St. Mary's Shoals - Glen St Mary, Florida

St. Mary's Shoals, located at 9315 Odis Yarborough Rd, Glen St Mary, FL 32040, United States, is a park and garden tourist attraction that offers a unique and rustic experience for nature lovers. The site features a white sandy beach launch for kayaks, providing access to the black water of the St. Marys River. With 11 miles of paddle to St. Marys Cove, visitors can expect a challenging yet rewarding journey, complete with numerous strainers and trees in the water.

Specialties

St. Mary's Shoals specializes in providing a natural and underused park area for the public, complete with covered shelters and clean bathrooms. The site is perfect for families, with picnic tables and public toilets available for use. The park is also wheelchair-accessible, making it a great option for visitors of all ages and abilities.

Additional Points of Interest

In addition to its natural beauty, St. Mary's Shoals offers several amenities for visitors, including a wheelchair-accessible car park, picnic tables, public toilets, and a rustic white sandy beach launch for kayaks. The park is also a great option for families, with plenty of space for children to explore and enjoy.

Opinions

St. Mary's Shoals has received 202 reviews on Google My Business, with an average opinion of 4.5/5. Many visitors have praised the site's natural beauty, challenging paddle, and underused park area. However, some have noted that the driving trails may require 4WD, and that water levels can affect the length of the trip. It is recommended that visitors plan accordingly and leave valuables in their car if parking for a shuttle.

Recommendation

If you're looking for a unique and challenging natural experience, St. Mary's Shoals is the perfect destination. With its rustic white sandy beach launch, 11 miles of paddle, and underused park area, the site offers something for everyone. Be sure to plan ahead, leave valuables in your car, and take advantage of the park's many amenities for a memorable and enjoyable experience.

For more information, be sure to visit St. Mary's Shoals's website at bakercountyfl.org.

👍 Reviews of St. Mary's Shoals

AyoLane H.

5/5

Driving trails may need 4W drive. If you like wild natural areas this place is epic. Rustic white sandy beach launch, into black water for kayaks. Steep, path down to the water’s edge. 11 miles paddle to St Marys Cove. Lots of strainers and trees in the water. Watch water levels this trip could take 4-6 hours with a 30 minute lunch. The park is under used but the public and is primitive. Couple of covered shelters and clean bathrooms. Don’t leave valuables in your car if you’re parking for a shuttle.

Steven S.

3/5

For the price ($5-$10) it's good. As of a OHV experience it's not great though, the initial trail is the best part and it's only 2 minutes of riding. There's a ton of riding to be done here, half a day at the least but a majority of trails are 1) open road type, not fun. 2) extremely tore up and narrow which is fine if you have a crazy lifted quad, but if you have a dirt bike or sport quad you can't go through it. So all in all kind of disappointing, there was only one fun little track other than the entrance to the trails.

AyoLane H.

4/5

This place is off the main tourist route. Wilderness area, ATV and horse trails mainly with a couple of covered picnic areas. The Swimming hole located on the map at the second gate is a decent gorilla kayak launch site into the St Mary’s River. 10 mile paddle to the next public take out called St Mary’s Cove. Beautiful black water creek and almost not human evidence or motor sounds. I love this place. 4 stars are because the road need improvements and kayak launch needs to be put in. Bathrooms need updated and cleaner. 5$ entrance fee.

Arthur M. (.

5/5

It's a bit deceiving when you first enter at the ATV entry. Once we figured out the other entrance and paid out 5 bucks for the vehicle parking all was good to go. We drove back to the river access and paced several ATV and Horse trails along the way. Definitely need to bring the quads and horses here on future trips. All in all a nice park area with great access to trails and nature.

David W.

5/5

Very fun place to go to with your dirt bikes and ATVs. Only $5 for a day pass. Also, this place takes debit cards. There are ares to sit down with benches. Bathrooms are also here at the main entrance. Clean also.

NE F. D. R.

5/5

St. Mary’s Shoals Park is open from sunrise to Sunset. There are restrooms available that are in great condition along with picnic tables in a pavilion with a large paved parking area. We came out here on a couple of dirt bikes and had a great time exploring all the trails. Spent several hours riding around getting to know the layout but we still need to come back to finish exploring. Well worth the trip especially for a day out with the family if you have ATVs and dirt bikes.

Mathew E.

4/5

If you have 4 wheelers / side by side this place is awesome, but it is a little flat for dirtbikes. If you are on a dirtbike there are "hidden trails". There is a sign and like a one way track through several areas for increased difficulty.

Susan B.

3/5

Nice park just needs better signage to find proper trails. It's very confusing.