North Fork Saint Lucie River

The North Fork of the St. Lucie River is a tidal river in southeastern Florida. It rises in farmland in St. Lucie County near Interstate 95, at an elevation of about 20 feet, and flows south through White City and Port Saint Lucie into Martin County. There it joins the South Fork to form the St. Lucie River estuary. The North Fork is brackish along most of its length, but north of White City it is more like a freshwater creek. The C-24 and C-23 drainage canals connect to the river system. In 1972 the state designated a 16-mile portion of the North Fork as the North Fork, St. Lucie Aquatic Preserve. The preserve covers 2,972 acres in St. Lucie and Martin counties and is also listed as an Outstanding Florida Water.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection runs the preserve, but the access points are managed by other entities. The department lists White City Park, River Park Marina, Veterans Park at Rivergate, C-24 Canal Park and Savannas Preserve State Park as boat access sites. Savannas Preserve State Park has canoe and kayak launches at its Walton Road and Evans Creek accesses along U.S. 1. State saltwater fishing and boating regulations apply. Seagrass is protected within the preserve, and damaging it can bring a fine of up to $1,000.

The Seminole people used the North Fork as a travel route to the St. Johns River marshes, and it was used during the Seminole Wars. Spruce Bluff and White City, two of the earliest settlements on the river, date to the 1890s. Fish recorded in the preserve include snook, tarpon, snapper, mullet and drum.