Lettuce Lake Conservation Park: River Boardwalk & 3-Story Wildlife Observation Tower

About this adventure

Covering 240 wooded acres along the Hillsborough River in North Tampa, Lettuce Lake Conservation Park is one of Hillsborough County's most celebrated family parks. A 3,500-foot elevated wooden boardwalk winds through a dense freshwater cypress swamp where massive bald cypress trees draped in Spanish moss rise out of still tannic water, providing close-up views of sunning alligators, limpkins, yellow-crowned night herons, and Florida softshell turtles. The boardwalk culminates in an impressive 3-story observation tower equipped with viewing scopes, offering sweeping aerial panoramas of the river bend and wading bird nesting grounds. The park also includes a 1.25-mile paved, stroller-friendly exercise trail, modern playground facilities, an educational visitor center, canoe and kayak rentals, and shaded picnic pavilions with barbecue grills.