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Ted Sperling Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 152 Google reviews · Running trail in Sarasota, Florida · Posted hours
Runner's snapshot
- Surface
- Not reported
- Distance
- Not reported
- Shape
- Not reported
- Shade
- Not reported
- Access
- Posted hours
Confirmed from Ted Sperling Park's own listing, the park or land manager's website, and runner reviews. Blank cells mean we could not verify that fact — we would rather say "not reported" than invent one. There is no Easy / Moderate / Hard rating on this page on purpose: a one-word difficulty score tells you nothing about whether a trail suits your run. Surface, distance, shade and hours do.
Park featuring a beach, picnic areas, and kayak rentals for exploring mangrove tunnels and spotting manatees.
What runners say about Ted Sperling Park
“The nature trail through the woods is well maintained and opens onto the kayak area in Sarasota Bay.”
“South lido key beach is also accessible from the park along with a beautiful walking trail through the mangroves”
“The marked tunnels (numbered) seem to be wider and easy to navigate, while some of the side tunnels have really low clearance (like .”
Our family has a fantastic day at the beach here. We arrived around 9ish am and got a nice spot at the beach and really took advantage of the many shells that were ashore. There’s quite a lot of parking space so if you don’t want to arrive early to secure a spot, you won’t have to.
One of our favorite spots in Sarasota! Definitely not for everyone, but for someone who Who likes to walk on the wild side but still have the convenience of bathrooms and showers and of course, fishing! This is the spot highly recommend to check it out. Beautiful in every way!🐬🏖️😊👍🏻
Beautiful! We went kayaking through the mangrove tunnels with our own kayaks but there are tons of rentals and even tours for hire. The country maintains the tunnels, and each tunnel is clearly marked. Because of this, it's not a completely natural experience, but really for this traveler it was.
Love paddling from this park. Gets extremely busy with all the commercial groups, but if you arrive early on a weekday at high tide you'll have quite a treat paddling through the mangrove tunnels here. South lido key beach is also accessible from the park along with a beautiful walking trail through the mangroves
Trail conditions & character
“South lido key beach is also accessible from the park along with a beautiful walking trail through the mangroves”
“Definitely not for everyone, but for someone who Who likes to walk on the wild side but still have the convenience of bathrooms and showers and of course, fishing!”
“There’s quite a lot of parking space so if you don’t want to arrive early to secure a spot, you won’t have to.”
Plan your run at Ted Sperling Park
The practical stuff
- AccessPosted hours — posted hours below; park gates sometimes close earlier than the listing says
- DistanceNot reported. Trail systems often quote total path mileage rather than a single loop, so measure the route you actually want before you drive out.
- ShadeNot reported. Assume some of it is exposed and carry water in summer.
- At the trailheadparking, restrooms — reported by runners
- Phone+1 941-861-5000
Hours
| Monday | 6 am–8:30 pm |
| Tuesday | 6 am–10 pm |
| Wednesday | 6 am–10 pm |
| Thursday | 6 am–10 pm |
| Friday | 6 am–10 pm |
| Saturday | 6 am–10 pm |
| Sunday | 6 am–10 pm |
Running trails near Sarasota
Other trails within easy driving distance — useful when this one is flooded, gated, or just not the run you had in mind today.
Ted Sperling Park Nature Trail
4.7 ★★★★★ 82 reviews
County park featuring kayak tours in mangrove tunnels as well as hiking trails.
South Lido County Park
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Diverse waterfront park offering swimming, kayaking & bird-watching, plus trails & picnic areas.
School Avenue Multi-Use Recreation Trail
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Alderman Multi-Use Recreation Trail
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Half-Mile Trail
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Tuttle Walkway Park
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