Eglin AFB hikes

Eglin Air Force Base (AFB) was the Choctawhatchee National Forest before it became military. Hiking in the parts open to the public in the large territory requires a permit from the natural resources facility at Jackson Guard. The area has some original Florida habitat and several threatened species. See Longleaf Pine restoration facts and a man and story behind it. The Florida National Scenic Trail provides access across Eglin.

The photo above is on a trail with wonderful carpets of deer lichen located north of Range Rd. near Pine St. in Niceville. There are many branching intersecting paths here. See google map for a two-mile loop. The photo, Enmeshed Deer Lichen, won an honorable mention in the Mattie Kelly Environmental Photo Contest. It was on exhibit at the Choctawhatchee Estuary Family Festival at Rocky Bayou State Park on May 1, 2010. It appears in the 2012 Mattie Kelly calendar for the month of July. Click either picture for a larger version. See also Pearl Creek detail.

The photo below shows pines blowing in a fierce wind off Choctawhatchee Bay are in the Maxwell-Gunter Recreation Area located off White Point Rd. west of the access to the Mid-Bay bridge.

Windblown Trees

See Eglin hike descriptions or see Panhandle Destinations and Florida travel page.