St. Lucie County Closes Out Guided Hikes Program with Four June Events
ST LUCIE COUNTY – Get out and explore St. Lucie County’s nature preserves before the Environmental Resources Department’s free guided hikes program wraps up for the season. This free program provides guided hikes on the county’s more than 11,000 acres of nature preserves covering everything from stargazing to kayaking.
Based on current best practices and because we cannot guarantee safe social distancing at all times during our hikes or paddles, masks are recommended to participate in one of St. Lucie County Environmental Resources Department’s Guided Nature Programs.
Topics for the May include:
- Saturday, June 5 from 8 to 10 a.m.: National Trails Day™ Morning Hike at Spruce Bluff Preserve, 611 Dar Lane, Port St. Lucie. Celebrate National Trails Day by hiking the historically significant Spruce Bluff Preserve, located in the heart of southern Port St. Lucie.
- Saturday, June 5 from 7 to 9 p.m.: National Trails Day™ Florida Night Hiking 101 at Ancient Oaks/Weldon B. Lewis Park, 4650 Oleander Ave., Fort Pierce. Celebrate National Trails Day™ on an exceptionally beautiful St. Lucie County preserve at night. Under a waning moon, we’ll be looking and listening for the presence of wild creatures great and small while practicing safe night-hiking techniques.
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Saturday, June 12 from 8 to 10 a.m.: Morning on the Coastal Ridge Hike at Walton Scrub Preserve, 10809 South Indian River Drive, Fort Pierce. Enjoy a fun morning hike immersed in this site’s hidden beauty. Along the sandy scrub trail, participants will get a chance to look for wildlife tracks and other signs of life.
St. Lucie County Closes Out Guided Hikes Program with Four June Events
- Saturday, June 26 from 7:30 to 10 p.m.: Nightwatch Excursion at Ocean Bay Beachside Preserve, 6851 South Ocean Drive, Jensen Beach. The last program of the season is a night hike with a bright moon and constellations over the Atlantic Ocean. Florida’s beaches take on a different character at night. We’ll examine and identify constellations with the help of smartphone apps, while keeping an eye out for night-time beach roving wildlife. Binoculars and a birding scope double as a telescope to watch the moon, while a pair of night-vision goggles helps enable us to watch, at a distance, for the emergence of nesting sea turtles.
For more information and to find the link for registration, please visit www.slchikes.org, call 772-462-2526 or emailslchikes@stlucieco.org.
Programs are usually limited to eight people helping to allow participants to immerse themselves into the county’s beautiful natural areas. Based on current best practices, masks are recommended for those who have not been vaccinated.
Programs target ages 12 and older unless otherwise noted. All minors must be accompanied by an adult. Proper footwear and water are required for all programs and please leave pets at home.
Purchased through a voter-approved bond referendum, St. Lucie County manages more than two dozen preserves that are open to the public for passive recreation. For more information about St. Lucie County’s Environmentally Significant Lands visit: www.stluciepreserves.com.
