Intro
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"Land
of the Trembling Earth" Fauna
Flora Chesser
Island Homestead
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
| After spending the night at a chain motel in Brunswick,
Georgia, we spent our last full day at the Okefenokee
Swamp. It
covers an area of more than 600 square miles in southeast Georgia.
There are three entrances to the Okefenokee: a state park accessible on
the west side of Swamp, a privately run park accessible from the north,
and the federal Wildlife Refuge accessible from the east. We spent most of
our time at the Wildlife Refuge.
The Refuge was established in 1936 and encompasses about 90 percent of
the swamp. For visitors it offers an informative interpretive center and
gift shop, a picnic area, wildlife drive, nature trails, a boardwalk into
the swamp, observation towers, and a pioneer homestead. A private
concession offers guided boat tours, boat rentals and supplies.
Upon arriving we booked ourselves onto a 1-hour tour with Okefenokee
Adventures, and we were
quickly headed into the alleys and passageways of the Suwanee Canal
Recreation Area [right]. This was an excellent choice. We had
a knowledgeable, personable guide who obviously loves the swamp, and the
small eight-person boat with swivel seats allowed us to experience it at
fairly close range. (It is also possible to rent kayaks and canoes to
spend even more time on the water.) |
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"Land
of the Trembling Earth"
The Okefenokee is not really a swamp, which technically means a low-lying
area with still and stagnant waters. The Okefenokee is 103 to 128 feet above sea
level, higher than most of the surrounding land, and the water is constantly
circulating and flowing in channels throughout the swamp. Fed solely by
rainwater, the swamp is a watershed that gives birth to the Suwannee and St.
Mary's rivers to the south in Florida.
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The word Okefenokee is the Indian word for "Land of the
Trembling Earth."
After geologic formation of the swamp thousands of years ago, leaves,
dead vegetation and decaying substances fell into the water, forming
layers of peat. In most places this peat bed is between 5 and 10 feet
thick.
Sections of the peat are pushed up from the bottom by trapped methane
gas created by the decaying vegetation. Seeds and dust blown onto the
floating peat along with the roots of water lilies and other aquatic
plants intertwine to form a thick floating mass [islands at left]. |
| Seeds sprout and plants—even trees—grow on these floating
masses, which become just like any other island—with dirt, thick grass,
larger plants and wildlife—except that they are composed of water-logged,
decayed vegetation suspended above the sandy bottom of the swamp. Tree
roots may eventually lock larger islands in place as they reach the swamp
bottom, but other islands of all sizes float in and move about the swamp.
There are approximately 70 substantial islands in the swamp and 60
lakes large enough to have names. Smaller islands are termed houses and
hammocks. The swamp also contains 60,000 acres of vast marshes covered
with aquatic plants called "prairies."
The water of the Okefenokee is dark, like the color of strong tea.
Tanic acid from decaying vegetation causes the discoloration. The color
gives the effect of being dirty and contaminated, but in fact the water is
so pure that it has been used for years as drinking water. Early sailing
ships traveled up the St. Mary's river to get this water for
trans-Atlantic voyages because to their knowledge it was the only
water that would remain fresh for the entire trip. |
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Fauna
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The swamp is full of wildlife, including American
alligators [left], black bears, white-tailed deer, and otters.
Its many birds include the sandhill crane, osprey, anhinga, barred owl, great egret, white
ibis, blue heron, and red-billed woodpecker.
The swamp also contains 27
species of snakes, including the deadly poisonous water moccasin and
cottonmouth!
Despite the numerous animals that live in the swamp,
besides alligators, the
only animal we saw that we could identify was a thumb-sized peeper.
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Flora
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The flora of the swamp are also beautiful. Among stands of cypress and black
gum dripping with Spanish moss are "prairies" of never-wets [above and
right]
whose yellow-tipped flower stalks poke above the reflective water.
The swamp also
contains three kinds of carnivorous plants: the pitcher plant, bladderwort, and
sun dew.
Obviously, we only got a small glimpse of all the sights the Swamp has to
offer.
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Chesser
Island Homestead
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After our boat tour and brief lunch, we drove the car to a spot
from which we could access a boardwalk to one of the Refuge's observation
stations. Along the way we were able to get up close and personal with
cypress "knees" [at left, a cypress grove reflected in
"black" water] and other swamp foliage. At four stories high,
the observation tower offered a tremendous view of the Swamp's islands and prairies.
And we were lucky to spot an alligator swimming lazily past the
lookout.
We ended our visit to the Refuge with a tour of the Chesser Island
Homestead, which was built in the mid-1800s and lived in until just a
couple decades ago. The house and all its outbuildings, including a
smokehouse, sugar cane mill, barn, and corn crib, indicated how hard life
must have been for early swamp settlers. |
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