Covering 94 acres, George LeStrange Preserve is one of a series of public lands protecting shoreline along Ten Mile Creek, a major tributary of the North Fork of the St. Lucie River.
Follow tempting side trails off the easy doubletrack around the lake to discover this park’s natural beauty beyond the restoration area surrounding Lake Zobel.
Trail in the floodplain channel along Ten Mile CreekResources
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Overview
Location: Fort Pierce
Length: 1.8 miles
Trailhead: 27.399124, -80.375152
Address: 4911 Ralls Rd, Fort Pierce
Fees: Free
Restroom: None
Land Manager: St. Lucie County
Phone: 772-462-2526
Open sunrise to sunset. Leashed pets welcome. A hand launch adjoins the picnic tables at the trailhead. Non-motorized watercraft permitted.
Catch and release fishing is welcome, but no wading or swimming allowed.
Directions
From Interstate 95, exit at SR 70 in Fort Pierce and drive east a half mile to Jenkins Rd. Turn right and continue 0.7 mile to Edwards Rd. Turn left and drive a mile to Selvitz Rd. Turn right. The preserve entrance is on the right immediately after the bridge and the entrance to Richard E. Becker Preserve on the left.
Hike
Start at the prominent trailhead kiosk at the upper end of the parking area. The map shows two routes. An inner doubletrack, the Lake Loop, circles Lake Zobel.
The side loop shown on the map is actually one of several off the main trail. Follow the broad graveled path forward between cabbage palms.
Trailhead kioskAs you might suspect from the nearby industrial area, the lake is not natural. It’s a former sand mine pit, deep and sharply sloped.
Its edges were restored with native plants. Surprisingly, some of the natural habitats close to it remain undisturbed. Others suffer from overgrowth of invasive species.
Lake ZobelWalk past scattered cabbage palms into the shade of a stand of slash pines and laurel oaks.
Coming in from the park entrance road for walk-in visitors, another doubletrack merges in. Bear left.
T junction with incoming roadNear a hiker symbol sign, a break in the vegetation provides a panorama across the wind-riffled watery expanse.
Across from a picnic table, a covered pavilion overlooks an interior marsh-edged pond.
Birding pavilionJust past this rest stop at 0.2 mile, a hiker symbol sign calls your attention to a footpath branching off the gravel loop. Turn right and face a choice of trails at a Y intersection.
Bearing right, walk through open scrubby flatwoods to examine the marsh and the birds it attracts more closely from a ridge along it.
Marsh viewSpills of grapevine drop downslope, and a gopher tortoise burrow is partway upslope. At the next junction stay left for the outer loop. The inner one can be wet.
Reaching treeline, the path turns sharply east and becomes sandy, the vegetation rough. Curve past a boundary fence into the pines. The inner trail joins in.
Path along the marsh to the Lake LoopKeep to the footpath closest to the marshy pond as paths split again under the pines. Emerge on the gravel path within sight of the pavilion at a half mile.
Turn right and pass it again, turning right at the hiker sign again but taking the left fork this time.
Descent into a palm hammockNarrowing immediately, this footpath descends into a beautiful palm hammock along a dark stream. Cross a bridge and ascend a ridge.
Climbing up and over a rooty slope, descend sharply to an observation deck on Ten Mile Creek.
Observation deckIf it looks like a ditch to you, it is. This part of the headwaters of the North Fork of the St. Lucie River was ditched and straightened nearly a century ago.
The soil dug out of it was piled on the sides of the creek basin, which accounts for the rugged terrain this trail now follows.
Footbridge before a steep climbCross a low footbridge over the tributary and ascend a steep slope stairstepped by tree roots.
Wild coffee grows thickly under the canopy of a perched palm hammock atop the ridge. Ferns fill hollows of dark earth. Descend into a swale of palms and climb sharply again.
Lush hammock at Marker 6Cutting through and up an old creek channel at marker 9, ascend more gently beneath live oaks and palms. The roller-coaster terrain resumes.
It’s an enjoyable scramble between ridge and basin. Sporadic views of the creek are framed by dense forest.
Creek viewClimbing again past marker 10, face a fence with a trail marker pointing left and a clear view of Ten Mile Creek beyond.
A pathway continues beyond the fence, but it’s clear erosion ate that former route.
Leaving Ten Mile CreekAt a mile, leave the creek behind for a surprise at the top of the slope: scrub habitat! At the T intersection, turn right to follow a soft white sand path through healthy scrubby flatwoods.
Regal slash pines and towering longleaf reign over an understory of myrtle oak, Chapman oak, and scrub oak. A sign at a curve warns of private property down a side path.
Scrub habitatContinue along the broad sandy trail past clusters of scrub plum. Saw palmetto, some silvery-tinged, poke through the understory just before everything changes.
Mounds of grapevine signal a shift to a landscape of opportunistic invaders, mulberry and mimosa showing up.
Invasive takeoverWhen the footpath forks under a stand of pines, bear right. At a T, a side path to the right ends at the preserve’s boundary, marked by posts.
Turn left to walk beneath the pines, emerging onto the doubletrack around Lake Zobel at 1.3 miles.
Preserve boundaryThe remainder of this hike sticks to the doubletrack Lake Loop. Pass a fire break on the right.
From the looks of the pine flatwoods it enters, they’re being actively brought back to good health and perhaps a marked trail will extend through them in the future.
Pine flatwoods adjoining the Lake LoopOn this side of the lake, there’s little vegetation along the edge blocking the views. A sheltered bench looks over the water.
Paralleling the lake, walk beneath a row of pines, which ends at a grassy area at 1.5 miles.
Approaching the sheltered benchAcross the trail from a marsh along Lake Zobel, Florida myrtle thrives; perhaps the marsh overflow sporadically to nourish it.
Passing a side path to the southeast property boundary, round the corner of the lake.
Marshy corner of the lakeAt the shoreline, a roofed observation deck offers a picnic table in a nice spot for birding.
It’s a short, direct and open walk from the deck up the gravel path on this side of the lake, ending at the parking area after 1.8 miles.
Picnic shelter on Lake ZobelTrail Map
Explore More!
Video
A walk through George LeStrange Preserve
Slideshow
See our photos from George LeStrange Preserve
Nearby Adventures
Ten Mile Creek Preserve Explore a short but incredibly rugged nature trail teetering along bluffs above the source of the North Fork of the St. Lucie River.
Sweetwater Hammock Preserve Marvel at the botanical beauty of a mature live oak hammock on this short nature trail loop to a bluff along the North Fork of the St. Lucie River.
Gordy Road Recreation Area Follow a gentle interpretive trail to explore scrub and oak hammock bordering a reclaimed sand mine on uplands recharging Ten Mile Creek.
Fort Pierce Inlet State Park When the waves start crashing at Fort Pierce Inlet State Park, surfers command the beach. Offshore shoals of the rocky Atlantic Coast Ridge create strong surf.
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