Explore Outdoors: St. Pete Clearwater Area Preserves

Growing up in the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area, Darry Jackson was never at a loss for something to do. He likes to swim, hike, paddle or just watch the sun rise over the mangroves.

"We were always outside," explains Jackson, whose family owns one of the largest and oldest outdoor outfitters in Florida. "When you have water on three sides, the possibilities are endless."

His store, Bill Jackson's Shop for Adventure, runs dozens of kayak and canoe trips throughout the state each year. But despite his travels, Jackson favorite place to paddle is still through the maze of mangrove islands in his own backyard.

Weedon Island Preserve

"We are lucky to have this place," says Jackson, who knows the preserve well enough to run regular "full moon" trips through its sheltered waters. "Where else can you get out into the wild so close to a major city like St. Petersburg?"

People have been enjoying Weedon Island's bounty for close to 2,000 years. Nomadic peoples found this estuary rich in game and shellfish and developed an advanced culture that produced sophisticated pottery, which can still be appreciated today at the preserve's nature center.

It is the preserve's waterways, the same bays and lagoons the Native Americans found so appealing, that still draw thousands of visitors each year. Paddlers can meander down the southern trail, which begins at the fishing pier (a great place to hook snook, redfish or trout) and winds its way through the mangrove islands for four miles, at one point skirting the open waters of Tampa Bay. But paddlers need not worry about boat traffic – the preserve is a no-combustion motor zone, which means the only way in or out is through arm power.

Which is just fine with Russell Farrow, a paddling guide from nearby Sweetwater Kayaks, because the quieter you travel, the more birds you'll see.

"We get people from all over the world who come out here and just get blown away by the wildlife," says Farrow, who visits the preserve at least one a week. "Weedon Island is a birder's paradise."

Count on seeing great blue heron, snowy egret, roseate spoonbill and the occasional osprey hunting the grass flats. If you plan to visit, make Weedon Island your first stop of the morning, that way you will leave enough time for the other natural wonders the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area has to offer.

Boyd Hill Nature Preserve

After a morning paddle, you'll be looking to cool off on the trails of Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, located on the shores of St. Petersburg's Lake Maggiore. A favorite getaway for trail runners and day hikers, Boyd Hill is a wilderness oasis in one of Florida's most densely populated counties.

This 245-acre preserve has three miles of nature trails and boardwalks that will give you a glimpse of how the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area, and most of Florida, must have looked when the Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto first gazed upon its shores.

Start your hike in a hardwood hammock, then continue on through the sand pine scrub and pine flatwoods. The trail also skirts the willow marsh and lakeshore, where you'll see a large variety of water birds, before returning to the starting point.

The preserve, part of the Great Florida Birding Trail, is a great place to come, sit and listen. In the middle of the afternoon, it is not uncommon to hear hawks cry and owls hoot as they move through the treetops.

Perhaps they are drawn to the Birds of Prey Aviary, which cares for animals that can no longer survive in the wild. A visit to the aviary alone is worth the price of admission ($3 for adults, $1.50 for kids 3-16, free for under 3).

But Boyd Hill provides a home to more than just birds. Because there are five unique ecosystems packed so tightly together, Boyd Hill is an outstanding example of biodiversity.

Some folks come to see the viceroy butterflies, whose orange wings seem to light up in the sun as they dance across the willow marsh. Nearby Lake Maggiore, which keeps the ground rich and moist, feeds thick forests of ferns that in turn provide a home to a variety of lizards and snakes.

The flatwoods and scrub have a beauty all their own, harkening back to an age when the Florida Peninsula, and the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area, was twice its present size. You'll find more reptiles here – box turtles and gopher tortoise – as well as more butterflies (90 species to be exact).

It is easy to lose track of time sitting on a bench in the shade, but there is still more to do before the sun sets.

The Pinellas Trail

After an eye-opening paddle at Weedon Island and a relaxing mid-morning stroll along the shaded trails of Boyd Hill Nature Park, you will probably be ready for some good, old-fashioned, heart-pumping exercise.

St. Petersburg/Clearwater area runners, bikers and in-line skaters don't know how good they have it. Where else can you jog, ride and glide for 37 miles (74 if you feel like turning around and heading back to where you started) without worrying about traffic? The answer is the Pinellas Trail.

What started as just a dream in 1983 became a reality in 1990 when the first five-mile-long segment of an old railroad line opened to pedestrian traffic. Today, more than 90,000 people each month use this paved pathway that runs from St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs.

"If you want a safe place to train, The Trail is it," advises Jackson, who likes to bike, run and rollerblade every chance he gets it when not on the water. "It is nice not to have to worry about traffic."

The hardest part is just making it up and over eight overpasses that span the busiest intersections, because most Floridians are not used to dealing with hills. Pinellas Trails Inc. publishes a handy, pocket-size, flip-top map that will tell you where to park, eat, drink, rest and even rent bikes or roller blades.

Brooker Creek Preserve

After working up a sweat on the trail, it is time to wind down and relax in one the largest continuous wilderness preserves in the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area.

Brooker Creek Preserve, so named for a small, meandering stream that bisects the property, spans some 8,700 acres of pine flatwoods and freshwater swamps.

"I can wander around all day out there and forget that I am in Pinellas County," says Dave Sumpter, a wildlife biologist and avid outdoorsman who has done extensive field work in Brooker Creek Preserve. "Birders love it there. It doesn't matter how many times you visit, you will always see something new."

Home to dozens of threatened and endangered species, Brooker Creek is also a favorite field trip for school-age students who take advantage of the preserve's state-of-the-art environmental center.

Roughly seven miles long (north-to-south) and one-half mile wide, Brooker Creek lies in the middle of one of Pinellas County's fastest-growing suburban areas. But county officials have taken great care to preserve the natural integrity of this wilderness, and as a result, it is not uncommon to see white-tailed deer, wild turkey, bobcat and even otters.

The preserve also has a 1.5-mile, self-guided hiking trail that begins at the end of Lora Lane, located a half-mile east of East Lake Road. A small footbridge spans the creek and will keep your feet from getting wet.

The trail off Lora Lane is open from sunrise to sunset, 365 days a year. Four other designated hiking trails start at the education center, ranging in length from .7 miles for beginners to four miles for seasoned hikers. They are open Thursday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to one hour before sunset.

There is no better place to wind down at the end of the day. As the sun goes down, you are bound to hear the barred owls calling:

Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you?

Just sit back and watch the sun set over the pine trees, thankful that you have nothing better to do.