Big Cypress National Preserve

What a beautiful National Preserve we have here in Florida!

We are so lucky to have so much wildlife and nature. I hope we can continue to preserve Florida nature for future generations.

Visiting the Oasis Visitor Center is a MUST. Especially if you have small kids.

Huge gators love lounging in the canal and it's super safe for you to view them from the board walk.

Three of us visited here after a 4 day - 3 night hike on the Florida Trail through Big Cypress Swamp.

If you like to hike, give the Florida Trail Association a follow on social media. Check their website for a Florida Trail chapter near you, and you can also connect with your chapter on Meetup.

Lots of other loop trails in Big Cypress Preserve for those that want to do short day hikes.

Ask the rangers for recommendations for your party at the Oasis Visitor Center.

When I brought my husband to Florida for the first time he had never been to the Everglades and mentioned he'd never see an Alligator in person. So naturally I had to ensure that he could check that off his list. We were driving up to Sanibel from the Keys and I took the scenic route and stopped here to show him the Alligators. Needless to say it was a good experience for him because there were plenty of HUGE gators out basking in the sun.

They have bathrooms and a really nice little boardwalk you can get pretty close to the Alligators. It's a great stop to get out of the car and to see some wildlife.

I've been told by several girls (and boys) that I have a particularly Big Cypress. Hi.

This is a beautiful and massive reserve which is connected to (and part of) the Everglades close to Tamiami on the edge of the spectacular City of Miami.

Full of wildlife and gorgeous and somewhat unspoiled and one of the most amazing things about Florida.

Driving across here is amazing - although you have to wonder if putting a road across it was the best idea. Still - Very well-maintained and long may it survive.

Big Cypress was supposed to be part of Everglades National Park when it was created in 1947 but the land was still privately owned so it was released from the park. In the 1960's the land that is now Big Cypress Preserve was slated to become a large jet port. Community activists made up of environmentalists, sportsmen, conservationists, and members of the Native tribes, Seminole and Miccosoukee joined together to halt the impending development. On October 11, 1974 Big Cypress Preserve along with Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas became the first national preserves when the United States National Park System was created. Thanks to a dedicated group of people 700,000 acres were preserved leaving them to protect the estuaries of Florida's southwest coast.

There is so much to do here. A good place to start is by stopping at the two visitors centers. Both are staffed with park ranges who can provide maps and give pointers on where to visit. The Oasis Visitors Center is closer to Miami and the Big Cypress National Preserve Visitors Center is closer to Naples. You can take a naturalist or ranger led hike, swamp buggy adventure tour, eco kayak tour, or sightseeing tour. You can hike, camp, kayak, fish, or hunt. You can take visit the smallest post office in the United States, visit the Skunk Ape Research Headquarters, or marvel at the beauty of Clyde Butchers photography at his gallery. No matter what you do you will see many alligators. After being hunted almost into extinction they have now bounced back and there is one for every 10 Floridians. You can see them sunning themselves and swimming. This also a great place to see Florida wading birds. You are less likely to see the panthers and bears but they make their home here too.

One part of the preserve I didn't get to explore but want to is Loop Road. it is a 27 mile dirt road from a 1920's logging camp. It takes over an hour of driving slowly to explore it. I hesitated because I was by myself and I have no cell service out there. I want to come back when I have someone with me.

If you want to see the real Florida, this is it. I ran into visitors from all over the world visiting the preserve and I had a great time photographing wildlife and exploring the area. Big Cypress Preserve and it's neighbor Everglades National Park are vital in protecting the health of Florida's ecology. We are lucky that this area was saved and that we have such a wonderful place to visit.

This is the best place ever for looking and pics. There is a lot of wildlife, scenic views, and great places. When I go from Miami to Naples it's really fun to see all the views. Although it is a 2 hour drive with almost no internet, it's fun.
10/10

If you are in the area, definitely stop by. I really did not know what to expect, but glad I did. The other visitors and staff were abiding by masks and distance, the place was extremely clean and informative. I got to see a few alligators and the birds in the area are just stunning.

Love this preserve. so many camp sites and great facilities. The stars at night made the evening magical. Will go back in the winter.

This place is beautiful! The drive through the park is really fun but the best part is walking along the trails. Watch out for gaters! The bugs can be a pain but it's Florida, what do you expect. Great bird watching too.

Big Cypress is just that, "big," but unfortunately not necessarily with reference to the size of the many cypress trees (the really big virgin cypress growth was cut down years ago) but more in the sense of the vast area it covers, being approximately 720,000 acres. Because it is made up from land purchased subsequent to 1947 and the establishment of the National Everglades Park, Big Cypress was not included within the National Park System; hence separately established as a "preserve." As a preserve it has done a marvelous job of doing exactly as intended, preserving the natural beauty and habitat of the area it encompasses along with providing various camping, hunting, hiking, fishing, boating and other recreational uses which, though some sound incongruous, work out harmoniously well.

I certainly haven't covered all of the areas of Big Cypress as that would take a lifetime, but during the past decade subsequent to my full time arrival to the areas of South Florida, I've covered a lot of it.

One of my long time favorites of the Big Cypress has been the Loop Road which is some 22 miles of rather rugged (previously 4 wheel) dirt road somewhat paralleling the Tamiami Trail from Monroe Station in Collier County to the Miccosukee Indian Reservation in Miami-Dade County. Built in the 1920's the builders of this remote road fortunately did not bring developers with them, leaving the area nearly as pristine as they found it.

Now, a word of caution is order. This NOT the place to venture into with a weak car battery, get stuck or fail to look around for snakes or other critters before exciting your vehicle. Loaded with in the wild alligators, various poisonous snakes, other questionable reptiles and an occasional panther, bear or bobcat, you are in an area where you may well no longer be considered "top dog" on the food chain; so to speak. Indeed, you could well end up being the subject of a reptile attack if not actually a part of their hunted prey.

This is exactly what you'd imagine a National Park in this area to be! The welcome center is nice and the staff were all pleasant to us. They answered our questions knowledgeably. The property of the park itself is quite warm and buggy (to be expected in Florida!) Be sure to bring sunscreen and bug spray with you! The boardwalk walkways were very interesting, and we saw many many alligators in just a few short minutes! Overall, it was a great park!