Donnelley Wildlife Management Area

"Great stop and rest from a long road trip. So much adventure in this area. Gators and birds galore. The old house was a nice find. Definitely keep your pets leashed!"

"Beautiful cross-section of habitat types for the region. The driving tour is a ~11 mile loop through the WMA, which is mostly well maintained dirt road. Some areas are closed to the public during hunting seasons but you’ll still see some gorgeous lowcountry areas. I recommend getting OUT of your vehicle and walking for some sections (I like the causeways) to really hear and see who is here w you"

"If you like to get out of the hustle and bustle, and people in general, this is a great place to go set and eat lunch, or just have a cup of coffee. Quiet, beautiful and the stunning variety of wildlife that you see just in this little area is surreal. If you want to show your children dolphins, you can see them pretty regularly here."

"Beautiful area! The Donelly wma driving tour guides you through each section to see cool things. You have to follow the map pretty closely as it is easy to take a wrong turn but there is beauty no matter which way you go. Last year at this time we went through around dusk and saw tons of alligators but only spotted one today, maybe due to time of day. But we did see many awesome water birds, an armadillo, turkey vultures, and a bald eagle!"

"Update 5/15/2022 Got in touch with Game Management about low pond water levels. In case anybody wanted to know why. "The ponds require periodic draw downs to promote germination of desirable wetland plants to provide food for wintering waterfowl and water birds. When the ponds are drawn down to this extent baitfish such as mullet that don’t go out through the trunk are subject to dying due to lack of oxygen in the water left in the shallow canals. The pond will be reflooded this week and depending on growth of desirable plants may need to be drawn down again mid-summer" Donnelley loop was great. Some sand wash on road. Your average car, suv, van or endurance motorcycle (klx650, BMW, etc) can make it make it down the road. To rough for a corvette or bmw car. Too sandy in spots for a highway motorcycle. Got map from entrance at 17a. We somehow missed the turn after the restrooms (backside loop) and ended up on Bennett Point Rd. Saw 4 gators in one pond and some pink spoonbill cranes."