Santa Fe River Preserve

Accessibility Information

Parking Lot Description

The Main Entrance trailhead is located at 27025 North State Road 121.  The parking area is mowed grass and fenced in. 

The trailhead contains an informational kiosk with printed maps, bike racks, and a picnic table (non-accessible.  From the parking area, users enter through an opening in a wooden fence.  The Gracy trail is located here.

The South trailhead is located about 2 miles from the Main trailhead at the end of NW 254th Avenue.  There is a closed gate at the entrance.  The gate is unlocked but should be closed behind visitors after they enter.  The parking lot is just inside the gate and is primarily dirt and leaf litter.  The trailhead contains an informational kiosk with printed maps.  From the parking area, users enter through an opening in a wooden fence to the kiosk and Yellow Trail.  The River Loop, Flatwoods, and River Bird Bend trails are also here.

Blue Trail

Trail Length: 0.75 miles

Steepest slope: 2%

Total elevation gain: 16 feet

The Blue Trail is a loop trail that is accessed at the North Trailhead.  The trail surface is a combination of mowed grass, soil, and leaf litter.  A few hundred feet into the trail, it veers off a service road to the right.  Not far after that, trail visitors come to a fork that is the loop where they can choose to go right or left. 

Taking the loop to the left will bring visitors to the river and kayak launch, just 0.15 miles from the split.  When reaching the river, there are signs and a side trail to the left that takes visitors up a small hill to an opening where the old railroad used to cross the Santa Fe River. 

There is a picnic table (non-accessible) overlooking the river.  There is an informational kiosk with maps and info about paddling the Santa Fe River.  At the kiosk is a side trail that drops to a canoe/kayak takeout made up of a synthetic mat. 

The Blue trail continues past the picnic and kayak area where it hugs the river for several hundred feet.  The trail eventually curves back into the woods and returns to the parking area.

Gracy Trail (Red)

Trail Length: 1.5 miles

Steepest slope: 2%

Total elevation gain: 32 feet

The Gracy trail is accessed by the Main Entrance trailhead and takes visitors through an upland hardwood forest and across a creek.  The trail is made up mostly of soil and leaf litter, although there are frequently areas that are muddy and very wet. 

200 feet into the trail, there is a narrow wooden footbridge that crosses a wet area, or visitors can elect to go up to higher ground around the wet spot.  There are several of these short footbridges over the next quarter mile. 

0.3 miles into the trail, visitors come to a fork that is the loop where they can choose to go right or left.  Taking the loop to the left, visitors come to a wooden bridge crossing the creek.  The bridge is 16 feet long, 4 feet wide, and has railings.  It requires stepping up to access the bridge.  A few hundred feet past the bridge is a bench along the creek.  Visitors encounter another identical bridge and bench 0.4 miles after taking the loop to the left.  The trail continues and loops back to where it started and then back to the trailhead and parking lot.

River Loop (Blue)

Trail Length: 0.9 miles

Steepest slope: 2%

Total elevation gain: 7 feet

The River Loop trail is accessed at the South tmarked with Blue blazes. It is a loop trail. Taking the trail to the right will continue on the old road the Yellow trail was on. 0.1 mile later there is a junction. Continuing straight will take visitors onto the Flatwoods trail. Taking a left will continue the River trail as it enters the forest. This part of the trail slopes slightly downhill towards the Santa Fe River. The trail can get wet and muddy here. 0.15 miles later, users reach the Santa Fe River. There is an informational kiosk with maps and info about paddling the Santa Fe River. At the kiosk is a side trail that drops to a canoe/kayak take out made up of a synthetic mat.

The River Loop trail continues and hugs the river for a ways. 200 feet past the kiosk is a picnic table (non-accessible) on the river. After several hundred more feet of hiking, there are signs and a turnoff towards the River Birch Bend trail marked in Green. The River Loop trail continues through bottomland forest.

There are several natural drainages that have 2 foot wide foot bridges for use during wet times. The trail surface is soil and leaf litter with little to no root protrusions. The trail eventually loops back around, climbing uphill slightly to higher ground and areas more dominated by pines before returning to the start of the loop.

Yellow Trail

Trail Length: 0.25 miles

Steepest slope: 1%

Total elevation gain: 9 feet

The Yellow Trail begins at the kiosk at the South trailhead, and is an old road of mowed grass; it’s free of protruding objects or hazards.  The trail ends at a junction where the River Loop trail begins.

River Birch Bend Trail (Green)

Trail Length: 0.15 miles

Steepest slope: 1%

Total elevation gain: 1 feet

This short loop trail offers breathtaking views of the mean dings, slow moving Santa Fe River.  The river banks are dotted with River Birch trees and a bench can be found at the end of the bend.  The trail surface is soil, leaf litter, and a few patches of loose sand.  There are some protruding roots.

Flatwoods Trail (Orange)

Trail Length: 0.6 miles

Steepest slope: 2%

Total elevation gain: 2 feet

The Flatwoods trail is accessed at the South trailhead and marked with Orange blazes. It begins as a continuation of the mowed road that the Yellow and River Loop trails originated on. The trail is mowed grass for 0.1 miles before coming to a creek. The lead-up to the creek is loose sand from the creek when it floods. There is a 16-foot-long bridge over the creek. The bridge is 4 feet wide and has one handrail. There is a step-up to the access bridge.

During dry periods, the creek is dry or low and can be traversed easily on foot. The trail climbs out of the creek where the surface again becomes mowed grass. The trail gradually slopes towards the river which can cause it to be wet and muddy during wet periods. The trail eventually comes to a low bowl with no vegetation. This bowl is often full of water and can be bypassed with a side trail to the right. The trail continues to meander and eventually hugs the river until terminating at a bench on the river. The trail here is a combination of mowed grass, soil, and leaf litter and there are some protruding roots throughout.

Contact ACT for more information or comments about our accessibility of our preserves by calling (352)373-1078 or emailing info@alachuaconservationtrust.org