Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive celebrates four years

From the Orange County Audubon Society

On May 4th from 8 a.m.to 3:00 p.m., the Orange Audubon Society volunteers will be on the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive with spotting scopes and bird identification information, to commemorate the 4th anniversary of the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive.

The increasingly popular 11-mile drive is within the 20,000-acre Lake Apopka North Shore restoration area managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District. Opened by the District in May 2015, the Wildlife Drive now hosts approximately 10,000 visitors a month to see the birds, plus alligators, turtles, otters, raccoon, snakes, coyotes, and bobcats.

It is open on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and most federal holidays, from dawn to an hour before sunset, at 2850 Lust Road, Apopka. Although the one-way Wildlife Drive is only 11 miles, it has a 10 mile per hour speed limit, limited pull-overs, and has become increasingly popular with wildlife watchers and nature photographers, so allow at least 2 1/2 hours to go through. The drive is free.

The public is invited on May 4th to stop at Orange Audubon Society’s four stops along the drive to ask bird questions, take a peek through a spotting scope, and discuss and share enthusiasm for the drive with Orange Audubon volunteers. For additional information, 407-637-2525.

8 a.m.–3 p.m. No reservations are necessary.

Feature photo by Otter photo © 2017 Phoebe Gonsalves / Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive https://www.facebook.com/groups/lakeapopkawd/