Florida Hikes

Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

Fishing boat on beach with big bay beyond

Choctawhatchee Bay

The Choctawhatchee River empties into Choctawhatchee Bay near Freeport, creating a massive basin that empties to the Gulf of Mexico at Destin.

Destin

An oceanfront community in Okaloosa County, Destin has a string of natural lands along the Gulf of Mexico and Choctawhatchee Bay.

Eden Gardens State Park

Edging a windswept bayou off Choctawhatchee Bay, lush cultivated gardens surround the historic Wesley House, an elegant home built by timber baron William Henry Wesley in 1897.

Fort Walton Beach

One of the largest and oldest communities in Okaloosa County, Fort Walton Beach sits between Choctawhatchee Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, with Eglin Air Force Base to the north.

Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park

Niceville   3.3 miles

Hugging the eastern shore of Rocky Bayou, this beautiful state park preserves both shoreline and forested uplands along a estuarine arm of Choctawhatchee Bay.

Freeport

Founded in 1830 where Lafayette Creek flows into LaGrange Bayou on Choctawhatchee Bay, Freeport is edged by woods and water, close to Nokuse Plantation and the Florida Trail

Niceville

Edged by Eglin Air Force Base and Choctawhatchee Bay, Niceville provides quick access to outdoor recreation on the water and in the woods without the crowds.

Okaloosa Area

Fort Walton Beach   1.0 miles

A broad sweep of beach and coastal habitats are protected along Choctawhatchee Bay within the Okaloosa Area, the easternmost unit of Gulf Islands National Seashore.

Rocky Bayou Hiking Trails

Niceville   3.3 miles

Explore the uplands of Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park in Niceville on a trio of showy nature trails that can be interconnected into a 3.3 mile day hike.

Rocky Bayou Nature Trail

Niceville   1.5 miles

Stroll through sand pine scrub and bluff forest to savor a series of views on Rocky Bayou, a brackish arm of Choctawhatchee Bay.