23500 Kanner Highway
Canal Point

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You never know what you might see while visiting Dupuis. A wild hog rooting around, literally, for his next meal. The air filled with swallows diving and turning for mosquitoes. A flock of skittish turkeys scurrying through the understory of a live oak hammock. Soldier butterflies numerous enough to field an army. Flowers that rank among the rarest in South Florida, indeed the world.

Those are among the highlights of what we saw the first time we visited Dupuis. The preserve is about a half hour's drive northwest of West Palm Beach, so it's a bit out of the way. But it's also nearly 22,000 acres and diverse enough to make the drive worthwhile. It's pinelands, wet meadows, cypress swamps and hardwood hammocks cut by 35 miles of hiking trails, including the Ocean to Lake Trail, 40 miles of equestrian trails and a 7.5-mile auto tour (link to the tour guide here). There is an equestrian center, campsites, picnic tables, fishing pier and a short boardwalk complete with interpretive signs.

There are four entrances to Dupuis, all along the Kanner Highway, aka County Road 76. The area is open to hunters and closed to most other activities at certain times of the year. TAKE OUR VIRTUAL TOUR.