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Paynes Prairie
A must-do hike in Gainesville, Florida
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is a 21,000 acre savannah located just south of Gainesville. “This park became Florida´s first state preserve in 1971.” There are two entrances, a north and a south, offering two different outdoor experiences.
We typically frequent the north entrance which has the Alachua Sink, a huge basin with a fluctuating waterline. The first time my fiancé visited was with his boss when he came to Gainesville for an interview. That day the water level was so low that alligators could be seen basking on the shore.
When we went together several months later the basin was so full that one side of the boardwalk was completely filled with water, but the other side was dry and we were able to walk down some of the trails at the end of the boardwalk.
This time around the water level was so high that all of the trails at the end of the boardwalk were closed, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t plenty of wildlife! We actually saw more snakes on this hike than any other hike we’ve had in Florida.
As exciting as the snakes were the highlight of our day was seeing an alligator…
