Newly constructed boardwalk on West Lake Trail (2022)/NPS, Federico Acevedo

The West Lake Trail at Everglades National Park has reopened to the public after a year of repairs.

The trail was heavily damaged when Hurricane Irma passed through the area in 2017. The hurricane ravaged more than a few units of the National Park System as it roared through the Virgin Islands, into Florida, and up the East Coast.

At Everglades, the storm uprooted and curled the half-mile boardwalk at West Lake. Funding through Public Law 115-123, which was passed specifically for national park units significantly impacted by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, was spent to build a new boardwalk. The project cost $3,453,124 for design, demolition, and construction.

“We are excited to have West Lake Trail open once again,” said Pedro Ramos, superintendent of Everglades and Dry Tortugas national parks. “The finished product is a result of careful planning that restores access for park visitors and ensures the sustainability of the trail as the park is confronted with a changing environment.”

The most severe damage from Hurricane Irma occurred on the exposed portion of the trail where the boardwalk was left mangled. Park officials believe that a microburst from the storm may have caused the most significant damage to the boardwalk.

Hurricane damage to the West Lake Trail (2017)/NPS, Heidi Flugstad

In addition to planning for resource mitigations, the park also implemented several innovative construction methods to plan for future sea level rise and increased storm intensity. Park staff used a "top down” construction method to minimize damage to the wetlands and the mangrove forest that the trail traverses. The construction crews first installed piles and pushed the equipment forward on the piles as they worked. Then, they could reach out and install the next set of piles by moving the scaffolding and equipment forward. This method allowed installation of larger piles into rock without the heavy equipment touching the ground.

Additionally, the walking surface of the boardwalk was raised by one to two feet in elevation, and flow-through decking was installed. Both are measures are intended to mitigate future storm surge uplift and other climate change impacts.

Visitors to Everglades National Park can access the West Lake Boardwalk by traveling south on the main park road. The trail is located seven miles north of Flamingo. The popular interpretive trail is a round trip of 0.5 miles (800 meters) and complies with the Architectural Barriers Act Accessibility Standard (ABASS). The trail is self-guided and highlights four types of mangroves.