Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area
December, 6th, 2020, I decided to take a short trip to the Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area in the Vero Beach, Florida area. The hike was amazing and took me about 3 hours since I was stopping to take photographs and video clips. The best part was once I got to the end of the South End Boardwalk and the trail basically ended into the woods. Here, the trail was only marked by spots on the trees, such as, a yellow, blue, or red marking to indicate which part of the trail you might be on. Check out the 15 360-degree images I captured while hiking through the Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area below.
Click here to view it in fullscreen.
About Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area
Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area (WMA) consists of nearly 21,000 acres in southwestern Indian River County. This area is a mosaic of wetland and upland communities, including dry prairie, pine Flatwoods, hardwood swamp, and floodplain marsh. These diverse habitats support Florida sandhill cranes, wood storks, crested caracaras, bald eagles, white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, and a large population of feral hogs.
A boardwalk through a hardwood swamp leads to Hog Island, where trails and primitive camping sites have been developed by the Florida Trail Association. A picnic pavilion and tables are adjacent to Horseshoe Lake. Vehicle access to Horseshoe Lake during non-hunting periods requires a permit from the St. John’s Water Management District.
Hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing, horseback riding, hiking, biking, paddling, and camping are permitted in the area. A special-opportunity permit is required to hunt on this area during deer and spring turkey season, and a regular quota permit is required to hunt on this area during the scheduled hog hunts. The area is open to public access year-round, except during special-opportunity hunts when only individuals in possession of a valid special-opportunity permit are allowed on the area. Children under the age of 16 are required to wear a helmet when horseback riding on public lands.
Leave a reply