Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park

Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park Review

The ½-mi boardwalk through this linear swamp forest gives you an opportunity to see rare plants, bald cypress, nesting eagles, and North America's largest stand of native royal palms and largest concentration and variety of epiphytic orchids, including more than 30 varieties of threatened and endangered species blooming most extravagantly in hotter months. It's particularly famous for its ghost orchids (as featured in the novel The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean), visible only on guided hikes. In your quest for ghost orchids, also keep a hopeful eye out for white-tailed deer, black bears, bobcats, and the Florida panther. For park nature on parade, take the 12-mi-long (one-way) W. J. Janes Memorial Scenic Drive, and, if you have the time, hike the spur trails leading off it. Rangers lead swamp walks and canoe trips November through April.