The 7 Creeks Partners are hosting the third annual 7 Creeks Fest on Saturday, March 9, at the 7 Creeks Recreation Area in northern Jacksonville. This free, family-friendly event is a chance for everyone to celebrate and explore the 7 Creeks Recreation Area, which is made up of city, state national and nonprofit wilderness preserves.
The 7 Creeks Fest will begin at 10 a.m. and run until 3 p.m. and includes plenty of activities for all ages. Betz-Tiger Point Preserve at 13990 Pumpkin Hill Road is the welcome hub where guests can get the program schedule, visit a host of environmental exhibitors and enjoy music from a variety of performers, including Nan Nkama Pan-African Drum and Dance Ensemble, fiddler Anna Strickland, Americana folk artist Rambler Kane and singer-songwriter Shifty Gears.
A free shuttle will take visitors between the hub and most of the trailheads and parks where activities are planned.
Visitors can take part in guided hikes throughout the 7 Creeks Recreation Area, which will focus on native plants, wildflowers, nature photography, archaeology, birds, geocaching and history. Rangers from JaxParks and the National Park Service’s Timucuan Preserve will be leading hikes, along with award-winning photographer Will Dickey and experts and representatives from Sierra Club Northeast Florida Group, Ixia Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society, Friends of JaxParks Geocaching, UNF Archaeology Lab, Amelia Island Bird Club and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Kayaking at Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve State Park, canoeing at Cedar Point and both guided and self-guided bike rides from Cedar Point Preserve will be offered. There will be dip netting with rangers from Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve State Park along with a prescribed fire demonstration. A camping clinic with Timucuan Preserve rangers will take place at NPS’ Cedar Point.
At Betz-Tiger Point Preserve’s Edwards Creek Trailhead, there will be a fishing heritage presentation focusing on the lifeways and fishing traditions of African-American and Indigenous peoples along with a Junior Ranger Angler Fishing Clinic (registration is required) for children ages 6 to 16. There will also be a selfie scavenger hunt at North Florida Land Trust’s Bogey Creek Preserve.
An entire list of scheduled activities and fishing clinic registration can be found at 7creekfest.org.
Sponsors for the event include W.W. Gay Mechanical Contractor Inc., Geosyntec Consultants, Rogers Tower P.A., JAXPORT, JEA, England-Thims & Miller Inc., the City of Jacksonville and Visit Jacksonville. The Junior Ranger Angler fishing clinic is supported by the Rotary Club of East Arlington, Lew's and a National Parks Foundation grant.
The 7 Creeks Partners include Timucuan Parks Foundation, the City of Jacksonville, Florida State Parks, the National Park Service, North Florida Land Trust and Visit Jacksonville.
The 7 Creeks Recreation Area is 5,600 acres of contiguous parklands in northeastern Jacksonville that are linked by more than 30 miles of trails and waterways. It includes Betz-Tiger Point Preserve, Bogey Creek Preserve, Cedar Point Preserve, Cedar Point (NPS), Jim Wingate Preserve, Pescatello Island and Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve State Park.
This special outdoor destination was made possible by the partnership of park agencies and supportive nonprofits working together to expand access and recreational opportunities for park visitors.
More information can be found at timucuanparks.org/7-creeks-jax.
