Finally!!! Internet again!! Those swamp folks are really isolated!.
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| This is Old Roy (newly deceased and preserved), 13 feet long. Jack said I couldn't keep him. He's smiling. |
We arrived at one of the most beautiful places we have stayed on this trip, just outside Waycross, Georgia at the Laura S. Walker State Park. We backed up to a big lake where we could watch a variety of wading birds, flocks of geese, and squirrels. It was roomy, and peaceful and we sat outside in the sun and counted our blessings.
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| Laura S Walker State Park, and our little home |
About 5 miles away was the Okefenokee Swamp Park.
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| Looks like they were decorating for Christmas. |
We took a boat ride through old Seminole Indian waterways, watching carefully for "several different types of venomous snakes that live in this area, including the Cottonmouth, which sometimes drops out of the overhead trees". The water in the swamp is a deep reddish-brown, from the tannin released by the decaying vegetation. It gives off a sulphur odor, but it isn't unpleasant.
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| The swamp... eerie and beautiful |
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| Spanish Moss, called "French Beard" by the Spanish (because they so loved the French) |
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| More of the swamp...note the black water, which is pure enough to drink (per our guide; we didn't try it) |
We did see several alligators, of different sizes, none of which paid the least bit of attention to us.
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| 'Gators!!! |
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| This is the remains of an alligator nest. |
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| More 'gators!!! |
Even some of the plants down here are carnivorous !!
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| Pitcher plants...insects fall into their "throats" and are digested. |
Then we took a small steam locomotive trip through the swamp and out to the rebuilt homestead of some REALLY TOUGH people who made their living out there. These folks made turpentine (from the sap of pine trees), and did some farming. Most of the livestock was gone, but there were some chickens (much to the delight of Stacy, who LOVES chickens).
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| The Chesser Homestead, now part of the park, but they lived here until 1955 |
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| Moonshine still |
The area around the swamp is forested with skinny, straight-up pine trees interspersed with low-growing palmetto palms. As one is driving, there will suddenly be a large swath where all the trees have been clear cut, and they are being loaded onto trucks. They can't be big enough for lumber, so we think they must be for pulp.
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| Palmettos and pines |
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| Logging the Okenfenokee |
There have been two devastating fires in this area within the past 10 years (2007 and 2011) and it's kind of sad to see the aftermath. The rangers say that the Swamp benefits from periodic burns to keep the ecosystem healthy.
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| A view of the burned area |
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| Owl Lake, right in the middle of the burnt area. Really pretty. |
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