Beluthahatchee Park
1523 SR 13 N
Fruit Cove,FL 32259
HOURS: Dawn to dusk
Beluthahatchee Park is a 4 acre park located within the 70-acre tract of land purchased by Stetson Kennedy in 1948 after the 18 acre Beluthahatchee Lake was created by impounding Mill Creek in 1945. This lake meanders through a natural basin and is surrounded by high bluffs, currently owned by the Lake Dwellers Association, a non-profit Florida corporation formed by the lakefront residents.
AMENITIES INCLUDE:
- Nature trails
- Picnic pavilions
- Canoe dock
- Restrooms
- Parking
Visitor and Recreational Opportunities
Through the acquisition of the Beluthahatchee Park, St. Johns County continues the legacy of Stetson Kennedy and his vision for its future as a literary landmark and to carry forward the shared Kennedy/Guthrie three-fold legacy of devotion to human rights, mother earth and the traditional culture.
Vegetation and Species
The perimeter of the property is surrounded by a heavy canopy of native vegetation overstory consisting of mixed coniferous and hardwood defined by live oak, laural oak, water oak, long leaf pine and cabbage palms. The native vegetation understory consists of saw palmetto, southern magnolia, water and laural oak. The lake native vegetation overstory consists of pignut hickory, sweet gum and bald cypress and the understory consists of sweet gum, southern magnolia and swamp dogwood.
Much of the perimeter native vegetation has been preserved, despite intensive development around its border. The Beluthahatchee enclave provides wildlife habitat and continues to serve as a rookery and roosting place for ospreys, eagles, snowy egrets, tri-colored heron, white ibis, little blue heron, wood storks, black-crow night herons, wood ducks, anhingas, purple gallinules, bronze grackles, red-winged blackbirds and many other species.
