Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Our mission is to provide resource based recreation with preserving, interpreting and restoring our natural and cultural resources.

We are the Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection division of Recreation and Parks. We manage over 175 of the best voted state parks in the nation, winning 4 gold medals by the national state parks association.

Blackwater River State Park is located in Florida's panhandle and provides access to the one of the purest sandy bottom rivers in the nation. The park manages and protects Longleaf pine ecosystem in the nations largest stand of Longleaf pines within the Blackwater River State Forest. Our park is a popular destination for kayakers, tubers, canoers, and swimmers. We host hiking trails and event pavilions, interpretive programs and guided hikes. We invite volunteers to stay with us as a resident for a maximum of 4 month out of a year to assist making our park one of the best in the nation by keeping clean and well maintained facilities. Volunteers make our parks the memorable places our visitors value year after year.