Running trails in Fort Myers, FL
Fort Myers has 12 trails in the directory — 5 paved, 2 boardwalk, 3 loops that return to the trailhead, 5 with a stated distance, 5 shaded, and 1 open 24 hours. 10 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 14,348 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Lakes Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 6,661 reviews
Park with a freshwater lake for fishing, also offers bike & boat rentals, trails & picnic spots.
Manatee Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 6,081 reviews
Waterfront park providing trails, up-close views of manatees, an amphitheater & kayak rentals.
Harns Marsh
4.5 ★★★★★ 347 reviews
Scenic marshy area featuring gravel trails, bird watching and bike riding.
Wild Turkey Strand Preserve
4.5 ★★★★★ 256 reviews
Natural area with short walking trails, including boardwalks tracks, plus gators & other wildlife.
Trailhead Neighborhood Park
4.3 ★★★★☆ 265 reviews
Green space offering a playground, picnic pavilions & walking paths, along with woods & wetlands.
John Yarbrough Linear Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 214 reviews
Peaceful paved trail for biking and walking with benches and restrooms.
Billy Creek Preserve and Filter Marsh
4.3 ★★★★☆ 191 reviews
Quiet nature preserve with wildlife, picnic tables, and paved trails for walking, jogging, and biking.
Shores Nature Trail Park
4 ★★★★☆ 125 reviews
Small boardwalk, plus a playground and swings, in a cypress swamp location.
John Yarbrough Linear Park Trailhead
4.5 ★★★★★ 51 reviews
Long canal-side trail passing through a park known for wildlife sightings.
Blue Trail
3.9 ★★★★☆ 8 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Fort Myers
- Match the surface to your legs. Fort Myers gives you a choice: 5 paved, 3 mixed, and 2 boardwalk. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More paved trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 3 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Fort Myers is Harns Marsh at 4 mi.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Fort Myers is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 10 of the 12 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 1 is lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 9 have trailhead parking, 8 have restrooms, and 2 have a water fountain in Fort Myers. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 5 shaded, 3 with mile markers, 5 that runners describe as quiet, 7 dog-friendly, and 7 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Fort Myers trails by type
Running trails near Fort Myers
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.