Oxbow Nature Trail

Spring is arguably the best time to walk along the Oxbow Nature Trail at Little Manatee River State Park. As you enter the trail, you’ll notice the air cooling around you on the shaded path. The sky peeks between the trees, creating a mosaic of light among the lush greenery of the woodland. The path transports you immediately to what seems like another world.

The trail is a great place for birding enthusiasts, with swallow-tailed kites soaring aloft and pileated woodpeckers skimming from tree to tree. If you listen closely, you may hear the soft buzzing of bumblebees as they collect pollen from the many varieties of flowers that grow in the forest. But don’t worry, these busy-bodies won’t bother you, they are more concerned with their work. The trail is host to several unique flowering shrubs, like sparkleberry, little bell-shaped white flowers or the colorful fetterbush with its down turned pink petals. In this flower covered bower you can smell the sweet fragrances they give off as their scent fills the air.

Along the trail, you will encounter small side tracks which end at the Little Manatee River. Here the amber colored water flows gently, barely disturbing the river’s sandy bottom and is inviting to paddlers.

Named after an old river oxbow the trail circles, it is 0.8 miles long and is perfect for a short stroll. You will have a good view of the oxbow wetland in its center contrasted with the surrounding scrubby flatwoods and low river bluffs. Feel free to take a break at one of the picnic pavilions by the water’s edge and bask in the splendor of nature and all that Little Manatee River State Park has to offer.