Polk's Nature Discovery Center — Attraction in Bartow

Beautiful place with great trails through various habitats. We were going by area so decided to check it out for the 2 hours we had. We didn't expect to see much wildlife as it was middle of afternoon on a hot day. But we were wrong! We took short trail named something like Heron Hangout and walked to it's intersection with one called alligator alley. It had various drain pipes linking marsh by going under the trail you walk. It's dry season in early April so much of marsh is dry concentrating critters near the road in the water remaining before summer rains expand marsh again. It is a good time to go. We saw many interesting birds, lots of turtles-many of which were strolling along or across trail to get to water on other side. Many small gators too.we watched small gator from 10 feet as he pushed through seaweed stalking and chomping numerous small fish. We saw slider and softshell turtles up close too. As for birds swallowtail kites,ospreys,rosette spoonbills, common gallinule,various egrets,annhingas and cormorants,also some others. In only 2 hrs in middle of day! We are going to come back and camp in the area to bring our bikes to ride the trails and explore all of them. Excellent area to visit. Has nice nature center to ask where to go that day and to see exhibits on the history and features and nature found there. Don't miss this place. And...

GORGEOUS! This reserve has a small paid staff that are always willing to answer any questions you have about the flora and fauna of Circle B. If they don't know the answer they research it for you and promptly get back to you. The volunteers are the people that people your are most likely to encounter during your visit and are exceptionally knowledgeable with a vast array of personal backgrounds to contribute to your experience.

The only issues I ever have are from the visitors who ignore to signs posted saying "No Pets Allowed" and "No Harassing the Wildlife" or the visitors who go off the designated trails and claim ignorance. It's a "Reserve" folks, not a "Park". These people are going to ruin it for the rest of the public by forcing the wildlife further away from the trails or by getting injured. No one has yet been injured from any wildlife at Circle B...

We had an amazing time at Polk's Nature Discovery Center with my family! We got there around 5 pm and took a leisurely 4.5-mile walk. We saw tons of alligators and birds, which was really cool. The place was beautiful and the trails were well kept.

The best part was definitely spotting alligators in their natural habitat. It was thrilling and a bit surreal. We also loved seeing all the different kinds of birds.

Even though we visited in the evening, the center felt safe and welcoming. When we met other visitors on the path they were super friendly and helpful in telling us if they saw anything we would do likewise, which added to the experience.

Overall, we had a blast at Polk's Nature Discovery Center. The trails were great, the wildlife was exciting, and the atmosphere was laid-back. We can't wait to go back and explore...