Along the Pinellas Trail in Palm Harbor, Wall Springs Park is a perfect escape for folks who like their wilderness tamed and safe. This 210-acre preserve hugs the Gulf of Mexico.
The namesake springs bubble up fresh water within a few hundred feet of a mangrove-lined bayou. They were a popular natural swimming hole and the site of an Old Florida health spa for more than a century.
Like many such places in Florida, the springs fell out of popularity and into disrepair. Pinellas County brought the property back to life in the late 1980s with a host of urban amenities, including a paved trail system more than a mile long.
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Overview
Location: Palm Harbor
Length: 1.1 mile network of trails and boardwalks
Trailhead: 28.1069,-82.7711
Address: 3725 Desoto Blvd, Palm Harbor FL 34683
Fees: none
Restroom: at the trailhead
Land manager: Pinellas County Parks
Phone: 727-943-4653
Open 8 AM to 7 PM. Certain restrooms may only be open on weekends.
Directions
From E Klosterman Rd in Tarpon Springs, follow Alt US 19 south for 1.6 miles to the park entrance on the right.
Hike
In addition to being an important trailhead for the Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail, Wall Springs Park is a gentle destination for passive outdoor recreation.
Start your walk from the parking area along the boardwalk that arcs around the spring basin. Besides fish in the clear waters below, expect to hear and see osprey and other birds around the spring basin and its outflow.
As you walk along the paved trails and boardwalks around Boggy Bayou, they lead to special places. Anglers will appreciate several fishing piers on the Gulf of Mexico. Parents enjoy the massive barrier free playground with a sun canopy.
On an initial visit to the park, we discovered the largest open-air observation tower in Florida. It looked like a giant Lincoln Log structure of telephone poles, with multiple large decks.
It’s been replaced with a newer 35-foot tower that is wheelchair accessible. From the top of the tower, you get a sweeping view of the Gulf, including distant Anclote Key and Honeymoon Island. Stop in for your own personal panorama!
Construction is ongoing to expand the park with additional trails and restrooms, picnic areas, and a seawall. Portions of the park may be inaccessible while construction continues through the end of 2020.
Trail Map
Explore More!
Slideshow
See our photos of Wall Springs Park
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Pinellas Trail
A paved ribbon stretching the length of Pinellas County from St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs, the Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail provides cyclists with nearly 38 miles of low-stress cruising
Anclote Key Preserve State Park
A place to play Robinson Crusoe for a day or overnight, Anclote Key Preserve State Park is an offshore gem in the Gulf of Mexico made up of four islands within sight of Tarpon Springs
Brooker Creek Preserve
The largest nature preserve in Pinellas County, Brooker Creek Preserve protects a mosaic of vanishing habitats while interpreting their value along more than 4 miles of trails.
A.L. Anderson Park
Along busy US 19 in Tarpon Springs, hugs the western shore of Lake Tarpon, offering plenty of picnic pavilions along a boardwalk following the cypress-lined shore.