White-Yellow-Red Loop (Savannas Preserve State Park)
Hike Type: Lollipop Loop
Distance: 3.88 miles
Elevation: 0 feet
Time: 1 hour, 25 minutes
Hiking Challenges: N/A
The Hike
I’m down in sunny Florida visiting my Dad’s new snowboarding home - he and the stepmom were working this morning so I drove over to their nearby state park to do some exploring! Right after the entrance to Savannas Preserve State Park there are two iron rangers - one for the visitor center and one for the canoe launch area - I paid my $3 and drove along the sandy road to the canoe launch, where it felt like I made my own parking spot in the grass (but I guess that was okay?) and started walking around the canoe launch area. There was a nice boardwalk covered in little lizards and a great view to the wetlands with the morning sun in the background. From there I swapped my flip flops for my sneakers (which my Dad had accidentally stolen for his bike ride - I chased him down in his car to trade) and started my hike!
There is a kiosk with trail maps just before the canoe launch, and beyond that is the white trail. All of the trails here follow wide roads with some very unique (at least unique compared to places I’ve previously hiked) scenery. I truly felt like I was in the lion king! This first stretch of the white trail was in great condition with easy footing. After a short bit the white trail veers left and the yellow trail begins on the right - I decided to take the yellow trail since the sun was still lower on the horizon and I saw there were two bridges - hoping I would avoid too much exposure when the sun was at its peak.
The yellow trail feels more secluded than the white trail - the trail itself was grassier with an occasional sandy patch. I was in awe of the tall trees paired with the scrubby plants covering the ground (if I have time to go back this week I’ll break out the iNaturalist app to learn what on earth I’m looking at). There were plenty of ground-level spider webs, only visible by the morning dew, which was really neat. The two bridges were a fun change of pace and had great views of the wetlands (no gators though…). I also couldn’t get over how many birds there were! From small songbirds to big long noodle birds. I noticed the sun was starting to beat down on me, and I maaaaybeeeee forgot to bring sunscreen… whoops. The weather was absolutely gorgeous when the sun was behind the clouds and when there was a breeze, but when the air was still and the sun was out I was cooking (78 degrees is a BIG jump from what I’m used to!). I was even lucky enough to come across a bunny crossing the trail.
The yellow trail terminates back at the white trail, and a bit further down the white trail is an intersection with the red trail. So far, I’ve noticed that the white trail had more of those tall beautiful trees and the yellow trail focused more on the wetlands. Thankfully the trails were 99% dry (so far…). The red trail started off as just a continuation of the same terrain, but then as it approached private property it was deeply rutted with large sand mounds that provided some annoying footing for 200-ish feet. The trail was right up against someone’s back yard who was having a lovely morning by their pool. The rutting never let up, but the trail widened once veering away from the private property, which allowed for much more stable footing.
The red trail continued on with distant cheering of the Port St. Lucie High School gym classes, and I would hear the occasional rustle from the scrub, assumingly a lizard jumping out of the way. There was one small formerly burned area where only the skinny stumps remained. The red trail terminates back at the white trail, and the white trail was more of the same as before. There were two flooded sections of trail that thankfully there were herd paths around, and one long, black, noodle bird (my own scientific name for it) just chilling. I picked up the pace at this point as I felt the sun getting hotter and hotter, and once I made it back to the yellow trail, the end was in sight! I passed my first and only other person, a runner, right near the trailhead, and then I was back at the car! A really great way to start my day… now to the beach!
Step-by-Step
Park at the canoe launch area.
Start hike past kiosk on white trail.
At junction, turn right onto yellow trail.
At terminus, turn right onto white trail.
At junction, turn left onto red trail.
At terminus, turn right onto white trail.
Follow white trail back to the car.
“Savannas Preserve State Park” from Wikipedia
Savannas Preserve State Park is predominantly a savanna; open grasslands with sparse South Florida slash pine trees. The park is made up of pine flatwoods, basin marsh, scrubby flatwoods, wet prairie and the Atlantic scrub ridge. Protecting southeast Florida's largest freshwater marsh, the Savannas Preserve State Park manages over 7,000 acres. It is home to many species, most notably: the threatened Florida scrub jay and gopher tortoise, the American alligator, and the sandhill crane. The park is also the home to a rare plant that only grows in the Savannas Preserve State Park in the world, the savannas mint.
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