1720 Deerfield Island Park
Deerfield Beach

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Deerfield Island is a 53.3-acre multi-use park situated in the Intracoastal Waterway. It is accessible by boat only, and wheelchair accessible only at high tide. A free shuttle boat operates from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the hour on Saturdays and Sundays only, but there are slips on the island if you have your own means of transportation.  The last boat leaves at 4:20 p.m., and yes, people have been stranded.

The history of the island is as interesting in a twisted South Florida way as anything on it. Hint: it was once known as Capone’s (as in Al) Island. It was once the object of a border dispute between Broward and Palm Beach counties (Broward won) and it wasn’t always an island. Deerfield Island contains a variety of habitat, including marine hammock and mangrove forest. Species spotted include wild coffee, simpson's stopper, red, white and black mangrove, cabbage palms, gumbo limbo, raccoons, gopher tortoise, osprey and banana spider.

The shuttle is docked at the end of Riverview Road, north side of Hillsboro Boulevard just before (or after, depending on your direction) the Intracoastal. Amenities include two hiking trails, restrooms and picnic facilities. The hiking trails are mostly natural surface, but there is a boardwalk through the mangrove forest. The park is operated by Broward County.

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