Nature

Mangrove Park is located to the east of to St. Mark's Catholic Church and school (off Federal Highway north of Boynton Beach Blvd) in a mangrove hammock area adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway. The park is connected by at least three tidal inlets along the western border. It is a great place to see a variety of animals, including birds, raccoons and manatees. In 1997, the aluminum boardwalk, six interpretative panels, lighted restrooms, lighted parking lot, gates and landscaping were installed.

Not many parks you visit used to be a graveyard! Barton Memorial Park in Boynton Beach still has some old graves (most were relocated to another local cemetary in order to make this a park). Why move graves? I-95.  In order to make room for the highway they needed to clear the cemetary.  The land was leased from the Florida Department of Transportation by the City starting in 1978. The park consists of 6.4 acres.   There is a nature trail and open play area for recreation on site.

Years ago this land used to belong to a beautiful fruit orchard. They had wonderful little tram tours of the land and a farmer's market. Development came and in it's place, a housing development. Part of the new development agreement was to have this public neighborhood park at the entrance, right on Lawrence road just north of Gateway blvd. Constructed by D.R. Horton as part of the Knollwood Development, the park provides a passive park with a pond plus littoral zone plantings to attract wildlife and various environmental interpretative features. There's a gazebo and a little trail.

This scrub area is just south of the Bethesda Hospital and the Seacrest/Woolbright intersection in Boynton Beach. It spans the area between Seacrest and Dixie across from St. Joseph's private school. This Palm Beach County controlled area has NO restrooms but ample parking.  Be sure to bring plenty of drinking water as there are no water fountains at this site.  Bike racks are available.  The train tracks are nearby and occaisionally a passing train can be heard in the background.

The Rosemary Scrub Area is just north of Gateway Blvd on the west side of Seacrest in Boynton Beach. This passive recreation area is great for bird watching, photography and educational purposes. This scrub area is open from sunrise to sunset. Rosemary Scrub is one of the few remaining examples of the Florida Scrub Ecosystem left in Palm Beach County. The site contains sand pine scrub, scrubby pine flatwoods and mesic hammock communities.

 A unique feature of Intracoastal Park is its access for non-motorized vessel launching; swimming is not permitted in the pond or in the Intracoastal Waterway. A Veterans Memorial by the city of Boynton Beach is located at the entrance to the park. A 1/3-mile concrete path winds around a small lake with a floating fountain. Amenities include BBQ grills, benches, pavilions, and restrooms. The Clubhouse at Intracoastal Park opened in September 2007.

Serving the east Boynton Beach community, The Ezell Hester Jr Community Park has a bright fun playground, basketball courts, tennis, raquetball, nature trail, football, cricket, baseball, a recreation center with programming, gazebo, pavilions, and much more. Right on Seacrest Blvd you can't miss the park.

Sandhill Crane Access Park in Palm Beach Gardens is an enhanced trailhead park with access to the Loxahatchee Slough. It is connected to the Florida Trail system and Palm Beach County's Riverbend Park in Jupiter. There is no shade in the park area and observation deck. Fortunately, there are restroom facilities here. If you have a canoe or boat, there are entrances to the canal at this park. You can also come out and fish on the park's pier.

This park is truly hidden! It is in odd spot on "Jog Road"--not to be confused with the main North/South artery in south county--it is a road that twists and turns in a roundabout into an East/West road. Great little park to hold a little one's birthday party because there are pavillions and a nice playground. It's actually in the entrance to the MIRASOL housing development on PGA Blvd.

Lake Catherine Park is located on east side MacArthur Boulevard just north of Northlake Boulevard in Palm Beach Gardens.  The picturesque lakeside half mile red dirt jogging trail takes a loop around this park. Plenty of shade trees are along the trail but there are spots without shade so be sure to be prepared. Right across the street is the Lake Catherine Sports complex with the all-important restroom facilities as well as play area and sports fields.