Fort Myers

Damage from Hurricane Ian in fall 2022 affected coastal parks and trails. Check ahead.

Exploring Fort Myers

First established as a military outpost during the Seminole Wars of the 1830s, Fort Myers grew thanks to its proximity to the Caloosahatchee River.

Cattle barons drove herds down the Kissimmee to Lake Okeechobee and on along the Caloosahatchee, loading steers onto Spanish galleons that paid top dollar in gold.

Today, visitors can hop a hydrofoil to Key West, a ferryboat that whisks you to the southernmost tip of Florida in three hours.

Water plays a large part in recreation in the region, both on it and in it, with the city fringing the massive Big Cypress Swamp ecosystem to the east.

Six Mile Cypress Slough is a must-see for a dip into Big Cypress. Thanks to these wetlands, Fort Myers has extensive natural lands preserving pockets of important habitats.

Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Winding 1.4 miles through the slough, the broad wheelchair-accessible boardwalk at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Fort Myers leads you into a dark cypress strand.

Most lie to the north of North Fort Myers, a buffer against the spread of suburbia north of Pine Island Rd. But others are tucked among subdivisions within the city and its surrounding communities.

After the Civil War, the city of Fort Myers became a winter destination for tourists hopping steamships down the Gulf Coast. In 1889, inventor Thomas Edison built a grand estate on the Caloosahatchee.

He used it to create a laboratory devoted to the study of tropical plants. As his industrialist and scientist friends visited, the town gained a cultural core and a great deal of botanical interest.

Edison oversaw the planting of hundreds of royal palms along McGregor Boulevard, the original cattle drive route.

The “Avenue of Palms” is still a delight today, a must-drive on a visit to the extensive gardens at his winter home and that of his friend Henry Ford.

Edison & Ford Winter Estates 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.

Trails and Parks near Fort Myers

Alva Scrub Preserve A winding loop across seasonally flooded flatwoods, the multi-use at Alva Scrub Preserve provides excellent birding in a rural setting near the Caloosahatchee River.

Black Island Trail At the northern end of Lovers Key State Park, the Black Island Trail makes lemonade out of lemons with a scenic hike or off-road ride in natural landscapes reshaped for coastal development.

Cabbage Key Nature Trail Hike the Cabbage Key Nature Trail for a step back in time on an island known for its great cheeseburgers and layers of mystery, from Calusa times to a mystery writer's family retreat.

Caloosahatchee Creeks Preserve East An accessible paved pathway, boardwalk, and tidally flooded river trail offer a variety of options for exploring immersive landscapes alongside the Caloosahatchee River.

Caloosahatchee Regional Park Providing a rare peek into unspoiled upland and floodplain habitats along the Caloosahatchee River, Caloosahatchee Regional Park evokes the wilderness in which the Calusa lived.

Calusa Heritage Trail At the Randell Research Center, explore the remains of an ancient city on Pine Island along a set of trails with abundant signage detailing its history.

Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium Heaven and earth meet at the Calusa Nature Center, where a planetarium show complements the center's main mission of introducing the region's natural history, in part through its hiking trails.

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.

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.

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.

CREW Flint Pen Strand Red Trail The westernmost of the loops at Flint Pen Strand, the 1.5 mile Red Trail is an easy introduction to the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed.

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.

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.

Estero Bay Preserve State Park 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.

Estero River Scrub Skirting the edge of a tidal marsh alongside Estero Bay, the loop trails at Estero River Scrub are incredibly unique and a challenge to hike.

Four Mile Cove Eco Preserve A forest of mangroves along the Caloosahatchee River, Four Mile Cove Eco Preserve is a rare find in Cape Coral, with a 1.2-mile loop hike partly on a boardwalk through the mangrove fringe.

Hickey Creek Mitigation Park Walk along a blackwater stream that sluggishly seeps towards the Caloosahatchee River on the way to a panorama of pines and palmettos along Hickey Creek.

Hickory Swamp Preserve Environmental restoration is on display at Hickory Swamp Preserve along a well-marked 1.2 mile loop trail designed by Scouts along the Orange River watershed.

Indigo Trail Get to know mangroves for miles and miles on the linear Indigo Trail, open to hikers and cyclists as a parallel route on a levee that connects to Wildlife Drive near both ends.

Koreshan State Park When Dr. Cyrus Teed founded a commune along the banks of the Estero River in 1894, he envisioned a utopia in the tropics. Koreshan State Park preserves that slice of history.

Lovers Key State Park With a name straight out of tourist fantasies of 1950s Florida, Lovers Key State Park is a series of slim barrier islands between Estero Bay and the Gulf of Mexico south of Fort Myers Beach.

Mound Key Archaeological State Park Launch your kayak from either Koreshan Historic State Park or Lovers Key State Park for a paddle into Estero Bay to see Mound Key, a significant Calusa archaeological site.

Nancy Weir Mangrove Preserve At the southern end of Pine Island, a hidden trail winds through mangrove habitat, crossing numerous bridges and navigating surprisingly uneven terrain.

Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Winding 1.4 miles through the slough, the broad wheelchair-accessible boardwalk at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Fort Myers leads you into a dark cypress strand.

St. Jude Trail A ramble to the mangrove-lined shores of St. Jude Harbor, the St. Jude Trail is a birder's delight, tucked away in a residential neighborhood on the edge of St. James City on Pine Island and protected by the Calusa Land Trust.

Telegraph Creek and Bob Janes Preserves An impressive array of xeric, mesic, and aquatic habits is on display along a 4 mile set of loop trails traversing Telegraph Creek and Bob Janes Preserves.

Wild Turkey Strand Preserve Historic and natural landscapes come together along impressively accessible trails at this picturesque conservation area on a WWII-era training base.

Yellow Fever Creek Preserve A refuge for wildlife on the edge of Cape Coral, Yellow Fever Creek Preserve features a pair of loop trails spanning subtropical forests and periodically flooded flatwoods environments.

Articles

Kids love wildlife hikes! (2/24/2012) Here’s a little proof positive that the younger generation still finds the outdoors a thrill. Late last year, I had an email from a reader planning a trip to Florida looking for a way to day-trip the Everglades while visiting family in Punta Gorda. Given the vast distance between the two spots, I suggested, as …