Winding Waters Natural Area, West Palm Beach

I knew very little about this park when going there. Just another one of those parks I found searching Google Maps for parks. Driving the main road there is a parking lot for the trials. It has about a dozen spaces and one spot for a bus to park. A kiosk has a map and park information in it. It even has a pamphlet with a map on it. The trails have good signage but a map is always helpful. There is a canoe/kayak floating dock a few feet down the trail. A sign points to the shore fishing area. A paved trail goes half a mile into the park. The paved path ends at a bridge that goes over the water. The bridge has a covered shelter in the middle with benches to sit at and enjoy the great view. It was late in the day and the sun was low in the sky making it an extra beautiful spot to relax. Looking down from the middle of the bridge there was a large gator just hanging out giving me a great photo from above which you don’t get to see often. Once across the bridge the trail divides into three different trails. You can decide how far you want to talk and take one of these trails. This is where I had to turn around as it was late and the park closes at sunset. I went back across the bridge and took the trail instead of the paved path back. The trail follows the river. I was thinking about the large gator and hoped there wasn’t one on this trail. I will come back and explore the other side of the bridge. It’s a great park. The only issue I have is that there aren't any bathrooms. It’s still a 5 Star park.

Gorgeous nature preserve. Lots of bird life. I took one star away because the trail was unkempt in certain parts. Grass was up to my knees on parts of wetland hiking trail. We also felt they should have had more markings telling you where you are and how far from your goal. We ended up missing a turn and walking alot longer on a different portion of the trail. Much longer walk than we anticipated.