In the stillness of early morning, when the mist rises off the sawgrass and the cypress knees emerge like old bones from the swamp, something stirs. A flick of movement, silent and ghostlike. Maybe you imagined it — or maybe you just crossed into the domain of the Florida panther.
Welcome to Big Cypress National Preserve, a place where the wild is still untamed and the tracks left behind tell stories no human voice can.
What It Is
Located just west of Miami and adjacent to Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve protects more than 700,000 acres of swamp, forest, prairie, and pineland. It’s not just a buffer for the Everglades — it’s a vital ecosystem in its own right, rich with orchids, alligators, black bears, and yes, the endangered Florida panther.
There are fewer than 200 Florida panthers in the wild today. Most live within and around Big Cypress. These elusive cats, the last subspecies of cougar east of the Mississippi, are both a conservation icon and an enigma — rarely seen, but ever-present.
Big Cypress is a mix of hydrology and hardwood, mud and mystery. It’s one of the only places left in Florida where water flows in every direction and predators roam without fences. You’re not just in nature — you’re inside something primal.
How to Look Without Expecting to See
Let’s be clear: you’re probably not going to see a panther. They’re nocturnal, solitary, and hyper-avoidant. But tracking their trails — their prints, prey, paths, and presence — is its own form of wilderness meditation.
Start with:
The Florida Trail (Loop Road to Tamiami Trail)
This section offers one of the best chances for panther sign. Look for:
- Scat along the trail — usually cigar-shaped and full of hair
- Scrape marks on the ground or bases of trees
- Tracks: large, rounded prints with no claw marks (unlike canines)
Download a tracker’s guide or join a ranger-led hike from the Oasis Visitor Center. Rangers often point out signs that are invisible to the untrained eye. You might learn how to distinguish bobcat prints from panther tracks, or how claw marks in bark hint at behavior rather than chance.
Where to Go
Loop Road Scenic Drive
A 24-mile route off Tamiami Trail where the cypress trees close in and wildlife teems in the ditches. Go slow. Early morning or dusk. Look for tracks in soft roadside mud. Stop at small pull-offs and walk a few feet into the brush. It’s in the margins — not the center — where the stories live.
Kirby Storter Boardwalk
A quick half-mile boardwalk that dips into a strand swamp. You won’t see a panther here — but you’ll understand their world. It’s a great introduction to cypress ecology, and you’ll often see turtles, frogs, and wading birds.
Bear Island Backcountry
If you’re a seasoned hiker or biker, this remote network of trails and unpaved roads offers deep solitude. Carry GPS and plenty of water. This is true panther country. Rangers recommend traveling in pairs, though solo treks are common — just be prepared.
For photographers or naturalists, early light and late shadows along the Birdon Road Loop offer excellent framing for capturing tracks and movement.
Panther Tracking Tips
- After rain: Fresh mud = fresh prints. Look for overlapping tracks, indicating recent movement.
- Dawn and dusk: Ideal for recent activity and increased wildlife presence.
- Stay quiet: Even your breath can feel loud out here. Silence is your ally.
- Bring binoculars: Not for panthers — you’ll need those for owls, woodpeckers, or soaring hawks.
- Use a field journal: Sketch or note track sizes, gait patterns, or unusual scat. Each mark adds to your understanding.
Seasoned trackers often describe following panther signs like reading a poem in a foreign language. You don’t always understand each word, but the feeling is undeniable.
Other Wildlife Along the Way
While panthers are the elusive royalty of Big Cypress, the supporting cast is just as captivating:
- Black bears: increasingly common and often mistaken for panthers at a distance
- Barred owls: call from the canopy with haunting clarity
- Ghost orchids: bloom silently in the shadows
- River otters: curious and chaotic in backwater creeks
- Alligators: everywhere. Keep your distance.
The biodiversity here is staggering. You may find tracks of raccoons, feral hogs, or even coyotes intersecting panther trails — a reminder that this wilderness is layered with competition and cohabitation.
Respect the Land
Big Cypress is more than a park — it’s a sovereign landscape, co-managed with the Miccosukee and Seminole Tribes, whose ancestral ties to the land predate any map.
When you walk here, walk lightly. Stay on designated trails. Leave no trace. And remember, you’re a visitor in someone else’s home — someone who walks with paws.
Cultural sensitivity matters here. Don’t disturb tribal sites. Support tribal businesses and guides when you can. This isn’t just conservation — it’s living heritage.
Where to Stay
- Monument Lake Campground – Primitive and peaceful, often used by wildlife photographers. Booking info
- Trail Lakes Campground (Skunk Ape HQ) – A kitschy yet beloved stop with cabins, campsites, and cryptid lore. Skunk Ape HQ
- Everglades City – Small-town lodging with air conditioning and fried gator on the menu. Try Ivey House for eco-friendly stays or stay at the Rod & Gun Club for rustic Old Florida atmosphere.
Where to Eat Nearby
- Joanie’s Blue Crab Cafe – A Loop Road legend for seafood, swamp tales, and the occasional guitar strum.
- Havana Cafe of the Everglades – Cuban coffee, shrimp and grits, and key lime pie in a jungle garden.
- Camellia Street Grill (Everglades City) – Funky, friendly, and right on the water. Watch for manatees while you eat.
Why It Matters
To follow panther trails in Big Cypress is to place your faith in absence — to read stories written in sand and silence. You’re not chasing sightings. You’re chasing understanding.
These woods hold the last whispers of a Florida that once stretched wild and unbroken. Every pawprint is a signature of survival — of a predator who needs space, silence, and sacrifice to endure.
In tracking them, we track our own values: what we’re willing to protect, preserve, and prioritize.
When a single panther survives, so does a promise — that Florida still holds room for mystery.
Here’s What I’d Do:
Wake before sunrise. Drive slowly down Loop Road with your windows down. Park when it feels right. Walk a stretch of trail in stillness, listening for the subtle. Stop where the grass bends differently. Squint at the edges of a clearing.
Bring a trail guide, a full thermos, and your quietest pair of boots. I once saw a single print in wet sand — one wide pad, four perfect toes. It was gone the next day. But it was enough.
