• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Florida Hikes logo

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

  • Trails
  • Maps
  • Guidebooks
  • Search
  • Hike
    • Scenic Hikes
    • Loop Trails
    • Dog-friendly Hikes
    • Hikes for Kids
    • National Parks in Florida
    • Florida State Parks
  • Bike
    • Major Bike Trails
    • Paved Bike Trails
    • Off Road Biking
    • Biking Articles
  • Paddle
    • Canoe & Kayak Rentals
    • Paddling Destinations
    • Paddling Articles
  • Camp
    • Cabin Rentals
    • Car Camping
    • Primitive Camping
  • Florida Trail
    • Plan your Hike
    • Best Scenic Hikes
    • Best Backpacking
    • Section Hiking
    • Thru-Hiking
    • Trail Updates
  • Travel
  • Hike
    • Scenic Hikes
    • Loop Trails
    • Dog-friendly Hikes
    • Hikes for Kids
    • National Parks in Florida
    • Florida State Parks
  • Bike
    • Major Bike Trails
    • Paved Bike Trails
    • Off Road Biking
    • Biking Articles
  • Paddle
    • Canoe & Kayak Rentals
    • Paddling Destinations
    • Paddling Articles
  • Camp
    • Cabin Rentals
    • Car Camping
    • Primitive Camping
  • Florida Trail
    • Plan your Hike
    • Best Scenic Hikes
    • Best Backpacking
    • Section Hiking
    • Thru-Hiking
    • Trail Updates
  • Travel
Ding Darling NWR

Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge

Preserving more than half of Sanibel Island for the sake of its bird life, Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge is one of the top places in the United States to view rare bird species.

Sanibel Island      ( 26.445460, -82.112938 )      

140 shares

CLOSED indefinitely due to damage from Hurricane Ian.


Preserving more than half of Sanibel Island for the sake of its renowned bird life, Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge is named for editorial cartoonist J.N. “Ding” Darling.

In the early 1940s, he actively worked to convince the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to purchase the land for conservation when the State of Florida planned to sell it to developers.


Resources

Resources for exploring the area

South Florida Explorers Guide book cover50 Hikes in South Florida book coverHikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover

Disclosure: As authors and affiliates, we receive earnings when you buy these through our links. This helps us provide public information on this website.


Overview

Location: Sanibel Island
Trailhead: 26.445460, -82.112938
Fees: $5 per vehicle, $1 per hiker or cyclist. Access to the Visitor Center is free.
Open: Hours vary daily but are roughly dawn to dusk; see their website for specific hours by month. Wildlife Drive is closed on Fridays.


Interactive Map


About the Refuge

While most visitors come to drive the scenic loop around the refuge, to truly explore the nooks and crannies of this preserve, you have to take to the trails.

With the exception of the Indigo Trail, a 4 mile round-trip out into the mangrove forest on an elevated berm, the rest of the park’s trails are short interpretive walks meant to focus on a specific aspect of this refuge.

Ding Darling is noted for its large migratory bird population during the winter months.

Ding Darling Cross Dike Trail
Roseate spoonbills feeding at Ding Darling NWR

Be sure to stop at the observation deck along Wildlife Drive to scan for roseate spoonbills. Their pink feathers show up well against the dark mud of the marsh.

Take the time to walk the Shell Mound Trail, a loop around an ancient midden in a tropical hammock.

A separate portion of the refuge, the Bailey Tract, has its own set of hiking and biking trails surrounding a group of ponds created long ago for mosquito control. They’re now an excellent place for birding.


Explore More!


Slideshow

See our photos of Ding Darling prior to Hurricane Ian


Trails

Calusa Shell Mound

Calusa Shell Mound Trail

A wheelchair-accessible boardwalk near the end of Wildlife Drive in Ding Darling NWR, the Calusa Shell Mound Trail provides a peek into the ancient history of Sanibel Island.

Red Mangrove Overlook

Red Mangrove Overlook

The shortest walk in Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, the Red Mangrove Overlook provides a fine perspective for birding – and watching mangrove crabs up close.

Wulfert Keys Trail

Wulfert Keys Trail

Does a crocodile smile? You might find out with a walk down the Wulfert Keys Trail, which follows a mangrove-lined canal at Ding Darling NWR to the edge of Hardworking Bay.

Indigo Trail

Indigo Trail

At Ding Darling NWR on Sanibel Island, the Indigo Trail is the easiest trail to access from the visitor center and the most popular, with up to 4 miles round-trip.

Ding Darling Cross Dike Trail

Cross Dike Trail

Connecting Wildlife Drive and the Indigo Trail, the Cross Dike Trail at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge is an easy paved walk between two impoundments.


Related Articles

Every Kid in a Park pass

Every Kid Outdoors

February 21, 2019//  by Sandra Friend

Me and Mom at Three Sisters Spring

Step by Step

April 22, 2016//  by Sandra Friend


Trail Map (PDF) Volunteer! Official Website

Category: Destinations, National Wildlife Refuges, Nature Centers, Nature Trails, Parks, Scenic Drives, Southwest FloridaTag: Best Birding, Birding, Fort Myers, Gulf of Mexico, Locations, National Wildlife Refuges, Observation Decks, Observation Towers, Sanibel Island

Reader Interactions

Have an update? Contact us.

Primary Sidebar

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA OVERVIEW
Big Cypress Swamp. Everglades National Park. Florida Trail

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

Our Newest Books

The Florida Trail Guide

The Florida Trail GuideOur definitive guidebook to planning backpacking trips on the Florida National Scenic Trail, now in its fourth edition. Full data charts and maps. B&W, 356 pages. $19.95 + tax & shipping.

Order Now


Florida Trail Hikes

Florida Trail Hikes 2nd edition coverFifty of the best day hikes, overnights, and weekend trips on the Florida Trail. Full hike descriptions and maps, full color. 376 pages. $24.95 + tax & shipping.

Order Now


Discovering the Florida Trail

Florida Trail mini coffee table book cover of trail into palm hammock
A visual journey the length of the Florida Trail, covering more than 1,500 miles from the Everglades to Pensacola Beach. Hardcover, 196 pages. $24.95 + tax & shipping.

Order Now
 


50 Hikes in Central Florida 3rd edition
Five Star Trails Orlando guidebook
Explorer's Guide North Florida & The Panhandle guidebook

Florida Trail Apps

Farout GuidesFarout Guides Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the
Florida National Scenic Trail (1,500 miles), the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail (108 miles), and the ECT Florida Connector (92 miles).

Explore More

Our recent park & trail updates in this region

Red blaze post amid pines

CREW Flint Pen Strand

CREW Flint Pen Strand
Cypress dome

CREW Cypress Dome Trails

CREW Cypress Dome Trails
Collier Seminole Hiking Trail

Collier-Seminole Hiking Trail

Collier-Seminole Hiking Trail
Collier Memorial at Collier-Seminole State Park

Collier-Seminole State Park

Collier-Seminole State Park

Footer

FIND A TRAIL OR PARK

NORTHWEST FLORIDA
Apalachicola. Apalachicola National Forest. Blackwater River State Forest. Blountstown. Bonifay. Bristol. Cape San Blas. Carrabelle. Chattahoochee. Chipley. Crawfordville. Crestview. DeFuniak Springs. Destin. Ebro. Eglin Air Force Base. Fort Walton Beach. Freeport. Gulf Islands National Seashore. Madison. Marianna. Milton. Monticello. Mossy Head. Navarre Beach . Niceville. Panama City Beach. Pensacola. Ponce De Leon. Port St. Joe. Quincy. Sopchoppy. South Walton. St. Marks. St. Marks NWR. Tallahassee. Vernon. Wakulla. Wewahitchka

NORTH FLORIDA
Alachua. Amelia Island. Baldwin. Branford. Bunnell. Cedar Key. Chiefland. Crescent City. Dowling Park. Ellaville. Fernandina Beach. Flagler Beach. Gainesville. Green Cove Springs. High Springs. Jacksonville. Keystone Heights. Lake Butler.Lake City. Live Oak. Mayo. Macclenny. Micanopy. Olustee. Orange Park. Osceola National Forest. Palatka. Palatka-Lake Butler Trail. Palm Coast. Perry. Salt Springs. St. Augustine. Starke. Steinhatchee. Suwannee River Wilderness Trail. Suwannee Springs. Talbot Islands. Timucuan Preserve. Trenton. Welaka. White Springs. Williston

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo

MULTI-REGION
Big Cypress Swamp. East Coast Greenway. Everglades National Park. Florida National Scenic Trail

CENTRAL FLORIDA
Apopka. Belleview. Brandon. Brooksville. Bushnell. Canaveral National Seashore. Christmas. Chuluota. Clearwater Beach. Clermont. Coast to Coast Trail. Cocoa Beach. Cross Florida Greenway. Crystal River. Dade City. Daytona Beach. De Leon Springs. DeBary. Deland. Deltona. Dunedin. Dunnellon. Frostproof. Geneva. Inverness. Kenansville. Kissimmee. Lake Mary. Lake Wales. Lakeland. Largo. Leesburg. Longwood. Melbourne. Melbourne Beach. Merritt Island. Merritt Island NWR. Mims. Mount Dora. New Port Richey. New Smyrna Beach. Ocala. Ocala National Forest. Ocklawaha. Orlando. Ormond Beach. Osteen. Oviedo. Palm Bay. Ridge Manor. Sanford. Silver Springs. Spring Hill. St. Cloud. St. Petersburg. Tampa. Tarpon Springs. Titusville . Walt Disney World. Weeki Wachee. Winter Springs. Withlacoochee State Forest. Withlacoochee State Trail. Yeehaw Junction

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

SOUTH FLORIDA
Arcadia. Basinger. Big Cypress National Preserve. Big Cypress Seminole Reservation. Clewiston. Everglades City. Fisheating Creek. Lake Okeechobee. Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail. Lake Placid. LaBelle. Lakeport. Moore Haven. Okeechobee. Pahokee. Port Mayaca. Sebring. South Bay

SOUTHEAST FLORIDA
Big Pine Key. Biscayne Bay. Biscayne National Park. Boca Raton. Boynton Beach. Coral Gables. Davie. Delray Beach. Northeast Everglades Natural Area. Florida Keys. Fort Lauderdale. Fort Pierce. Hobe Sound. Hollywood. Homestead. Islamorada. Jensen Beach. Jupiter. Juno Beach. Key Biscayne. Key Largo. Key West. Marathon. Miami. Ocean to Lake Greenway. Overseas Heritage Trail. Palm Beach. Port St. Lucie. Redland. Sebastian. Stuart. Vero Beach. West Palm Beach

  • Trails
  • Parks
  • Beaches
  • Gardens
  • Springs
  • Ecotours
  • Attractions
©2006-2023, Sandra Friend & John Keatley | Disclosure | Site Index | Work with Us | Advertise with Us
Terms of Service and Privacy Policy | Florida Hikes PO Box 93 Mims FL 32754| Contact