This post will show you short walking trails in the Everglades. Anhinga Trail which is one of the most popular Everglades trails and next to it is Gumbo Limbo Trail.
We will continue driving to the southern edge of the Everglades to a place called Flamingo that has crocodiles and manatees. On the way back I will show one more walk, the Mahogany Hammock Boardwalk.
Everglades trails: Anhinga trail
This trip needs a whole day and you should bring your camera, good shoes and mosquito spray. All these walks are short and suit people in all ages. We have been there with small children and they enjoyed the day out: the marshes and the waters, the birds and the shady hammock. And the name Gumbo Limbo Trail.
Everglades Trails on the Map
The map shows the drive from Miami to Flamingo and back and I marked where the trails are. One way it will be 100 miles and two to three hours driving time.
Anhinga Trail
Walking trails in the Everglades: Anhinga bird
Anhinga Trail is named after Anhinga bird that you can see many of here. The trail starts at the Royal Palm Visitor Centerwhich is a short drive from Everglades park entrance. The walking trail winds through sawgrass marshes and gives you an understanding of what the Everglades is like.
Here you can walk on an elevated boardwalk and observe the wildlife in the sawgrass marsh around you. It’s easy to see the birds and wildlife since they have built many observation platforms for that purpose. Also the alligators are right there, and so are the turtles and raccoons. And Anhinga birds, vultures and more birds.
Anhinga Trail is only a mile long but reserve time for stops if you like Everglades wildlife.
More about the Anhinga Trail walk and a trail map >>
Gumbo Limbo Trail
Everglades National Park: gumbo limbo tree bark
Gumbo Limbo Trail goes into a dense tropical hammock and the trail is only half a mile long. Here you can see gumbo limbo trees that are a specialty of the Everglades. Gumbo limbo trees have a red bark.
During the wet season you can see colorful tree snails in gumbo limbo trees. We have not seen any snails since we have only been to the Everglades in the dry season. But even when it was the dry season there were mosquitoes attacking us on this trails.
Flamingo
Gulf of Mexico seen from Flamingo, Everglades
It’s a long drive to Flamingo (40 miles one way) and we were wondering if it was worth it. We only planned to stay a couple of hours in Flamingo.
But what is special about Flamingo: you can see the Gulf of Mexico here and the area has many shallow inland lakes and marked water trails that you can explore by canoe. That’s something I’d love to try!
And Flamingo has crocodiles, not just alligators. We could see some crocodiles in shallow creeks and there should also be manatees which we didn’t see.
Going to Flamingo is really worth it if you rent a canoe and explore the waterways or if you walk on the marked trails. There are many of them. Otherwise there is not much to see and the place is very basic.
There is a campsite since many people want to stay a night here and there is a visitor center. And Everglades nature on the roadside, swamp, dark brown lakes and winding waterways.
A lake north of Flamingo, Everglades
On the way back from Flamingo we stopped a lot since those small lakes with dark brown water really look great.
Mahogany Hammock
Half way between Flamingo and the Everglades park entrance is one more short trail, the Mahogany Hammock Boardwalk. It’s a loop in tropical hardwood hammock and boardwalk all the way.
This was a nice little walk. And in Mahogany Hammock we saw what we so much have been warned about: we had a rattle snake hiding right below us and the boardwalk (the picture on the right).
Back to Miami
Everglades National Park has one more destination I would like o explore but we have never had time for it. It’s the Long Pine Key. There too should be many good trails and a campsite for overnight stay.
We had to start driving back to Miami but stopped one more time, at a roadside vegetable and fruit market. They made us super tasty smoothies that made the kids happy and helped them sit another two hours in the car.
Everglades National Park, Florida
More on Everglades National Park
I have also written another post on the Everglades, it’s about our Day Trip to Shark Valley >>.
Alligator in Shark Valley, the Everglades
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