Swamp Explorations
Few people think of swamps as places of beauty and tranquility. Mosquitoes, snakes, and alligators come to mind. In March, mosquitoes are not yet a problem, snakes are sluggish and avoid humans, but large alligators still are to be treated with utmost respect. Muddy feet are not a problem because board walks had been built into the swamps we explored. We also traveled by canoe.
The Francis Beidler Forest in Four Holes Swamp contains the largest remaining virgin stand of tupelo gum and bald cypress trees in the world. It had been featured in Audubon Magazine in the May-June issue of 2002 so we went looking for it. Located not far from Interstate Route 26 between Columbia, S. C. and Charleston, S. C., this handicap accessible preserve features a 6,500 foot boardwalk that begins at the visitors’ center and transverses this majestic tupelo-cypress swamp for one and three-quarters miles.
Beidler Forest is like a natural, serene cathedral. This forest was bought by a lumber man and conservationist, Francis Beidler, in the 1890’s. but he never cut its trees. The forest remains as it was then, a fitting legacy to him and the National Audubon Society and The Nature Conservancy who purchased this 3,415 acre sanctuary when he died.
Loblolly pines towered above us as we entered the forest. As we passed
into slightly lower ground, hardwood trees, still without their leaves,
were predominant. Many kinds of oaks, hackberry, sweet gum, beech, tuliptree,
sweet bay, and many shrubs like azaleas, witch hazel, wax myrtle can be
identified by labels on the boardwalk railing. Only the red maples showed
their colors when we were there. As we ventured farther into the swamp,
the tall bald cypresses in the dark brown water with some of their ‘’knees’’
standing seven feet tall surrounded us. As we explored quietly along the
boardwalk with our binoculars easily available, we heard the loud rat-a-tat
of a pileated woodpecker. Spring warblers were flitting in the low trees.
As we sat in the sunshine on one of the benches along the boardwalk, we
watched the quick darting of an anole, a lizard, which changes color from
green to brown. It was brown on the huge cypress trunk in front of us.
Later we caught glimpses of grey skinks, another lizard. Several kin
ds of salamanders live in moist soil beneath rotting logs and come
out only at night.
The largest cypress along the boardwalk is estimated to be more than 1,000 years old. This towering giant is twenty-one feet in circumference and stands 120 feet tall. These trees are called bald because they shed their needles in the fall unlike other conifers, They grow to great heights in the swamp because few other trees can live in water as they do. They also grow in moist land habitats. Tupelos and water oaks also grow in the swamp in water that is sometimes five feet deep.
The water in the Francis Beidler Swamp is slowly moving out to the Atlantic Ocean. It is fed by many freshwater creeks. It is brown due to the decay of leaves, but not acid. At the midpoint of the boardwalk, we come to a lake, a most restful view. While we were resting, a pileated woodpecker flew by and we spotted a couple of turtles sunning themselves on a log.
Next we traveled to Congaree Swamp operated by the National Park Service. It is upland, closer to Columbia, S. C., and is considered to be a flood plain forest as it experiences seasonal wet and dry periods. It was also purchased by Francis Beidler and although he sold some of the trees, no logging has occurred since 1910. This sanctuary is much like the Francis Beidler Swamp except that it is larger and drier most months of the year. It also has a system of boardwalks and marked canoe trails.
The last swamp we visited was Okefenokee Wild Life Refuge. It is located in south east Georgia. The best entrance is near Folkston, GA. Here are many open lake vistas and waterways surrounded by slash pines and saw palmetto. In the late afternoon we took a driving trail that led to a series of boardwalks and an observation tower. From the tower we were able to see snowy egrets, herons and other water fowl. Along the board walk we were excited to see a Sand Hill Crane feeding in the rushes. It stands almost five feet tall and is becoming rare.
The next morning we rented a canoe and paddled down a canal to a lake with open water and many lilypads. Again it was a tranquil journey. The silence and bird calls were interrupted only occasionally by helicopters flying overhead. We got out of our canoe to stretch our legs and walk around on a floating platform. As we looked around, we saw several small alligators swimming in the water surrounding the platform. Looking closer, we saw the mother alligator sunning herself on a small islet beside the platform. She never opened her eyes, but we were sure she was aware of our presence. We estimated that she was at least eight feet long. One of her babies crawled onto her neck for protection. After we carefully got back into our canoe, we saw small alligators swimming in the water beside us.
We had made reservations for the ferry at St. Marys, GA for our final trip to Cumberland Island. We spent three winter months on this undeveloped, island paradise in 1991. Our task was to identify the trees and shrubs along a mile long trail in the southern part of the island. We were gratified to see that the brochures we had written were still in use. A thunderstorm overtook us and we took refuge on the porch of the park service interpretive center. Regretfully we left without exploring the wilderness part of the island to the north.
This was a real get-away trip. We left in a snowstorm and the weather just kept getting warmer as we drove south. Also we were almost able to forget about the conflicts in our nation and the world for a little while.
– Percy and Mary