Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
Although the coast near West Palm Beach is heavily populated, Palm Beach County has done an extraordinary job of preserving natural lands and establishing trails
INTERACTIVE MAP
In Palm Beach Gardens, Frenchman’s Forest Natural Area offers nearly 3 miles of trails through a 172-acre natural area with seven different habitats to explore, right behind the Gardens Mall.
Protecting a sheet flow of rainfall moving steadily southward and parallel to the Atlantic Ocean, Grassy Waters Preserve bears a striking resemblance to the Everglades – because it is.
At Green Cay Wetlands, boardwalks meander through 100 acres of re-created wetlands that bring a touch of the Everglades back to its original home in Boynton Beach.
Offering a hike into the Loxahatchee Slough, the Hog Hammock Trail at Grassy Waters Preserve leads into a dark, fern-filled cabbage palm hammock with a 2.8 mile loop.
Opened in 1989 on Singer Island, John D. MacArthur Beach State Park is extraordinarily popular due to its coastal lagoons, well-preserved tropical forests, and beautiful beach with nearshore rocky reefs.
At Juno Dunes Natural Area, two loop trails flank US 1. While shade is at a premium, botanical diversity makes this a worthy destination for an early morning hike
Following the boardwalk behind the Visitor Center at Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, you’ll enter a jungle-like wonderland along the Cypress Trail into a habitat lush with ferns and bromeliads
At Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, the Marsh Trail provides a marked trail to follow on the extensive dike system. It is one of the region’s best birding sites, where you’ll see dozens of species.
Dense woodlands, open plains, and lakes: it’s all recreated here just outside the fence of the West Palm Beach International Airport at Mounts Botanical Garden, where unusual trees like baobab and rainbow eucalyptus are with more common tropical flora and native species.
Also known as the Northeast Everglades Natural Area, the Ocean to Lake Greenway spans from Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge in Hobe Sound across portions of Martin and Palm Beach Counties to Lake Okeechobee.
A network of wheelchair-accessible walkways wind through 90 acres of pine flatwoods, oak hammocks, and dense palm hammocks in the far corner of Okeeheelee Park.
Established in 1994 to celebrate the beauty of Florida’s native tropical plants, Pan’s Garden hides in the midst of the tony downtown Palm Beach business and shopping district, with several entrances to let visitors slip in for a moment’s rest.
