Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve in Franklin County, Florida

Photograph: Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve, aerial view.jpg by NOAA · Public domain · Restored from the credited Wikimedia Commons file, normalized to the consistent attraction-card frame and converted to WebP by 1stFlorida.com. Portrait originals retain their complete composition over a softly blurred extension of the same photograph.

Franklin County attraction

Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve

Franklin County · Panhandle & Emerald Coast

A UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of nearly 250,000 acres covering the lower Apalachicola River and its bay, with a free nature center at Eastpoint.

QUESTIONS THAT NAME THIS PLACE

Where Is the Redfish Fishing in Florida?

ABOUT THIS PLACE

The Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve covers close to 250,000 acres of river, marsh and bay along what Florida calls the Forgotten Coast, taking in the lower 52 miles of the Apalachicola River and the estuary it feeds. UNESCO has designated it a Biosphere Reserve. NOAA and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection run it together, doing research and education alongside protection, because this estuary is what the oyster and fishing industries here have always depended on. The public face of it is the nature center at 108 Island Drive in Eastpoint, which has exhibits on the aquatic life of the bay and on the culture of the people who have worked it. The center is free and opens Tuesday through Saturday from 9 to 4. Leashed dogs are fine outdoors but not inside. Walking is spread across four areas: two short nature trails with boardwalks at Eastpoint, trails in Apalachicola itself, and more on St. George Island and on Little St. George Island, which can only be reached by boat. Paddlers get segment 4 of the Florida Circumnavigational Saltwater Paddling Trail, a 34-mile run. Nine primitive campsites are free and first come, first served, six of them on Little St. George

GETTING THERE

Get Directions ↗Official place website ↗

MOVING TO FRANKLIN COUNTY?Fourteen services. One business each.

Attorneys, movers, insurance, title companies, roofers and nine more — one listed business per service in Franklin County.

See local help in Franklin County →

Keep comparing

Return to the Things to Do choices in Franklin County.

Back to Franklin County