guana tolomato matanzas national estuarine research reserve

A brief 20 minute ride north of St. Augustine on A1A takes you to a nature treasure. The GTM Reserve offers opportunities for fishing, surfing, hiking, biking, horseback riding, kayaking, canoeing, bird watching and a fabulous education center. The education center ($2 charge) should be your first stop. If you're lucky you'll be just in time to see the once-a-week feeding of the Horse Conch (Florida's state shell) who is given a meal of a smaller conch (see photo). There are many more excellent exhibits, a telescope focused on eagle's nest, an outdoor pier where many sea birds congregate and a nice little film about the national estuarine research program. The staff is very helpful and gave us trail maps and other brochures. To get to the trailhead parking you must drive over the Guana River dam ($3). From there 10 miles of trails run the length of the peninsula with many interpretive kiosks along the way. We walked through hammocks, scrub and flatwoods and encountered an armadillo and a possum. This is a great place to get away from the commercial attractions and spend some quiet time with nature.

Wonderful spot for a hike or just a walk. Well marked trails are easy to navigate. I like to take binoculars to look for wildlife and birds in this lovely, natural setting. Always enjoy a visit to the Education Center

This Center is very active in research about Estuarine fauna, flora, climate change, etc...There is a small museum, good for kids, with some interactive activities. Small nominal fee, I don't remember exactly but it may be $2 pp. Count 45' for a visit.Beyond the museum is the huge reserve on the Intracoastal waterway. To access the parking lot, you'll have to pay a fee ( around $3 for a car).The most common trails are Southbound, one side in the hammock, the other on the river. For an experienced hiker, it takes about 2 hrs for a roundtrip to/from the South point.Sometimes, some wilderness can be seen. Beware,rattle Snakes are common on the trail, specially in fall season. They won't bother you unless you walk on them or corner them. Just look where you walk and you are fine, and be careful with kids who tend to roam around.Otherwise, I saw wild boars, deer, birds...During summer time, don't forget your Deet spray. Millions of horse flies and mosquitos are around!

I was looking for a place to run other than the beach or busy A1A. This is a natural habitat with well marked trails and plenty of options. Take your time, walk the dog or go for a run. Most trails have a natural canopy and are hard packed sand or pine needles. Easy to navigate. There is a $3 per car admission but when I arrived there was no attendant.

A wild armadillo smelled my sandal today...we were on a long walk (at least 2.5 miles on winding rough trails through The Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve in Vilano Beach) I spotted the armadillo rooting in the leaf duff and slowly went closer. He actually come to me and smelled my sandal... then put his nose in the air and walked back to his job finding food.What a wonderful place!

This nature reserve is about 5-6 miles north of St A on A1A Hwy. Admission is $3. Good parking. Fishing good. About 4 one to two mile loops of nature walks with the central yellow path taking you to the inner waterway. Good interpretive stops along the way. Bring tick repellent if you stray off the main path!

A great stop we came upon while out driving! It was $3.00 to get in and park. There were several trails to choose from. We sent on the 1 mile (yellow trail), which took us through the habitat on a very nice, wide trail, down to the river. Plenty of room for both walkers, joggers and bikers! It was a nice walk with beautiful scenery.

We came across this park when we drove from Jax to St Augustine (via A1A). Only a few dollars for entrance. They have a nice little center where you can read some information about the park or look for some birds. You can park your car near the entrance of the walking area. Different paths to take. Unfortunately some part of the paths were flooded so we only could see a little loop. All the paths are connected, so you can walk a small loop or make it bigger as you go. It is worth a visit. The landscape differs every so many meters. Lots of birds. Just great! And when you are lucky you can even spot some whales!

The park is actually much larger and diverse than most people imagine. There is a great secluded beach section with 3 separate parking areas, an information center, and trails through the park to Guana Lake and the Intracoastal Waterway. Wonderful bike trails, good fishing, small boat launches at Six Mile Landing and at the Dam provide much to do. It is a place where you make your own experience, however, since it is a nature preserve and with the exception of the information center near the dam [which is really great for kids] there isn't much organized activity.Hint - Because of the secluded nature of the beach parking areas, there is sometimes a break-in problem with cars. Don't leave cars unlocked and don't leave valuables showing. Because the dune is about 30 feet high, you will not be able to see your car from the beach.

We so enjoyed the tour by Bill and Doug. The two hours they spent with us sharing the history of the area, rice plantations where the Guana Lake sits, biological/nature findings we really well worth it.

$3 parking fee a bargain. Drive in from A1A, water on both sides, egrets and pelicans flying around, people fishing. Drive on, park at the foot of the preserve, put on bug spray, and walk a mile to the Tolomato River. When Laura and I were there a year ago we saw an armadillo; not this time. Lots of birds. A pleasant, peaceful walk. Nature lover's delight. Highly recommended.

A great place to experience the real Florida. Lots of nature, woods, river, ocean. There are hiking /bike trails, fishing, wildlife viewing, and of course the beach. A great place to visit if you want to get out and enjoy mother nature.

From the Trailhead Pavilion we took the purple trail to the red trail for a loop to the south end of the island. Then we took a short walk up the yellow trail. Beautiful sights and sounds. We would like to have had time to hike and bird watch on some of the trails heading north from the Trailhead.

Drove down from Ponte Vedra. Beautiful, wide sandy beaches. The only downside was the daily parking fee. Our schedule only allowed us to spend an hour or two each day, but having to pay each day added up, so we only went once in 4 days. It would have been nice to have a multi-day option.

Beautiful views of atlantic ocean .. Good for beach evening walks. Got lucky and saw a baby turtle joining his family .. Checkout the video :-http://youtu.be/Uqp9-fLM-Ms