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State parks reopen in Collier and Lee after Irma
Volunteers worked alongside park crews for weeks after the Sept. 10 hurricanes to clear trees from parking lots, boardwalks and paddling trails.
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State parks reopen in Collier and Lee after Irma

A look back at the week leading up to the day Hurricane Irma hit Lee County and what the weeks looked like in her passing. Andrea Melendez/news-press.com
Southwest Florida's natural attractions are reopening, at least partially, after a hit from Hurricane Irma that has left rangers with a to-do list of repairs.
Volunteers worked alongside park crews for weeks after the Sept. 10 storm to clear trees from parking lots, boardwalks and paddling trails.
The nature center at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida in Naples is set to reopen Wednesday, and a 1-mile section of boardwalk at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary east of Bonita Springs is expected to reopen Friday.
The cleanup is far enough along to swing some gates back open, but others still are slammed shut from the force of nature that was Irma.
The Big Cypress National Preserve east of Naples remains closed, as does Everglades National Park's Gulf Coast Visitor Center in Everglades City and the park's Shark Valley.
More: Hurricane Irma: Big Cypress, Everglades, state parks face long recovery in storm's wake
Lovers Key
At Lovers Key State Park just south of Fort Myers Beach, visitors can walk to the beach or rent a kayak, but many of the park's amenities are shuttered.
The park's beach tram isn't running. Also closed: the park's damaged bathrooms at the beach, a food concession and a picnic pavilion.
Ranger Robert Hughes said the park's beach could be back to near-normal next week but that the park's trails are closed "until further notice."
"I can't even guess," Hughes said.
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Fakahatchee Strand
The story is similar at Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park north of Everglades City. Water still is flowing across Janes Scenic Drive and making it impossible to start the job of clearing brush, manager Steve Houseknecht said.
Once debris is cleared, visitors will be allowed to walk into the preserve on Janes, but vehicle traffic will have to wait for water levels to recede.
The Big Cypress Bend boardwalk off U.S. 41 East remains inaccessible, but the East River paddling trail reopened Monday.
More: Hurricane Irma destroys Everglades City firefighters' homes
Collier-Seminole Park
Trails still are flooded and closed at Collier-Seminole State Park east of Marco Island, administrative assistant Dana Ambrosi said, but campgrounds are open.
The park's landmark "walking dredge," used to build part of U.S. 41 East, and a re-created Seminole Fort survived the storm.
The park's canoe and kayak rental concession has not reopened.
More: Southwest Florida's tourism industry hurting from Hurricane Irma
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Koreshan Historic Site
The farmers market is open Sundays at the Koreshan State Historic Site in Estero, and rangers again are offering tours on weekends.
Campgrounds are open, and so are trails, but the grass is high, so hikers should wear long pants, ranger Mike Gonzalez said.
"They still need a lot of work," he said.
More: Hurricane Irma caused ‘extensive damage’ to Collier beaches; damage elsewhere less severe
Delnor-Wiggins Pass
Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park park ranger Bill Thaller stood Tuesday at the park's gatehouse in North Naples and remembered what it looked like after Irma.
The storm had covered parking lots in sand and downed trees and jumbled the park's dune boardwalk, which still is closed.
The observation tower still stands. Beaches and picnic areas are open. So is the boat launch. Raccoons scamper through the brush, and gopher tortoises lumber across the road.
"How do you think it looks?" Thaller asked a visitor. "It was a mess."
More: How to help, volunteer and donate to those affected by Hurricane Irma
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