Hikes near Tallahassee

Florida’s capital city, Tallahassee is an outdoor town, with thousands of acres of natural lands surrounding the city just waiting for exploration. The Apalachicola National Forest, Florida’s largest national forest, is here, as well as protected wilderness lands along rivers and streams and the vast coastline of Wakulla County to the south.

Nearby: Blountstown, Marianna, Monticello, Perry, Sopchoppy, St. Marks

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Trails and Parks in Tallahassee

Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park - In late winter, azaleas create ribbons of bright color beneath the live oak canopy across the grounds of Maclay Gardens, a series of formal gardens along the hillsides sweeping down to Lake Hall.
Apalachicola National Forest - The Apalachicola National Forest is the largest National Forest in Florida, sweeping around the southern edge of Tallahassee. It is noted for its botanical beauty.
Butler Mill Trail - Lake Jackson Mounds is best known for being one of the largest ceremonial temple mound complexes in the Southeast, but it offers a cool, shady nature trail, too
Cherokee Sink Trail - A karst window into the watery world of the Woodville Karst Plain, Cherokee Sink is a large, deep water-filled sinkhole in a less-traveled section of Wakulla Springs State Park.
Dorothy B. Oven Park - Only seven acres in size, Dorothy B. Oven Park is a Tallahassee city park beloved by locals but little known outside the city, developed on a former nursery established by one of Florida's earliest camellia growers.
Elinor Klapp-Phipps Park - Ancient magnolias, massive tulip poplars, and sinuous alluvial streams are all part of the delights of Phipps Park, the city of Tallahassee's most expansive and wild urban park
Florida Trail, Apalachee Bay - Slipping out of the jungle-like floodplain forest that surrounds the tributaries of the Aucilla River into the coastal salt marshes along Apalachee Bay, this 13.4 mile hike offers some of the most breathtaking panoramas you'll find along the Florida Trail - and a profusion of wildlife.
Florida Trail, Aucilla River - Endearingly scenic, surprisingly rugged in places, and unlike any other piece of the Florida Trail statewide, this 9.3-mile trek along the Aucilla River showcases some of Florida's top natural features in one hike.
Florida Trail, Aucilla Sinks - With dark waters reflecting against pockmarked limestone walls, palm fronds obscuring dropoffs into yawning sinkholes, and a footpath winding through the most geologically weird piece of any National Scenic Trail, the Aucilla Sinks are the most fascinating segment of the Florida Trail.
Florida Trail, Bradwell Bay - You're guaranteed to get wet on Florida’s roughest, wildest swamp walk on the Florida Trail in Bradwell Bay, a wild place where hiking with friends is a smart idea
Florida Trail, Sopchoppy - This 8.9-mile segment of the Florida Trail gets your feet wet, figuratively and literally, with the often-soggy habitats found across the Apalachicola, the largest of Florida's National Forests.
Florida Trail, Sopchoppy River - Following the gentle curves of the Sopchoppy River as it carves itself deeply into the bedrock of the Apalachicola National Forest, the 4.1-mile Sopchoppy River section of the Florida Trail is one of the most scenic segments of the trail statewide.
Florida’s Best Urban Parks - When you live in a tightly packed space, you need somewhere green as your go-to place nearby. These are our top picks for parks in Florida's urban areas, chosen for their diversity of outdoor activities and/or their unique green spaces.
Fort Braden Trails - Showcasing bluff forests and deep ravines above Lake Talquin, the Fort Braden Trails at Lake Talquin State Forest offer enough hiking for a weekend in the woods
Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park - A clearing in the deep forest along the north shore of Lake Jackson reveals a civilization long gone from the face of Florida, the site protected as Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park.
Lake Talquin Nature Trail - The 1.1-mile interpretive trail at Lake Talquin State Park teases you with the edges of ravines and bluffs high up above Lake Talquin.
Lake Talquin State Park - When the Ochlockonee River was dammed to create hydroelectric power for Tallahassee, it also created a massive lake between the deeply folded ridges to the west of the city. Lake Talquin State Park is one of several access points to the lake.
Leon Sinks Geological Area - In the Apalachicola National Forest just south of Tallahassee, Leon Sinks Geological Area offers a delightful introduction to the wonders of karst topography on its trails
Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park - In a leafy glade at the end of a dead-end road, Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park preserves one of Florida's greatest and least known cultural treasures, Florida's tallest ceremonial mound.
Letchworth-Love Mounds Nature Trail - At Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park you can walk around the base of the tallest and most complex ceremonial mound in Florida, the largest mound rising 46 feet high
Mission San Luis - Although this rugged little nature trail at Mission San Luis doesn’t top a half mile, it gives you a good excuse to go play in the woods in Tallahassee—and learn about Florida’s history
Myron B Hodge City Park - Myron B. Hodge City Park offers a nature trail where you can linger along the Sopchoppy River amid the sweet spring scent of Florida azalea.
Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park - At Natural Bridge Battlefield near Tallahassee, memorials and reenactments keep alive the spirits of the soldiers who perished on this spot during one of the last and largest battles of the Civil War in Florida.
Ochlockonee River State Park - At Ochlockonee River State Park waters meet, the tidal bore of the estuary pushing upstream to meet two rivers draining the vast swamps of the Apalachicola National Forest.
Ochlockonee River State Park Trails - On 2.6 miles of nature trails, immerse in the sandhills and pine flatwoods habitats of the Ochlockonee River basin at Ochlockonee River State Park.
Ravine Trail - Part of the Terry Rhodes Trail System, the Ravine Trail at Lake Talquin State Forest's Bear Creek Educational Center clings to the edges of a large steephead ravine.
San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park - The site of the first coastal fortress along Florida's Panhandle, San Marcos de Apalache Historic State Park protects several generations of battlements.
San Marcos de Apalache Trails - The site of the first coastal fortress in Northwest Florida, San Marcos de Apalache has a 0.6-mile historical trail at the confluence of two major rivers.
Silver Lake Trail - A popular recreation area in the Apalachicola National Forest west of Tallahassee, Silver Lake is looped by a nature trail that provides scenic views of the lake
Spring hopping around Tallahassee - Between Madison and Marianna and across Wakulla County, explore a colorful collection of natural springs for swimming and snorkeling, all within an hour of Tallahassee.
St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge - Stretching across 70,000 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.
St. Marks River Preserve State Park - Explore river bottom forest around the St. Marks River on a network of old forest roads that traverse St. Marks River State Park, between Tallahassee and Wacissa.
Tallahassee Museum - With an elevated boardwalk guiding you through picturesque cypresses along the floodplain of Lake Bradford, the Tallahassee Museum is a multifaceted educational center focused on the natural and cultural history of the region.
Tower Pond Trail - At St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, the Tower Pond Trail loops a mile through vast impoundments and marshes along the Gulf of Mexico, providing scenic panoramas and great birding.
Wacissa Springs - One of a vanishing breed of old-time swimming holes within an easy drive of Tallahassee, Wacissa Springs is the birthplace of the Wacissa River and home to more than a dozen springs.
Wakulla Springs State Park - A 1930s resort turned nature park surrounding one of the world's largest and deepest springs, Wakulla Springs State Park leads you back in time at the state's only state park lodge.
Wakulla Springs Trail - Looping around the floodplain of Wakulla Springs, the Wakulla Springs Trail provides up to 10 miles of hiking showcasing the variety of habitats along the river’s shores.