Doral Glades Park — Attraction in Doral

As my husband and I arrived at the park we were immediately attracted to the exhibit in the air conditioned main building -102F August temperatures were a big factor! The exhibit did not disappoint. From it we can clearly see how the development of the Doral area wrecked havoc on the Everglades. The only invasive species missing from the corresponding display is us: modern humans. Even though it was hotter when we excited the building, we mounted our bikes to check out the short board walk and trail as well as the viewing area. Some -but not all- of the plants planted in the recreational area are indigenous and/or wildlife friendly. The preserve area is a small lake. We saw a few fish and a snowy egret. Hopefully more wildlife will eventually discover this place. The park is surrounded by large block like homes, and a few yards from the wetland there are some of the invasive pines mentioned in the exhibit. On the other side of those pines one can see the enormous lake that is the result of a quarry excavated to build part of the city -as per the explanation on the interactive map with timeline. This large lake is unfortunately not part of the park. The small lake that constitutes the preserve is surrounded by a paved trail, flanked by manicured grass. We didn’t see any native plants along the trail. Hopefully they will be added soon, and these will host beautiful birds and butterflies as we walk (this is recommended in the exhibit: that you plant native plants at home too). An additional value will be that no pesticides and weed killers will be used to maintain the lawns. These chemicals will most likely end up running into the water of the small lake when it rains and negatively affect wildlife. Also there would be no need for watering the hardy native species of plants that can thrive in the dry and the wet season. We also checked out rest of the park with the well known features of other Doral parks: the plastic playground, the tennis courts, basketball and volleyball courts, pavilions and enormous expansion of manicured lawn. We were happy to visit the park and left thinking of its purpose and use. Will it be enough to stimulate in our citizens respect for our environment? Hopefully it is a tiny baby step in the right direction. As our citizens visit the exhibit they might become aware of how much damage we have already done to the environment that was originally here, and how close we are to a point...

Beautiful Park – Great Staff This park is located just north of Northwest 74th street in Doral. Upon arriving, it looks like you’re driving into a subdivision as you turn onto NW 99 Ave. Keep going. The park is absolutely beautiful and the staff is outstanding. As soon as you enter you can see that the area is kept very clean. The trashcans were emptied or checked several times that we were there. There is a wonderful nature center with very nice displays, clean bathrooms, helpful staff and a view on the lake to the northeast of the building. If you get time or just want to cool off, I would recommend taking a few minutes and looking at the inside displays. They are some of the best displays that I have seen at any park in the area. The park has tennis courts, a volleyball court, open grass expanse, trails and several pavilions. We used the largest pavilion located right outside the nature center. It had about 6 picnic tables and 2 small grills. The staff was extremely helpful providing some ice and help whenever we needed it. It was a wonderful event thanks to the location and the staff. If you are trying to figure out where to plan an outdoor event in the area you should try this location. It is a great place thanks to...

Oh, man! What a cool park! It's actually my hobby to go to local parks all around the areas of South Florida that have lakes in them. This one was phenomenal. I actually went there by mistake. A different park in Doral that I meant to go to, Doral Central Park, was closed. I'm so glad that I went. This park/ wildlife nature preserve is just amazing and very peaceful. There is a little bit of everything in the park. If you like sports, they got you - basketball, tennis, a huge field, I think even volleyball, is memory serves me. If you just want to sit down and chill in a field with a blanket, they got you. If you want to explore the nature aspect of it, they got you. There is a deck all around the lake that is a nature trail that was just stunning and peaceful. People were even riding their bikes and scooters there. I would definitely go back. Absolutely...