Gilchrist Park has a way of feeling alive even on a cool winter morning. I arrived around 9am on a…read moreSunday expecting a quiet start, but the place was already humming with tennis players, dog walkers, and people easing into the day along the Harborwalk. The breeze off the water made everything feel crisp and unhurried. The public restrooms were open, clean, and very welcome after my morning coffee, which is not something you can take for granted in a waterfront park. Parking is probably tight when there is an event, but on this visit it was easy enough to slip into a spot and enjoy the shoreline without any stress. The view of the bridges was especially lovely, stretching across the wide river with a kind of quiet confidence. From here you really appreciate how much engineering went into building and maintaining them, and how gracefully they connect the two sides of the harbor. The seagulls added their own bit of drama. They were unusually active, circling and calling, and once they noticed I was eating a sandwich they fell into formation behind me like a feathery escort. It was a little unnerving to feel so closely monitored, as if I had wandered into a Hitchcock audition. [Review 1589 of 2025 - 2170 in Florida - 25139 overall]

This 11 acre park is named for Governor Albert Gilchrist, a real estate broker, surveyor, and…read morepolitical leader and one of the founding fathers of the City. Gilchrist grew up in Georgia and came to Punta Gorda as surveyor. Governor Gilchrist first served on the City Council, then in the State Legislature before becoming the 20th Governor of Florida from 1909 to 1913. Upon his death, Governor Gilchrist established a $5,000 endowment to the City for the provision of ice cream to all the children of Punta Gorda on Halloween. This tradition still continues today with the help of community sponsors. The park is located at 400 W. Retta Esplanade in historic Punta Gorda, Gilchrist Park runs along the waterfront between the downtown and Fishermen's Village. In the the park you get a view of Charlotte Harbor. Park amenities include a large pirate themed playground, basketball, tennis and pickleball courts, fishing pier (closed), gazebo, picnic pavilions, and open green space. In the center of the park along the water there is a large statue of Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon memorializing when he came ashore as the first European in this area in the 16th century. The statue was donated by the Royal Order of Ponce de Leon Conquistadors,an organization "dedicated to the preservation of the Spanish heritage of Charlotte County and Florida." The statue was dedicated on March 27, 2005. Weddings, craft shows and concerts are some of the events held in the park. Also located within the park is the Bayfront Center operated by the YMCA of Charlotte County. This facility hosts YMCA programs including a sailing center. The YMCA rents this waterfront facility.

This huge park is comanaged by the county and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation…read moreCommission. It's a big site that, according to the website, "consists of a variety of habitats including palmetto-oak scrub, pine flatwoods, and seasonal wetlands. Views of scenic Hickey Creek can be enjoyed from the trail and overlook areas. The ecosystem presently supports the threatened Florida Scrub-Jay and gopher tortoises." Good hiking trails and there is a kayak launching point though it's a good walk from the parking area. This is Florida. Keep an eye out for wildlife and definitely don't feed them. Never hike alone and always bring a friend. Stay on the trails and don't litter! [Review 19281 overall - 1630 in Florida - 251 of 2023.]

This park was so strange. From the first time me and my husband took a hike here it was cool, we…read morefound lots of different kinds of mushrooms that grows along the trails. And a lot of native plants.. The next couple times we went after that just got strange. On one visit we noticed multiple circles on the ground in the grass area that's right next to the parking lot. Looked just like crop circles.. multiple circles different sizes, perfectly round and looked like something heavy left a what looked burned but just darker color brown pressed dead grass in a circle ( kind of like when u move a pool off your grass after it sat in the sun for a couple of weeks) next thing we found was little figurines by the base of a couple of trees, looked religious of some sort. Another time my husband went alone and literally ran out bc he felt like he was being stalked. Our final time here there was a lady that stopped our car on our way out of the park who expressed sincere worry and fear, handed us a flyer (I lost moving -_- ugh) talking about MK Ultra and that she has been apart of some sort of mind controlling experiment and they were out to get her. She was very adamant that we should be careful around there.. we never went back. It was so strange. The vibes there got weird and there was never a lot of people there any of the times I went.. Its hard to explain exactly but it's a creepy vibe.

Four Mile Cove Ecological Preserve is located on the right as soon as you cross the Midpoint…read moreMemorial Bridge that connects Fort Myers to Cape Coral. The 365 acre preserve is the second largest open green space in Cape Coral. It was created by the State of Florida when the city of Cape Coral was being developed. The preserve has a 1.2 mile boardwalk that starts off as coastal prairie, a rare habitat in this area that that is a great area for birding. You might encounter eagles, ibis, herons, wading and migratory birds, raccoons and snakes. The closest I came to wildlife was spotting some raccoon footprints on the boardwalk. As I walked along the boardwalk the brackish water of the red and black mangroves let out to the overlook over the Caloosahatchee River. In the distance you can see Thomas Edison's estate, one of the first settlements in the area. Heading back, the boardwalk ends letting you out on a shell path lined by sand live oak, gumbo limbo, and ficus trees before you return to the parking lot. Four Mile Cove also has a small visitors center with map and restrooms. On the south side of the parking lot is a Veterans memorial area with monuments dedicated to the branches of the armed forces. On weekends from November through May there is a kayak rental kiosk. There is also two fishing piers for anglers to try their luck in the Caloosahatchee River. I enjoyed my peaceful walk on the boardwalk. As I walked I pondered how glad I was that the state has the foresight to protect this ecologically significant area. At Four Mile Cove you can enjoy the real Florida like it was when Edison first arrived.

Nice picnic facilities near the kayak rental. Cool fishing pier looks out on the river. Nicely…read moreshaded 1 mile boardwalk loop. Enjoy!

Do NOT come to the playground here with children…read more Aside from the non fenced shoreline with alligator warning signs on them (doubt that is a huge issue, but dont risk it) the building right next to it is filled with homeless guys generally up to no good. It is NOT SAFE. I went with my child on a walk from sun seeker and tried to pay them no mind, but one man on a bike rolled up and started snapping photos of my daughter. When we grabbed her to hide her from the camera he got verbally aggressive demanding we pose for him and "smile pretty"and kept pressing us as we covered her and kept saying no. It was creepy and so upsetting. And yes, it was 100% a guy being creepy about a child, not a misunderstanding. Im from LA and my skin is not thin, im used to homeless literally everywhere and kicking myself for letting my guard down because this the town I grew up in and it is generally safe, this area in particular has always been sketchy though so maybe its my bad for thinking things had changed from 35 years ago. We called the police afterwards and he was thankfully (apparently!) thrown in jail because he had a list of other things combined with our issue, but those are the sorts of guys hanging out there. He was buddies with all the men at that building and they outnumber you.

Cute little park right on the water in Port Charlotte. Looks like the park folks have invested in…read morethe pier and nice walkway. They also have a sort of canoe launch. I most enjoyed the views from shore of the water fowl and the long walk out on pier.

It is a great park to take your dog for a walk. Very pretty! I give it a 4.5…read moreI only gave it a 2 because my dog and my friend's dog , got many ticks! Be careful! Not the parks fault , just be careful with your dog.

If your looking for beautiful blue water, breathtaking sunsets and the possibly of seeing dolphins…read moreand/ or manatee, this is it! Interested in the Lemon Bay ecosystem? The best was to learn about the mangrove and its creatures is through a local on the water tour, like a cruise. I highly recommend "Native Charter Company" -- family owned, native to the area, passionate about the Lemon Bay ecosystem, $25.00pp for one hour. They are licensed and take your safety seriously. Search them on Yelp, read my review plus pictures. TIP: wear sunscreen and shoes!!

This is one of my favorite beaches while visiting the area!…read more It's so gorgeous and beautiful and you can spend hours shelling and looking for beautiful shells. The sunsets are incredible, cotton candy skies all over. Sometimes you can even see dolphins from here! It's so incredible we have seen manatees and little fishes too. I'm not really sure if this beach is dog friendly or advertised as dog friendly but there's plenty of people with their dogs, walking with their dogs and having a good time with their dogs on vacation or the locals that live here. I absolutely love that about it. It has a very local feel, family friendly, and lots of tourists during snow bird season. It's a perfect beach to relax and it's just a walk away from the local shops and delicious ice cream and the cute little town.

THEY (Boca Grande residents) have voted unanimasly to keep visitors off the island by taking away…read morealmost all parking on the island. Just don't go there! You are not welcome. There are many beautiful beaches near by that are far more friendly and welcoming.

A great place to relax! A nice beach with water access (idk about swimming though I think the water…read moreis freshwater and connects to the harbor with alligators). The playground has fun equipment, there is a sand volleyball court, pickleball court and basket court right in the same area. Comparable to Ponce De Leon but we actually enjoyed this place a little more :)

Nice small beach with basketball court nearby. Visited three times in December 2023. Loved each…read morevisit.

Wow! We left there buzzing from excitement with all the bear reptiles we saw! My daughter is…read moreobsessed with reptiles and we hit the jack pot. We were even able to pay a small fee and have a private session with one of the handlers who even let us pet some of the reptiles! He knew everything there was to know about these animals too. Very impressive! Highly recommend going if you're in the area. The enclosures were very well maintained, beautifully put together, and the animals all had little name/information papers that were attached to their homes. My younger daughter was even able to feed the koi fish and loved doing that. Thank you guys for all you do and sharing your love of reptiles with others!

A reptile-lovers dream! Stopped in on April 14th and was blown away by how nice everything and…read moreeveryone was. Joe was our tour guide and he made the experience so much better than we ever thought it could be. We got to interact with quite a few animals and learned so much from him too. After Joe took us around we walked around ourselves and there was still so many different animals to see. Would recommend getting a tour guide so you can interact with more animals, but it's definitely not necessary. There's quite a variety of well-kept reptiles (we were blown away with how well-taken care of each and every enclosure and animal was), so you'll want to make sure you have at least 2-3 hours to walk around and see everything and still have time to browse the gift shop after.