A big gator dozes on a log over the water. Dark, gunmetal gray, alligators don’t blend in with their surroundings and seem like huge prehistoric creatures when approached in what begins to feel like a flimsy canoe.
This most famous resident of Okefenokee is everywhere. Alligators rest in the mud, on a bank or logs. Once an endangered species, more than 12,000 gators now make their home here. Unprovoked, they pose little threat to humans. But the first sighting is a thrill, almost a shock.
Okefenokee-“Land of the Trembling Earth,” in the language of the local Indian tribes-covers more than 400,000 acres in southeast Georgia. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared most of it a national wildlife refuge in 1936 after four decades of intense drainage and logging.
The preserved natural order of this area is rich with plants and animals-223 bird, 41 mammal, 54 reptile, 60 amphibian and 34 fish species. Okefenokee has 107 miles of canoe trails, the best way to see the swamp and experience one of its most unique features-the quiet. The current is so slow that the only splashing you hear is created by paddles dipping into the water.
Stephen C. Foster State Park on the west side of the refuge at the end of Georgia Highway 177 is a good base for day canoe trips. The park is named for the songwriter who composed such favorites as “Oh, Susannah,” “My Old Kentucky Home” and “Swannee River (Old Folks at Home).” (Foster never actually saw the Suwannee River, but he used the name and changed the spelling because it worked for the piece he was writing. It later became the state song of Florida.)
The Okefenokee-not really a swamp, but a rain-fed watershed about 100 feet above sea level-is the headwaters of the Suwannee River, which runs southward through Florida into the Gulf of Mexico, and the St. Mary’s River, which runs eastward to the Atlantic.
Twenty-five miles of canoe trails can be explored easily from Stephen C. Foster State Park. Diverse in habitat, Okefenokee has prairies of open marshy grasslands floating on the water, solid islands where massive loblolly pines create a canopy over a forest floor blanketed in low palm bushes and the swamp itself, where knobby cypress trees grow from the rich bottom through the slow-moving water. Water lilies line the canoe trails.
The water is as dark as overbrewed tea; dip your paddle in and you can’t see its end. But for all this deep color, it is clean and free of sediment.
The water is so dark and still that trees, clouds and sky are mirrored exactly on the surface, creating an optical illusion where the line between reality and reflection disappears.
As diverse as the vegetation, the waterways range from long narrow lakes to glassy paths looping through cypress trees. Billy’s Lake, the largest in the swamp, is more than three miles long. The River Narrows, from Billy’s Lake to the headwaters of the Suwanee River, is a scenic, slow slalom water path through dense vegetation.
The Narrows is one of the most scenic water trails in this part of the swamp. A round trip from the launch area is about 12 miles, taking you through the wide lake into the shaded channels of the narrows. Here the reflective quality of the dark water is at its best. The trees and vegetation slow the current so that hardly a ripple shows. You feel like you are gliding on top of a mirror as your canoe slides through each loop and curve of the channel.
Closer to the headwaters of the Suwannee, and the earthen dam called a sill that holds it back, the vegetation thins, and you go through a meadow with smatterings of trees on the edge and, underfoot (under your canoe, actually), a carpet of water lilies in brilliant green.
Past the sill, the trail follows the Suwannee channel, dug years before to move water and lumber out of the swamp. Now it moves canoes and light motor boats.
The return loop is best done on the Canoe Trail, where no motor boats are allowed. This meandering trail is marked only with occasional signs and white plastic poles suspended in the water. Because of the absence of motor boats, this path is much more overgrown and full of water lilies. They can be hard to paddle through, but the intense quiet is worth it. Here, many birds are easy to spot: herons, egrets, woodpeckers and turkey vultures suspended in the air.
Canoeing in the Okefenokee is a relaxing escape from everyday life. It is a slow mode of travel, but you adjust easily to the gentle pace, the glide, the rhythm of the paddles as they dip into the dark water. Work with the almost imperceptible current as you go, and struggle a bit against the wind that may come upon the open lakes. Rain clouds form quickly, burst open and drench you in a warm spray, then move on as fast as they appeared. You are part of nature here, as exposed to the elements as the osprey and white-tail deer are. You have the advantage of putting on rain gear, but you must make your own gentle way through the swamp, and it cannot be hurried.
At Stephen C. Foster State Park, the campground has electricity, flush toilets, hot showers and is handicapped accessible. Fully furnished cabins are also available. Canoes and motorboats with cushions, paddles and life vests can be rented by the day. The small general store has minimal food, so buy groceries and film beforehand.
For an area whose wealth is in its plants and animals, there is little emphasis or information on them. A museum at the park is tiny, with stuffed specimens of a few local birds and animals. A birding list can be obtained, but not a good nature book specific to the Okefenokee. Bring your own field guides. A magazine-like brochure with basic information is sold at the general store. Despite this, the naturalists on duty really know their swamp, and can answer most questions.
The waterway maps available from the staff are not to scale, do not accurately depict the course of the trails and have no legend. However, the listed distances are correct, and the trails themselves are marked clearly.
An interpretive hiking trail at the launch area is a circular quarter mile path through the swamp. In places, it becomes a boardwalk over the water and provides a basic introduction to the swamp. However, you may find that there are no identification signs posted for the plants and animals that you will see.
Billy’s Island, named for the last Indian chief who lived in the swamp, is only a couple of miles from the park launch area through Billy’s Lake. Stay close to the edge and pass alligators basking in the sun and maybe the elusive turtle. Belted kingfishers glide close to the surface while white Ibis glide overhead and socialize in the treetops. Huge white Great Egrets stand motionless in the shallows near the edge and wait for small prey to move and betray themselves.
There is a small dock at Billy’s Island, once home to a thriving lumber town of 600. Don’t leave anything edible or valuable in the boat as raccoons scavenge thoroughly and will climb right in when you get out.
The canoe map shows a hiking path on Billy’s Island, but it is only a “social” trail, created by the many feet that tramped the same direction. It is not maintained and has no markers. Several other trails begin ambitiously only to peter out within a few hundred yards. The island is up to two miles wide and almost four miles long so there is plenty of exploratory hiking to be done. (The island is actually longer than the open-water Billy’s Lake; swamp surrounds the rest of the island.)
The last of the native Indians were driven from their Okefenokee home in the 1830s and sought refuge in the Florida Everglades. At least 420-million board feet of mostly virgin cypress was harvested before the U.S. government took possession and allowed the swamp to revert to natural growth.
Today not much is left on Billy’s Island of the white man’s incursion, except a fenced graveyard and rusted pieces of metal. Directly inland from the dock, a massive spreading oak marks what once was the center of town. The trunks of other trees are black from control burn fires set every year or two.
Today, re-creations of pioneer life at the Okefenokee Swamp Park at the north end of the refuge and old photos are all that remain of the short, destructive legacy. Native plants and animals thrive and tolerate your presence. The swamp has reclaimed itself.
WHAT, WHEN AND HOW OF VENTURING INTO THE SWAMP
When to go, what to bring: Spring and fall have the most agreeable weather. There is little animal activity during the winter, and summer swelters with heat and bugs. Even in the spring and fall, mosquitoes are a problem early morning and after dark. Bring a mosquito headnet and repellant- and wear pants and long sleeves. During the day, shorts and T-shirts are adequate as the bugs go away when the sun comes out. Rain showers are frequent and fairly warm, so bring a plastic bag for cameras and gear. Poncho and rain chaps come in handy too. The sun can be intense, so bring sunscreen and a hat. Toilet facilities are few and far between, and since you can’t often get out of the canoe, portable potty bags may come in handy.
Can you canoe? If you are in good physical condition, canoeing won’t be too strenuous, but expect sore neck muscles. Cycling gloves will prevent blisters, and flexible shoes or water socks make it easy to kneel and paddle. Remember that the aft (rear) person steers. Motor boats are supposed to make no wake when they pass you, but few do.
Wilderness options: Extended canoe trips are available, where you explore and camp in designated areas of the swamp. Trip run 2 to 6 days. Access is restricted and reservations required. Rental canoes are available. Camping is on solid islands or platforms built above the water and only one party per night is allowed on a campsite. Be prepared to bring all your own gear and necessities, including water. Contact: Refuge Manager, Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Route 2, Box 338, Folkston, Ga. 31537; 912-496-7836.
More information: Reservations are recommended for camping or cabins at Steven C. Foster State Park (Route 1, Box 131, Fargo, Ga. 31631; 912-637-5274). The Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ toll-free number for parks and historic sites is 800-5GA-PARK.
