Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve

One of the great swamps in the Ft. Meyers, Naples area. A solid boardwalk to traverse the slough in safety from all the wild beasts of the swamps. You know the usual snakes, alligators, and god only knows what other things are lurking just under the boardwalk to capture you and make you a subject of a horror film. :)
No words can really describe this place. I suggest you look at my pictures and see for yourself. And if I say there is a turtle in the picture trust me there is you just can’t see it. But I know it is there.

My boyfriend and I decided to take a random trip to this place on a Saturday (right before a rain storm) and we both could not stop saying how absolutely relaxing it was to just walk this trail. If you want peace and quiet, and a little bit of animal spotting… This place is PERFECT!

First of all, a disclaimer: I love this place so much that I am now a volunteer at 6 Mile Cypress Slough. This is a wonderful preserve close to Fort Myers, Estero and even Naples. There is no charge except for one dollar per hour parking. Even the guided tours by trained interpretive naturalists are free. The interpretive center is a treat for both young and old. There is a gift shop run by the Friends of 6 Mile Cypress Slough preserve.
The handicap accessible boardwalk traverses 1.2 miles of natural wonders. Be sure to bring your binoculars to observe the wildlife. Birders and photographers will find plenty to keep them busy. Put on your walking shoes and come out and join us.

Good to escape countless shopping plaza’s go early, I experience loud kids and ignorant adults. Hard to really experiencewildlife with these types around.

Was looking for a different experience while in Ft Myers and came across the Unilocal reviews of the Slough preserve. Went there with 8 people (2 kids). Had a great time. Very peaceful. Only costs a dollar an hr to park. No other costs. We took the mile and a bit walk through and ended up seeing a couple of alligators, one large and one baby. We also encountered 3 cottonmouth snakes! I highly recommend the stroll through. They also had a full moon guided walk through at night. Next time we’ll check that out!

This is a great excursion to kill an hour or two. We visited here because we had time before our flight home and it was well worth it. The whole trail is on a raised boardwalk. On one of the lakes, we watched a gator as he looked like he was trying to get some birds that were resting on a floating platform in the middle of the lake. Apparently, though, he seemed to just want to get up on it to sunbathe. As exciting as that was, I was also glad not to see any animals get murdered. :)

We used to live near here and have enjoying our many visits to the Slough. Going near sunset can be magical as you can see many herons and ibis returning to their nests at the lake. The boardwalk is great for kids and I used a stroller there with no problem.

This is a relaxing way to spend part of your day. There is so much to see, unfortunately you won’t always see everything in one visit.
This wast first time visiting after driving passed it on several occasions. I’m glad I decided to check it out! The Visitors Center was full of information and had two volunteers that were more than friendly and helpful. I went on a Saturday afternoon which was maybe a little busier than I would’ve preferred, but it wasn’t packed either. It was a great boardwalk trail around the preserve that you could leisurely walk or speed through. It depends on if you want to catch a glimpse of any of the various animals lurking around. They did have a volunteer out at one of the ponds, but he was the exception to the volunteers in the Visitors Center. Other than that, I would highly recommend a visit or two! Stay all day, you only pay for parking that is a steal! Only $ 1.00 per hour for a max of $ 5.00 for the day! Just pay the $ 5.00 for a small donation to keep this place inexpensive for a family outing!

Fantastic family activity! I had tempered expectations and was amazed at what a great place this was! Definitely worth the time invested. Incredibly peaceful area right in the middle of the city. You feel like you step into another world within minutes of arriving forgetting you are steps away from the «real world». Will absolutely be back. Great place to bring visitors!

My parents recently relocated to the Cape Coral area & we’ve been down a few times now to visit them. We recently decided to kill a few hours and enjoy the weather. We googled some walking parks and this one had rave reviews. We made the trip over there and found it.
I’m honestly surprised that there isn’t an admission to park. All you have to pay is for parking. You can pick how many hours you want to do, I’d pick 2 just so you don’t feel rushed along the walk. The walking trail is all elevated off the floor, mainly because it’s marshland & it sometimes has water down there. The trail starts off in the thick woods, then along a large pond where you can see alligators lying by the water. We saw two! After that, you’ll walk along the trail, almost zigzagging along through the forest of cypress trees.
Don’t rush. Take your time & look around at the ground. You’ll see so much wild life & different type plants you’ve never seen before. Even in the trees, large, flowing air plants & reptiles. This place is like the Disney World of nature walking trails.
Towards the middle/​end of the walking trail is a couple offshoots that lead you to a lookout for different animals. Staff are along the trail to answer any questions you may have & help you. I honestly didn’t expect a little nature trail to be this awesome. If you’re in the area, you really need to check it out.

One has to pay for parking here, but at one dollar per hour and with free admission to the park itself, who could complain? The machine that took the money for the parking lot was very touchy and spit out any bills that were fit into it. Once we persuaded it to accept our credit card, we had a little celebration. We headed right for the boardwalk, which is a fabulous hike through a primitive swamp/​woods. Hike is a little over a mile, but you need to plan on spending at least two hours completing it, as there is a lot to see. The harder you look, the more you will see. We witnessed an alligator climb up onto a raft to take a sun bath. This is a bird watchers paradise. You are wise if you bring your binoculars. We did not have binoculars with us, but still we saw all sorts of exotic birds. This included warblers, night Herons, Ibis, anhingas, egrets. We had hoped to see an otter or a pig, but missed out on those sightings. Nevertheless, this is a really nice way to spend some of your day on a shaded walk through the woods with surprises around every corner. Highly recommended.

This place is absolutely beautiful, and so serene. There are miles and miles of beautiful, ashy cypress trees, which reflect upon the green marshy waters. The best thing about this place was all the little plaques with famous quotes regarding nature. They make it fun to come upon the next one to read its message.
There were many different birds to see, plants, lovely, twisting boardwalks, and many alligators and turtles along the way. I did not get bitten by a single bug, which was nice. The place was not crowded, though I was disappointed to see the trail was only about 1.2 miles. Here I was hoping for a great 6-​mile walking workout, but it wasn’t. Still, I got some delightful pictures, and some great memories to boot.

A good place to take visitors to Florida. If you live in the state though, it’s pretty standard fare. Swamp, trees, snakes, a gator or two. Go when it’s stupidly hot for the True Florida Experience™. Bring your own water.

Love this place. It’s one of the very few areas with no mosquitos. (They are eaten before they grow).
There is an earthcache here if you’re in to geocaching. And if you aren’t you should check that out!
It’s so beautiful. It makes you forget you’re in Florida.

This park is one of the best parks in this area. While we were walking around Calusa nature preserve someone told us about Six Mile.
We’re definitely glad that we went. There were a variety of birds to see including diving water birds! It seemed like there was new wildlife at every bend in the boardwalk. We quickly came upon the ponds with alligators. Right now, when you first walk up to the alligator pond a momma alligator has made a nesting area to the left in the tall grass. She was in the shallow water getting some sun and her babies were crawling around over her back.
We saw different types of turtles, fish, and large wild pigs. Seeing the wild pigs was probably the most fun! We saw about 4 but only two at a close enough distance to get pictures! We paid for two hours worth of parking but did not use the whole two hours.
*If you pay for parking, your admission into the park is free.
Also go to the restroom before you start the trail because there are no stops along the way :)
Went the first week in November and did not need bug spray, long pants, or long sleeves. I also wore flip flops which did not bother me.
If you’re not used to walking, tennis shoes would be a good idea.
There is part of the large bird statue inside the park that is 3ft of the ground that you can walk across. You definitely need tennis shoes for that! It was fun to try and balance yourself and walk across. It makes you feel like a kid again!
If you have a few hours this park is definitely worth checking out. We recommended this to our friends at dinner that night.

We tried to squeeze in some outdoor activity and I read about this spot on a travel website which ranked this the #1 to do in Fort Myers. Hey, it’s free ($ 1 per hour parking and donation welcome), why not.
I’m so glad we stopped by. It’s so funny there’s a preserve in the middle of the city next to highways. It’s a big wetland area with ponds. Great for bird watching as well as other critters (we saw wild pigs, tiny lizards, big turtles). It’s a very peaceful envirnoment made for easy walking (very well constructed boardwalk throughout).
I ended up spending 2 hours here because all the stop and go I did to take pictures. Otherwise you can breeze through in shorter time. They offer free guided tour at 9:30am and 1:30pm daily. Their website offered conflicting info (it said 3pm tour which didn’t exist).
Take time out to check this place out, or any of the county parks/​preserves. It surely added a different dimension to a Florida vacation.

Super keen place for all avid nature folk. Mary was a great host on the tour. We saw a fat gator some sweet cardinals, water moccasin, and a bunch of heron and turtles. Def a must but go early 9ish.

this place is beautiful. south florida nature at its best! there are two boardwalk loops, the longest one is about a mile long but there are plenty of benches along the way. also, if you really wish to see wildlife, you should just wait for a few minutes and something will come up… or down.
bring your own bottled water, do not litter, bring your camera, bring your kids and bring insect repellent!
«we do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children» — chief seattle

For those curious, but not sure if they want to invest a lot of time, then just pay for only an hour. The trail is only about a mile, but it’s nature’s beauty that causes you to stop and linger.
Positive things that I noticed about the slough:
–Plenty of parking
–Covered benches for picnic seating
–The boardwalk trail is wheelchair accessible
–Shaded Amphitheater to overlook the Gator Lake
–Fun wildlife trivia for the young and old to discover along the path
I went during the week and surprisingly there was a volunteer at the Otter Pond with equipment set up. She answered questions that the people may have had and then allowed the usage of the telescope. I love how so much thought and care went into making this preserve such an enjoyable experience!
*It’s nature in FL, so make sure you bring the basic essentials of sunscreen, bug spray, and liquid refreshments.

Fantastic… and I didn’t even get inside. The boardwalks are easy… and beautiful. It was a little dry while I was there but still I saw so much: feral pigs, baby gators, snakes and turtles. We were there for the birds… from water birds to warblers, we had more to see than time to spend.
If I’m in the area again, or showing friends the area, this would definitely be a stop!