DuPuis Management Area, Indiantown area, Florida

It’s been open a few years but we finally made it out to Dupuis Management area, several miles west of Stuart, Florida. Also easily accessible from Palm Beach Gardes area.

The main draw is that several Red-cockaded Woodpeckers have been relocated there, although we did not see any on this visit. We did see a Hairy Woodpecker and about a dozen Wild Turkeys, among some other more common birds, such as Red-shouldered Hawks and Double-crested Cormorants.

DuPuis is a 21,875 acre multi-use natural area interspersed with numerous ponds, wet prairies, cypress domes, pine flatwoods, and remnant Everglades marsh. The area provides miles of hiking and horseback trails, an equestrian center, graded vehicle roads, backpack and group campsites, and seasonal hunting. There is no fee for camping in DuPuis, which is on a first-come, first-served basis. There also is a group camping site off the DuPuis Grade.

Wildlife: Several bald eagles nest here (we did not see any on our visit). Herons, egrets, wood storks, and white ibis hunt for food in the marshes close to the road during the wet season. Look for white-tailed deer, wild hogs and turkeys around dawn and dusk.

Its address is 23500 Kanner Highway (State Hwy 76), Stuart. No admission charge and uncrowded during the week.

CONS: There are a number of controlled hunts in the preserve.

Just came across your post Mary. I hike and camp DuPuis in the winters. In past years, I’ve spotted a mating pair of bald eagles nesting on the west side of the 4th loop, about 7 miles south from the State Road. I’ve also been w/i 15 feet of a pair of bobcat right on the trail on the 3rd loop west. I usually camp at the site at the southern end of the 4th loop, but sometimes camp by the lake right along the trail on the 3rd loop east. I’ve also continued into JW Corbett, but most years it’s too wet for enjoyable hiking.