FWC Home : Recreation : Wildlife Management Areas : Picayune Strand

Picayune Strand WMA

Managed in cooperation with
Florida Division of Forestry
South Florida Water Management District

Picayune Strand WMA consists of more than 76,000 acres in Collier County two miles east of Naples south of I-75 and north of U.S. 41. This land was logged for cypress in the 1950s and 1960s and was then ditched and roads constructed for South Golden Gate Estates, a famous “swampland in Florida” scam. In 1985 under the Save Our Everglades program, the state began acquiring this land from thousands of absentee landowners.

Today the area is a mix of pinelands, cypress, marshes, and pasture, and provides habitat for wide-ranging Florida panthers as well as black bears, bald eagles, wood storks,  fox squirrels, and swallow-tailed kites . Hunting is available on the area. The Sabal Pine Hiking Trail, jointly owned by Collier County, consists of two short loops (1.9 and 1.3 miles) and traverses a dwarf cypress forest. The trail can be accessed from Sabal Palm Road. A 22-mile horse trail winds across the Belle Meade Tract from Miller Boulevard to Benfield Road.  Children under the age of 16 are required to wear a helmet when horseback riding on public lands.  For more detailed information go to Nicole's Law .  All horseback riders must have proof of current negative Coggins Test results for their horses when on state lands. An oak-shaded primitive camping area can be found near the mid-point of the trail. Additional campgrounds are located on 52nd Ave SE near the Division of Forestry Office and on 134th Avenue, SE. Camping is allowed by special-use permit from the Division of Forestry. The numerous canals on the area are available for fishing and small boats. A boat ramp is located on the Fakaunion Canal.  Parts of the area will be closed at varying times due to Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project construction.

• Visit Florida Division of Forestry's information on Picayune Strand State Forest.

• View SFWMD's Public Use Guide.

• View FWC's Regulations Summary for Picayune Strand for an area map, hunting seasons, permits, fees, and area regulations.