Powell Creek Preserve, North Fort Myers, 4 Jan 2027 (Google Map)
Powell Creek Preserve (15601 Hart Road, North Fort Myers) is a 77-acre tract with water impoundments that serve as a filter marsh designed to improve water quality in Powell Creek and downstream. The initial 18-acre parcel was acquired by Lee County in 2003 and was expanded in 2015. It has a paved, relatively flat, 1.7 mile loop trail around the restored marshes. There are no modern restroom facilities on the sight. Parking is free.
Native plants were used extensively in ecological restoration of the area, which has a history as a cotton farm and a cattle operation. Fringing the water are shrubs such as Walter's Viburnum, Wild Coffee, and the herbaceous plant, Fakahatchee Grass. Slash Pines and Live and Laurel Oaks are common trees in the area. See the Powell Creek Preserve eBird website for birding information.
Harns Marsh, Fort Myers, 11 Jan 2027 (Google Map)
Harns Marsh (38th St W, Fort Myers) is a 578-acre lake and marshy area located in Lehigh Acres, E of Buckingham AirPark East. In the 1980s, the Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District (LA-MSID) worked to convert private farmland formerly owned by the Harms family into a storm water control area. Weirs, gates and risers, canals, and interconnected filtration cells were installed to help control flooding in the nearby Orange River and to act as a natural water filtration system. The preserve is owned by Lee County and is jointly managed by the county and LA-MSID. The area is open for passive recreation and features a 3.9-mile gravel nature trail. The preserve is sometimes closed for maintenance and when water levels are extremely high. Parking is free. Unless special permission is obtained, vehicles are not allowed inside the fence. There are no restroom or picnic facilities available. See the Harns Marsh eBird website for birding information.
CREW Flint Pen Strand Lakes Trails, Bonita Springs, 18 Jan 2027 (Google Map)
The Flint Pen Strand Lakes Trails site (14934 Bonita Beach Rd SE, Bonita Springs FL) is part of an 800-acre Lee County portion of a 14,000-acre watershed preserve that comprises a cypress swamp strand (strand = more-or-less a slightly flowing linear swamp), pine flatwoods, and mixed shrubby and marshy habitats. The origin of the name might refer to the pen(s) of the large cattle operations of Harry Lee Flint (1925-2011), son of a pioneering Lee County family. Flint Pen Strand is owned by the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) and is managed by CREW (see crewtrust.org). The trails site formally opened to the public in November, 2018. There are four different hiking trails at Flint Pen. Birders often frequent at least a portion of the Orange Trail (2.9 mi). Parking is free. There are no modern rest room facilities available. We usually are able to plop down in the shade somewhere to consume our BYOL lunches and tabulate our bird list. See the Flint Pen Strand Orange Trail eBird website for birding information. One of the CBC's most exciting finds at Flint Pen in 2025 was tracking down and viewing the western species, Vaux's Swift, which had been reported from the area. It was flying with masses of Tree Swallows.
Marsh Trail & Big Cypress, Ten Thousand Islands NWR, Naples, 25 Jan 2027 (Google Map)
The Marsh Trail (21004 Tamiami Trl E, Naples) is a 2.3-mile up-and-back trail that includes an observation tower. We generally make it to the observation tower, but not much beyond, certainly not 2.3 miles. Parking is free and there is a porta potty on site.
Much of the area is a marsh with plenty of open water. The unpaved, but level, trail is lined with tropical shrubs and small trees. Charismatic waders and common ducks are often abundant. The tower provides an excellent bird's-eye view of the area. See the Marsh Trail eBird website for birding information. Seems like we nearly always see an Orange-crowned Warbler!
After visiting the Marsh Trail, we are most likely to head SE 6.3 mi along the old Tamiami Trail to the relatively new Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk (27020 Tamiami Trl E, Naples, Google Map), which is located on the north (left if coming from the Marsh Trail) side of the road in Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. Parking is $3/vehicle for a day pass (up to eight people). Payment should be made online beforehand at this site. Be sure to scroll down and choose "Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park." The boardwalk has modern restroom facilities and spans habitats from sawgrass marshes (everglades) to cypress swamps with huge, old-growth trees, several of these rivaling those in Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. At the start of the boardwalk there's a nice covered area, where we can consume our BYOL lunches and tabulate our bird list for the day. See the Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk eBird website for birding information. In January 2025, our most exciting find along the boardwalk was a Bullock's oriole, a western species.