UNF Recreation Trails

Named for the Distinguished UNF Professor Robert W. Loftin, the trails at UNF continue to foster his memory while protecting over 500 acres of natural habitat. Today three main trails and two loop connector trails are open to the public daily from sunrise to sunset. Encouraged by campus planner Hilton Meadows, the first President of UNF, Thomas G. Carpenter applied to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for campus designation as a state protected Bird Sanctuary to control hunting around campus. This designation continues to protect hundreds of acres and millions of organisms on UNF campus Robert Loftin along with the Sawmill Slough Conservation Club, UNF faculty, staff and community members established our original 12 mile nature trail system on campus. In early 1973 they were opened to the public and by 1977 were recognized as National Recreation Trails, listed by the Department of the Interior. Today the remaining 5 miles of trails are complemented with interpretive education signs and are maintained for environmental education, research and low impact recreation. The University of North Florida has one of the best natural assets of any Florida university. All policies and regulations are designed to protect the integrity of this site.