Day Hiking Southwest Florida

Whether you’re looking for a shady jaunt in a tropical hardwood forest, an exhilarating trek across palmetto prairies, or a detour down forgotten roads into years past, Day Hiking Southwest Florida is your guide to the perfect outdoor adventure.

Johnny Molloy, outdoorsman extraordinaire, shares forty of his favorite “frontcountry” hikes through city, county, and state parks and their surrounding wildlands. Destinations include Caracara Prairie Preserve, home to several endangered species including the Florida black bear and crested caracara; Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, a subtropical island oasis for migratory birds; and Wild Turkey Strand Preserve, site of a World War II airfield training base. With a variety of trail lengths and difficulty levels, this guidebook offers many possibilities for all outdoor explorers, from the tourist to the longtime Florida hiker seeking new scenery.

Best of all, the concise format provides everything necessary to get started. For each hike Molloy provides a detailed map, driving directions with GPS coordinates, photographs, and notes about trail junctions, stream crossings, trailside features, and more. Day Hiking Southwest Florida opens up the natural world for you to explore in this vibrant slice of the Sunshine State.