Lodging: Two full-facility campgrounds, a primitive campground and 12 rental cabins ($85-$95, 561-746-1466). Other lodgings in Stuart.

Tips: The River Store, located in the picnic area, has limited camping gear, grocery items and snacks; it also handles rentals, cabin check-in and boat-tour tickets.

PAYNES PRAIRIE

STATE PARK

Where: Northern Florida, near Gainesville.

Details: 22,000-acre preserve is home to huge flocks of birds, a small bison herd, wild ''cracker'' cattle and horses. www.floridastateparks.org/paynesprairie/; 352-466-3397. Entry fee: $4 per vehicle, up to 8 people.

Prime time: Winter months, when mosquitoes are at bay, temps are cooler and ranger programs more frequent. Thousands of sandhill and whooping cranes typically visit between early December and mid-February; winter residents include white pelicans, snow geese, american bitterns, eagles (though many live here year-round) and snipe (yes, that's a real bird).

How to see it: Ranger programs offered November-April on weekends. Canoeing, kayaking and biking trails (rentals available in Gainesville), and designated walking trails. A short boardwalk on U.S. 441 offers a view into the grasses.

Lodging: In the park, only camping is allowed at designated sites. Chain motels abound in Gainesville. More atmospheric is the Herlong Inn in the nearby historic town of Micanopy, ($120-$190, www.herlong.com, 800-437-5664).

Tips: Go beyond the boardwalk on U.S. 441. The 55-foot observation tower, part of a 3-mile roundtrip walk from the south entrance on the La Chua Trail, offers sweeping views.

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