Editor's Note: The Nathaniel P. Reed Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge is physically divided into two separate units, Jupiter Island and Mainland, by the Indian River Lagoon. The two are distant enough and different enough that we've created separate pages for each. The Jupiter Island Unit is here.
Overview: Perched high atop the bluffs overlooking the Indian River Lagoon, Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge's Mainland Unit might offer the most rugged terrain of any park or preserve in South Florida. It's not often we use the word "steep" to describe the trails we hike here but it is appropriate in this instance. Not inordinately steep; just unusual for our region and adds to the flavor of the place. The site itself is long and narrow and goes from sand pine scrub at the top to coastal strand and open water as it meets the lagoon.
Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge is unique in that you could see gopher tortoises going about their business in the driest habitat Florida has to offer, and after a five-minute walk, theoretically, at least, see Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphins and West Indian manatees doing their thing in the most biodiverse estuary in the United States. Pretty cool. Pretty wild.
History: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge first opended in 1967 as the Joseph V. Reed Wildnerness Seashore Sanctuary, a national landmark. Reed, described by The New York Times as a Florida land developer and leading patron of the American stage, once owned Jupiter Island. With land he and other Jupiter Island residents provided, the sanctuary became the Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge in 1969. The Jupiter Island Tract originally totaled about 400 acres; it's since grown to 735 acres, plus the 300-acre Mainland Tract. In April 2019, Congress renamed the refuge as the Nathaniel P. Reed Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge, honoring the late son of Joseph Reed, a former secretary of the interior and one of Florida's great environmental champions. The Nature Conservancy also played a major role in assembling the refuge.
What You'll See: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge — Mainland Unit has some of the most rugged terrain of any park or preserve in South Florida. It is mostly sand pine scrub 50 feet above sea level, dropping rapidly into coastal strand as it approaches the Indian River Lagoon.
Amenities: The visitor center and Hobe Sound Nature Center is at the heart of the Mainland Tract, with exhibits and gift shop. There is plenty of parking, restrooms and drinking water, picnic tables, a chikee hut, interpretive displays and a network of trails leading through the scrub and down to the Indian River Lagoon. As noted above, the trails are steep in places but negotiable for most people.
Nearby: Some of the best conservation areas in South Florida all but surround the Jupiter Island Unit of Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge. To the north, there is the St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park, accessible only by boat. Peck Lake Park is to the east, as is Seabranch Preserve State Park. The Mainland Unit is to the southwest, two miles south of Bridge Road along U.S. 1 in Hobe Sound. Jonathan Dickinson State Park is a few miles farther south along U.S. 1. Hobe Sound Scrub Natural Area sits to the southwest on Dixie Highway.
Links: The Great Florida Birding Trail's page for Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge. The Institute for Regional Conservation's plant inventory is here. Note: both pages cover the entire refuge.
Of Note: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge is open sunrise to sunset everyday of the yar. There is a $5 per car entrance fee as of this writing (June 2024). Check the website for updates and a pay-online option. Also annual passes are available; national parks senior passes are honored.
The Hobe Sound Nature Center on site operates as a nonprofit separate from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that maintains the refuge and has operating hours apart from the refuge.
Cover Photo: A brown pelican flies over the Indian River Lagoon at the Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge's Mainland Unit. The lagoon is the most biodiverse estuary in the United States.
Overview: Perched high atop the bluffs overlooking the Indian River Lagoon, Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge's Mainland Unit might offer the most rugged terrain of any park or preserve in South Florida. It's not often we use the word "steep" to describe the trails we hike here but it is appropriate in this instance. Not inordinately steep; just unusual for our region and adds to the flavor of the place. The site itself is long and narrow and goes from sand pine scrub at the top to coastal strand and open water as it meets the lagoon.
Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge is unique in that you could see gopher tortoises going about their business in the driest habitat Florida has to offer, and after a five-minute walk, theoretically, at least, see Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphins and West Indian manatees doing their thing in the most biodiverse estuary in the United States. Pretty cool. Pretty wild.
History: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge first opended in 1967 as the Joseph V. Reed Wildnerness Seashore Sanctuary, a national landmark. Reed, described by The New York Times as a Florida land developer and leading patron of the American stage, once owned Jupiter Island. With land he and other Jupiter Island residents provided, the sanctuary became the Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge in 1969. The Jupiter Island Tract originally totaled about 400 acres; it's since grown to 735 acres, plus the 300-acre Mainland Tract. In April 2019, Congress renamed the refuge as the Nathaniel P. Reed Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge, honoring the late son of Joseph Reed, a former secretary of the interior and one of Florida's great environmental champions. The Nature Conservancy also played a major role in assembling the refuge.
What You'll See: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge — Mainland Unit has some of the most rugged terrain of any park or preserve in South Florida. It is mostly sand pine scrub 50 feet above sea level, dropping rapidly into coastal strand as it approaches the Indian River Lagoon.
Amenities: The visitor center and Hobe Sound Nature Center is at the heart of the Mainland Tract, with exhibits and gift shop. There is plenty of parking, restrooms and drinking water, picnic tables, a chikee hut, interpretive displays and a network of trails leading through the scrub and down to the Indian River Lagoon. As noted above, the trails are steep in places but negotiable for most people.
Nearby: Some of the best conservation areas in South Florida all but surround the Jupiter Island Unit of Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge. To the north, there is the St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park, accessible only by boat. Peck Lake Park is to the east, as is Seabranch Preserve State Park. The Mainland Unit is to the southwest, two miles south of Bridge Road along U.S. 1 in Hobe Sound. Jonathan Dickinson State Park is a few miles farther south along U.S. 1. Hobe Sound Scrub Natural Area sits to the southwest on Dixie Highway.
Links: The Great Florida Birding Trail's page for Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge. The Institute for Regional Conservation's plant inventory is here. Note: both pages cover the entire refuge.
Of Note: Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge is open sunrise to sunset everyday of the yar. There is a $5 per car entrance fee as of this writing (June 2024). Check the website for updates and a pay-online option. Also annual passes are available; national parks senior passes are honored.
The Hobe Sound Nature Center on site operates as a nonprofit separate from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that maintains the refuge and has operating hours apart from the refuge.
Cover Photo: A brown pelican flies over the Indian River Lagoon at the Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge's Mainland Unit. The lagoon is the most biodiverse estuary in the United States.
