Oakland Nature Preserve

Absolutely breathtaking and fun spot to spend the day with family! Can’t wait to take our daughters again. We went on the boardwalk trail which lead to lake apopka. Very well maintained area. The girls loved looking at the turtles as well as zebras and emu.
Donations excepted but the park is free to enter.

This is a must do for any Floridian or tourist for that matter. The Preserve itself is in such great condition and is really educational. It starts at the main house, which has numerous types of fish, turtles, plant life, etc on display. You then start down a trail that leads to a bird watching observatory. On the other side of the bird watching area, you can see many types of exotic wildlife, including zebras, emus, gazelles, etc. The next part of the experience is a ²⁄₃ mile nature trail/​dock that leads you through a marsh and out to Lake Apopka to a beautiful observation deck. You can see many birds and even alligators from here.
I live close to the preserve and have not been in forever. I definitely recommend coming and enjoying this great nature observatory.

Updating my review since it’s been a long time. I was here a few weeks again since my last visit in 2014. The place seems to have built more trails before the boardwalk on the sides. I thought this was a nice change.
Great place to explore. There is a sink hole trail on the sides to explore. The boardwalk trail is still the best trail here to get to the lake. Very relaxing, calm, and adventurous still.
Please enjoy my latest photos. Thank you.

What a hidden gem. I’m surprised that it wasn’t busier. We were able to see zebras, antelopes, and emus. Bring some binoculars because the wildlife is sometimes far back on the other side of the enclosure. But, every time we have gone we have seen an emu up close, about a foot away. There is also a long boardwalk to the lake, which was peaceful. You can also see a sinkhole and turtle enclosure. This preserve runs right along the West Orange Trail. I can’t believe that it is free (although you can make donations).

It is absolutely beautiful. I went there with my husband after someone mentioned it to me and what a surprise! It is not far from the Dr. Phillips area and a nice escape. I saw a lot of different bird species. There is a long boardwalk you take out to Lake Apopka. I’m surprised more people don’t know about this. I like that it is so quiet and not a busy place. I wish they would keep preserving more land and putting up these boardwalks for birdwatching. I felt like I was on a mini vacation.
I would defiantly recommend this to anyone wanting to do something outdoors. It doesn’t need to be a whole day or anything. We went for a couple hours. It was very enjoyable. I got some great photos as well that I will post.