Park & Recreation Month: Explore all Manatee County has to offer!

By Charlie Hunsicker, Manatee County Parks & Natural Resources Director

July is Park & Recreation Month and we are so fortunate to live in a county where there’s an abundance of spectacular parks, preserves and beaches to play in! Manatee County provides some of the best recreational activities and facilities in Florida, with 39 parks, 24 preserves and miles of beaches.

Summertime is hot in Florida, but it’s also a great time to get out on the water, splash around in the pool, or pick up a new sport! Despite the heat, some of our outdoor facilities such as Rye Preserve, Emerson Point Preserve, and the Canopy Zone at Robinson Preserve offer shaded trails and play spaces.

Our park facilities offer a range of amenities, including athletic fields, pools, splash pads, and numerous tennis, racquetball, pickleball and volleyball courts. Many of our parks have covered pavilions available for the public. We have nine boat ramps, four dog parks, two golf courses, and more than 20 playgrounds, including a shaded artificial turf playground at G.T. Bray Park.

The County’s state-of-the-art G.T. Bray Recreation Center houses a fitness center, including group exercise classes, an Olympic-sized pool, kiddie pool and splash pad, teen center, hard and clay tennis courts, racquetball, pickleball, and a gym to play basketball, volleyball, badminton, and cornhole.

Our incredible preserves offer ample opportunities for camping, canoeing, kayaking and paddleboarding, plus miles of trails for running, walking and biking. (Not to mention the wildlife you’ll see along the way!) And of course our world-renowned beaches offer an excellent chance to swim, take a relaxing walk, participate in beach yoga, or even gather seashells (while learning to identify them with one of our expert staff).

All month we’ll be highlighting recreation opportunities around Manatee County, including kayaking, running, fishing and more.

We truly believe Manatee County’s park and recreation opportunities make our community stronger, more vibrant and more resilient. Our local parks are where we make memories, learn new hobbies, have adventures and explore the natural world. Tell us what our parks and preserves mean to YOU and how you like to experience them! Share your stories with us on social media using the hashtags #OurParkAndRecStory and #ExploreManatee.

Visit www.mymanatee.org/parks to learn more, or check out our interactive map at www.mymanatee.org/explore.