exit onto Crosswater Parkway. After 2.5 miles on Crosswater Parkway, meet the next traffic circle. Take the third exit onto Nocatee Landing Trail. Follow it 2 miles to the parking area at its very end, within sight of a picnic pavilion and restrooms.

Hike

Starting at the Nocatee Landing parking area, circle around the west side of its adjacent wetlad to meet a sand road along its edge.

This linear path is the southernmost part of the multi-use greenway called Main Trail in Nocatee Preserve.

Milepost in cedar forest Southernmost milepost on the Main Trail

Pass a path coming in from the left. Enter the coastal forest, where a set of massive cedars intertangle their limbs trailside. A wooden post marks milepost 4.2 along the Main Trail.

Tunnel beneath the cedars to a dip through an arm of a salt marsh off the Tolomato River. Amid the marsh grasses, the pathway may be sticky or flooded, depending on river levels.

White sand leading into marsh grasses Salt marsh crossing

Curve into a cedar forest which opens up into pines and oaks. Behind a yellow state forest sign, a gate blocks the sand road.

Walk the pathway through the trees around the gate to enter Deep Creek State Forest. Resume a southerly course on the sand road. There is no other signage or defined trails.

open area with a lot of tire tracks in deep sand studded with broken seashells Shards of shells plowed through rough sand

Scars across the open landscape speak to unauthorized vehicle use before the gate was installed. Shell material dots open patches between the grasses.

While this site was previously a homestead, the shell fragments were likely from middens. Along this stretch of the Tolomato River, an ancient civilization once thrived.

Cedar tree with branches covered in air plants Massive cedar tree

Bushy cedars and young oaks dot a ruderal landscape. Follow the sand road through a stretch of forest where an ancient red cedar spreads symmetrical branches.

Emerge into the open again, sticking with the obvious road. In a short distance it aims for the river. Descend the pine-lined bluff for a panorama of the far shoreline of Guana River WMA.

Three pine trunks rising above a sandy beach along a broad river Beach along the Tolomato River

A state forest sign is affixed to one of the pines for boater’s sakes. Moving en masse on your approach, thousands of tiny fiddler crabs call this grassy saline shoreline home.

Piers of a former dock are on the far side of the channel, and Marker 34 along the Intracoastal Waterway is offshore.

Forested riverfront Looking south along the Tolomato River

After an exploration south along the shoreline towards the outflow of Deep Creek, follow the sand road west along the boundary of this peninsula.

In scrubby flatwoods, slash pines define the low bluff above the estuary where Deep Creek flows into the river. Circle a rounded mound topped with oaks and cedars.

Earthen mound topped with trees Treed mound

The road simply makes a circle behind it, touching on spots where deer moss thrives in pine duff beneath the cedars. Return from that cul-de-sac past the mound and bear left.

Walk the road along the edge of this clearing, where a massive spread of deer moss extends from the base of the cedars.

Puffy gray-green moss under pines Carpet of deer moss

Rejoin the main sand road back through the tunnel of forest. Bear left again. A walk along the forest’s edge yielded more mossy areas.

Work your way around the edge of an intentionally-rounded berm dropping into a forest-filled hollow.

Yellow gate at pine trees Yellow gate

Rejoining the main trail, exit Deep Creek State Park via the footpath around the yellow gate.

Continue along the Main Trail of Nocatee Preserve back to the Nocatee Landing trailhead, completing a 1.1 mile hike.

Two track sand path with parking area and building near treeline Final stretch with trailhead in sight

Trail Map

Nocatee Preserve-Deep Creek State Forest Trail Map
Red: Main Trail. Brown: Spanish Landing. Purple: Nocatee Landing. Green: Deep Creek State Forest.

Explore More!

Learn more about Nocatee Landing and Nocatee Preserve

Coastal estuary along river Nocatee Landing Whispers of the past carry on salt breezes across a wild landscape once home to an ancient civilization straddling the bounty of the Tolomato River estuary.
Dirt path elevated above swamp forest Nocatee Preserve A linear buffer between a massive planned community and the Tolomato River in Palm Valley, Nocatee Preserve protects 2,400 acres of riverfront habitats north of St. Augustine.

Video

A walk through Deep Creek State Forest

Slideshow

See our photos from Deep Creek State Forest

Nearby Adventures

Walkway in the woods Stokes Landing Conservation Area Fronting a vast estuary along the Tolomato River basin, Stokes Landing Conservation Area contrasts deeply shaded maritime hammock and marsh rims with panoramic views.
Forest road under a lush canopy of live oaks GTM Reserve Trails Circling a peninsula between the Guana River and the Tolomato River, the extensive trail system at GTM Research Reserve is one of Florida's most beautiful hiking destinations.

Official Website

Sandra Friend
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