Resources
Resources for exploring the area
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Exploring the St. Marks River
Flowing 36 miles from swamps southeast of Tallahassee towards the Gulf of Mexico, the St. Marks River was one of the earliest water routes followed by explorers along the Big Bend.
It is notable for both its springs and historic sites, including the natural bridge that occurs upriver from Newport and the St. Marks Lighthouse, where the river flows into the Gulf of Mexico.
The quiet village of St. Marks sits along the riverbank not far from the river’s confluence with the Wakulla River.
It is at the meeting of the two rivers that centuries of fortifications protected river access, dating back to 1679.
Learn about the deep history of this site and access this scenic spot at San Marcos de Apalache Historic Site State Park.
The river is notable for hikers as a barrier along the Florida Trail, which crosses the waterway where one of Florida’s earliest rail lines extended to Port Leon.
Port Leon was an early Florida town washed away by hurricanes more than two centuries ago. The railroad bridge to it no longer exists.
Hikers must flag down a passing boater or call ahead to a marina to get a ferry across this deep tidal portion of the river.
Trails and Parks along the St. Marks River
Ney Landrum State Park Wildflowers bloom throughout the year alongside a series of interconnected trails crisscrossing forested woodlands near the headwaters of the St. Marks River.
San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park With a historic timeline dating back five centuries, San Marcos de Apalache protects layers of history accumulated at the confluence of the Wakulla and St. Marks Rivers
San Marcos de Apalache Interpretive Trail The site of the first coastal fortress in Northwest Florida, San Marcos de Apalache has a 0.6-mile interpretive trail at the confluence of two major rivers
St. Marks Coastal Loop Using the Tallahassee-St Marks Trail, the Coastal Trail, and the Florida Trail, ride a scenic 22-mile loop between the St. Marks and Wakulla River floodplains along the Big Bend.
St. Marks Lighthouse Levee Trail A windswept walk along the Gulf of Mexico, the Lighthouse Levee Trail provides scenic panoramas of both the Gulf and marsh impoundments near the St. Marks Lighthouse.
St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge Stretching across 86,000 acres in Florida's Big Bend, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge protects one of Florida's longest wild shorelines, more than 43 miles in three counties.Articles
Exploring San Marcos de Apalache (6/21/2016) Where the Wakulla and St Marks Rivers meet, explore San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park, a small piece of ground with a deep history under five flags.