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Sinkholes, wetlands, wild-horse prairie and bat colonies within a short drive of Gainesville. Entrance fees, hours and the seasonal windows that matter, verified.
A 120-foot-deep sinkhole with a boardwalk staircase to the bottom, where small waterfalls trickle down the walls and the air turns cool and green as you descend. One of Gainesville's oldest natural landmarks.
A 416-acre city nature park with more than six miles of trails through sandhill, flatwoods and cypress domes, and one of the last stands of fire-dependent longleaf pine woodland left in the area. A ten-acre Living History Farm on the grounds interprets daily life on an 1870 Florida farm. Free to visit, and dogs are not allowed anywhere in the park.
A 21,000-acre savanna where wild bison, cracker horses and hundreds of bird species range across open prairie. Climb the observation tower near the visitor center or walk the La Chua Trail boardwalk out over alligator marsh.
More than 7,000 acres of old hardwood hammock, sandhills and karst sinkholes spread between Gainesville and Alachua. Hikers park on Millhopper Road; off-road cyclists and horse riders use a separate trailhead off San Felasco Parkway. The preserve is a designated Important Bird Area, and spring and fall are the seasons to walk it.
125 acres of constructed wetlands and ponds threaded with gravel trails and boardwalks, and one of the best places in North Florida to see alligators, wading birds and the occasional bison wandering in from Paynes Prairie next door.
The world's largest occupied bat houses. Around sunset, hundreds of thousands of bats stream out over Lake Alice in a single ribbon, one of Gainesville's most distinctive free spectacles. Bring a folding chair and get there before dark.