Graham Swamp Preserve

Protecting a massive freshwater swamp forest only a mile and a half from the Atlantic Ocean, Graham Swamp Preserve encompasses over 3,000 acres.

Most of this is very wet and impenetrable, a haven for wildlife and a recharge area for rainfall within the subdivisions of Palm Coast.

But on a network of trails extending from multiple trailheads and community access points, visitors can explore the edges of this floodplain where Bulow Creek rises.

Loblolly bay and sweetgum dominate the bottomlands of Graham Swamp West

Resources

Resources for exploring the area

Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover

North Florida Panhandle Explorers Guide 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: Palm Coast
Graham Swamp West: 1125 Old Kings Hwy, Palm Coast [29.537617, -81.206067] Graham Swamp East: 5140 Colbert Ln, Palm Coast [29.50829, -81.16157] Fees: None
Restroom: Portable toilet may be in place at Graham Swamp East. A real restroom with water fountain is at the Lehigh Trail trailhead [29.50168, -81.15919] on Colbert Ln.
Land manager: Flagler County
Phone: 386-313-4020

Open daylight hours. Leashed pets permitted. A visitor has reported venomous snakes living under the bridge on the Graham Swamp West Red Trail; use extreme caution.

Directions

From Interstate 95 exit 289, Palm Coast, drive east on Palm Coast Pkwy and turn right on Old Kings Rd. Continue south 1.4 miles to the Graham Swamp West trailhead on the left.

For the Graham Swamp East trailhead, stay on Palm Coast Pkwy past Old Kings Rd. In anoth 0.8 mile turn right on Colbert Ln. Drive 4.7 miles to the trailhead on the right. The Lehigh Trail trailhead is another half mile past it on the right.

About the Preserve

Since our initial visit to Graham Swamp Conservation Area more than two decades ago for 50 Hikes in North Florida , recreation opportunities have expanded greatly.

That’s largely thanks to Flagler County and the cycling community, creating the natural-surface Graham Swamp Trail and the trail system on its east side.

Graham Swamp in sand pines uplands

The interior of Graham Swamp, however, is still a wild and wooly freshwater wetland where Bulow Creek rises to flow south.

Previously managed by St. Johns Water Management District, Graham Swamp is now overseen by Flagler County as conservation land.

St. Johns WMD map and kiosk

Biking

The flat, easy, and well-packed 2 mile Graham Swamp Trail extends from the Graham Swamp West trailhead to a paved side path along Colbert Ln.

In either direction, the side path interconnects with a bike trail system through Palm Coast which ties St. Joes Walkway Linear Park to Waterfront Park, making a big loop possible.

Start of the Graham Swamp Trail at Graham Swamp West

Serious off-road cyclists should head for the twisty singletrack route at Graham Swamp East, a 5.5-mile loop atop a steep sand ridge.

Built and maintained by local volunteers, the loop has steep drops and technical sections best tackled by more experienced riders.

Worn bike path singletrack in forest canopy

Singletrack at Graham Swamp East

A half mile south of Graham Swamp East is the eastern trailhead for the Lehigh Trail. A side path along Colbert Ln connects the two trailheads.

Extending 6.7 miles across Palm Coast, the Lehigh Trail follows a former railroad route all the way to US 1.

At the US 1 end of the Lehigh Trail

The easternmost 2.3 miles of the Lehigh Trail traverses Graham Swamp on a berm above the floodplain.

From its trailhead on Colbert Ln, the ride is a 13.8 mile round trip with several busy road crossings en route. Add an extra mile if you start your ride at Graham Swamp East.

Riding the Lehigh Trail in Graham Swamp

Hiking

The initial mile-long trail in Graham Swamp we hiked for 50 Hikes starts at the west trailhead, which is also home to an observation deck looking over a showy pond.

On a revisit, we found the connector and loop beyond the pond far more difficult to follow, the lush landscape swallowing up the second half of the red-blazed trail route.

Loblolly bay and sweetgum trees along a footpath

Graham Swamp West

Circle placid blackwater ponds amid a freshwater swamp forest near to the Atlantic Coast.

If the old hiking trail isn’t fully passable, it’s still easy to follow the cleared path around the pond counterclockwise from the kiosk for a half mile loop.

Panoramas of the lily-dotted pond grab your attention at several locations along the loop, which transitions from bayhead to sand pine scrub before reaching the Graham Swamp Trail.

Lily-dotted pond at Graham Swamp West

At Graham Swamp East, a 2.2-mile hiking trail follows the top of the sand ridge east of the swamp, sharing the mountain bike trailhead.

The kiosk map shows it as a linear hike atop the ridge, crossing the bike loop twice. We have not had the opportunity to hike it yet.

Broad boardwalk at the start of the Lehigh Trail

The Graham Swamp portion of the Lehigh Trail makes for a nice hike out of the Lehigh Trail trailhead, accessed by 0.2-mile walk along a side path to its entry point on Colbert Ln.

Starting with a boardwalk over a portion of the swamp, it transitions to an old railroad right-of-way, a berm above surrounding marshes and forest.