Parking
The mapped trail starts on Bryant Avenue on Big Pine Key. A small parking area is described nearby at the end of Key Deer Boulevard, but the exact pull-in differs across directions; use only posted refuge parking.
Overview
About Buttonwood Trail
Why go
- A short walk into lower Keys wetland and coastal-scrub habitat.
Heads up
- The narrow natural tread can get muddy or overgrown in wet weather.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Overseas Highway map
Full mapElevation3–13 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
3 active Overseas Highway alerts
- CautionCoastal flooding across the Florida KeysMentions Florida Keys, referenced in this guideA Coastal Flood Warning remains in effect for the Upper Keys and Coastal Flood Advisories remain in effect for the Middle and Lower Keys until 5 a.m.Official details
- CautionNighttime lane closures on Seven Mile BridgeExpect possible nighttime lane closures on Seven Mile Bridge for FDOT’s rehabilitation project to repair and strengthen the bridge.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Overseas Highway Tour Guide
Your drive to Buttonwood Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Overseas Highway. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Overseas Highway audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Buttonwood Trail: Big Pine Key Wetlands0:00 / 0:25
“Up ahead is Buttonwood Trail on Bryant Avenue, a narrow walk through Big Pine Key's coastal scrub and wetlands. Allow about an hour for the one point six miles out and back on nearly level, natural ground.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Overseas Highway Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Blue Hole: A Freshwater Wildlife Stop
- No Name Pub: Pizza and Dollar Bills
- Salt on the Leaves
- Lobsters in Single File
- 136 audio storiesacross Overseas Highway’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Crocodile, Alligator, Manatee, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 26 trails, 88 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Buttonwood Trail
The walkButtonwood Trail is an easy 1.
Buttonwood Trail is an easy 1.6-mile out-and-back through low coastal scrub and wetland on Big Pine Key. The full mapped tread runs about 0.8 mile from Bryant Avenue to its end, so turn around there and retrace the same line. Allow about an hour. This is a simple way to get into lower Keys habitat, not a big-view hike or a strenuous outing.
UnderfootThe 0.
The 0.8-mile corridor is a narrow, roughly two-foot-wide trail on native ground, with a short gravel approach from Bryant Avenue. It is nearly level overall, averaging about a 1 percent slope, though a few short slopes reach 7 percent. The natural tread makes this feel more rustic than a maintained park path.
Key deer countryThe refuge was established in 1957 to protect endangered Key deer, found only in the lower…
The refuge was established in 1957 to protect endangered Key deer, found only in the lower Florida Keys. Its protected habitats include pine rockland, freshwater wetlands, salt marsh and mangroves. Key deer are part of this place’s story, but trail-specific sightings are not established; come for the habitat rather than expecting an animal encounter.
Start and hoursThe mapped start is on Bryant Avenue in Big Pine Key; the first 0.
The mapped start is on Bryant Avenue in Big Pine Key; the first 0.01 mile is a gravel connector into the main earth trail. A small parking area is described nearby at the end of Key Deer Boulevard, but directions differ about the exact pull-in. Use posted refuge parking and access signs, since not every parcel inside the refuge boundary is open. Refuge trails are open from half an hour before sunrise until half an hour after sunset.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Overseas Highway
18 sightingsCrocodileMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
255 sightingsAlligatorMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
55 sightingsManateeMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
70 sightingsCommon Bottlenose DolphinMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
51 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
1,120 sightingsKey DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Overseas Highway. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
