Prairie Loop Trail

Home of dark skies and wide open spaces, Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park protects a portion of Florida that you have to go off the beaten path to enjoy. On a visit to the park, the Prairie Loop Trail is a must.

A side trail off the main orange-blazed Florida Trail that connects with the campgrounds flanking the park office, the Prairie Loop Trail offers a more intimate look at a changeup of habitats.

Prairie Loop Trail island of palms — Looking out from the palms at the midpoint of the loop

Resources

South Florida Explorers Guide book cover

Hikers Guide to the Sunshine State book cover

Full details on this hike, including a trail map, are in our full-color guidebook Florida Trail Hikes.

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

Guthook Guides GPS-driven map-based guide to the Florida National Scenic Trail with thousands of waypoints from The Florida Trail Guide. Works offline. For iPhone and Android.

Overview

Location: Okeechobee
Length: 5.6 mile loop
Trailhead: 27.584209, -81.045357
Address: 33104 NW 192nd Ave, Okeechobee
Fees: $4 per vehicle, $2 pedestrian
Restrooms: at the visitor center
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 863-462-5360

Open 8 to sunset daily. Leashed dogs welcome but not recommended due to the alligator population along along Military Trail. You will walk past several warning signs before the sloughs where the alligators congregate.

Directions

At the junction of SR 60 and US 441 just west of Florida’s Turnpike at Yeehaw Junction, head south on US 441 for 18 miles to NW 240th St (CR 724). A brown sign points the way to the state park.

Meet NW 176th Ave (CR 700A) after 12 miles. It connects to US 98 at Basinger. Continue another mile straight ahead. The road makes a 90-degree turn north onto NW 197 Ave. Continue straight ahead for another 7.9 miles, passing through the park gate and two trailheads. The road makes a 90-degree turn west. In 1.4 miles, it reaches the parking area at the Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park ranger station.

Hike

Following the orange blazes of the Florida Trail along Military Trail, a dirt road that stretches west to the horizon, this hike starts from the park office.

Continue past the equestrian campground and through the gate. Straight ahead, the trail leads towards a treeline of cabbage palms, the predominant tree in this prairie.

Military Trail alligator marsh — Alligator flag marks a marsh along Military Trail

Warning signs about alligators are due to the sloughs that Military Trail passes through. Some of the alligators here are quite large.

At 2.1 miles, meet the blue-blazed Prairie Loop Trail at a trail junction. Turn left. The old ranch road is unmistakable. Just keep following it through the broad open prairie.

Prairie Loop Trail wetland — This part of the trail rounds a wetland in the open prairie

At the next trail junction, walk into the shade of the oak hammock. It’s here you’ll find the park’s primitive campground and its three sites, at 2.8 miles.

Prairie Loop Trail campground — Campsite 1 of the three campsites at the primitive camping area

On the far side of the hammock, the Prairie Loop continues with a sharp left off the main trail. It works its way across open prairie to meet a palm hammock along a wetland.

Prairie Loop Trail palm hammock — Meeting the palm hammock on the return part of the loop

By 4.6 miles, the trail climbs a small rise and follows an old streambed. It crosses the waterway and comes to another trail junction. Turn right and continue along the blue blazes.

The trail leads you into the equestrian campground to finish the loop. Meet the Military Trail and walk back along it to the park office.