Visitors to this 11,500-acre nature preserve will witness a conservation success story as they hike past restored wetlands, longleaf pine forest, and the plants and animals that thrive here. This Preserve was established in the early 1990s as a partnership between The Nature Conservancy, the Walt Disney Company, and other partners to restore and protect forever the 11,500 acres that today is owned and managed by The Nature Conservancy as the Disney Wilderness Preserve.
Home to more than 1,000 species of plants and animals, the Preserve is an essential part of the Everglades ecosystem and contains 3,500 acres of restored wetlands. While driving down the mile and a half driveway visitors may pause to learn about how ranching is deeply tied to the Preserve’s history, and they might even spot some cows in the pastures being used by ranchers today.
While exploring the Preserve, guests might notice patches of scorched plants. This is evidence of a recent prescribed burn which is a technique used by highly skilled and experience professionals to burn portions of the preserve to protect the natural lifecycles of native plants and animals that live in this fire dependent ecosystem.
The longleaf pine trees on the Preserve are home to a population of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers (RCWs).These birds grow to be about seven inches in length and are named for the small red streak on each side of the heads of the male birds. RCWs are unique in that they only nest in cavities in live pine trees, as opposed to dead trees which most woodpeckers prefer. Visitors might spot a breeding pair of RCWs in a tree nest cavity or one of the 27 other species, like lizards and frogs, that benefit from the shelter of nest cavities the birds are no longer using.
Note: Water levels fluctuate based on rainfall and groundwater levels; trails may be wet at times.
Preserve Hours:
Sunday-Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday-Friday: 9:00-4:30
Saturday: 8:30-4:30
The Conservancy requests that you please register at the Information Center prior to hiking the trails.
Cache placed with permission from Hannah O’Malley, Outreach and Volunteer Specialist, The Nature Conservancy.
This is a Letterbox Hybrid cache. For anyone not familiar with Letterboxing, there is a log in the cache for you to sign and stamp (with your stamp), then you stamp your own log or paper (with stamp that is in the cache). If you do not have your own stamp, then stickers or hand drawn artwork are acceptable or if you do not have your own stamp, you can just sign the log. DO NOT TAKE THE STAMP WITH YOU; IT IS NOT A TRADE ITEM!!!
This geocache is a part of the Trek Ten Trails 2020-2021 program. Participation in that program, while a lot of fun, is not required to log this cache.
New validation game cards that participants stamp are available at various locations and are listed on the Friends of the Parks website and OUTPOST 27 CACHE. Trek Ten Trails 2020-2021 program maps, game cards, and other information about each of the featured nature trails may be downloaded from the Friends of the Parks website. Check out our Profile for more details.
