Located half mile down the popular tram road from the Shark Valley Visitor Center, the Otter Cave Trail carries you into a Caribbean type hardwood hammock with sights of gumbo-limbo and stranger fig. This short trail also offers glimpses of wildlife which are more prevalent early in the morning before the bulk of the visitors enter the region. Interior signage along this rough limestone trail is poor; watch your direction. Also, it tends to flood in summer.

This trail is a good accompaniment to the loop road that leads to the fifty-foot wildlife observation tower that provides a 360-degree panoramic view into the sawgrass prairie.

Directions: From Miami, FL, Travel west for 30 miles along U.S. Highway 41. Shark Valley is on the left, adjacent to the Miccosukee Indian Valley. From the visitor center, hike down the tram road about half mile to reach the trailhead.

Elevation: 5 feet

Elevation Gain: Minimal

Distance: 0.2 miles

Usage: Heavy

Difficulty: Easy

Visitor Information