Joy in Florida’s State Parks

If you really want to know Florida, you need to get out into our many state parks, 161, in total, national parks, and local parks. Florida is a state of outdoor pleasures and recreation, I know,  I grew up in northwest Florida, and have camped, hiked, and swam, in most of the many state parks in the region, including a few national seashores, for example, Gulf Islands National Seashore.

 

There is so much more to Florida, other than sunny, coastal beaches, boating, deep sea fishing, and cultural attractions of the big cities. Florida is a land of  various ecosystems, and natural preserves. Traveling from Pensacola, Florida, to Tallahassee, Florida, where I live, most of what is seen are forest lands, with an inexhaustible appearing of pine trees almost everywhere.

 

When you get out into our forests, you find our different species of pine trees. It seems that my friends, the pines, are everywhere in north Florida. I am thinking of the many tents I have put up underneath these forest watch towers. So much is attributed to the pines, economically, historically, and in terms of ecosystem survival. I have built many campfires using pine logs for fuel, and pine needles for tinder. I have used fallen pine trees as benches for sitting, and objects to practice my wood carving skills. I have used pines hang my hammocks, put up my clothesline, and to hang food. I have observed so many squirrels climbing up and down pine trees, and when I was a kid, in Milton, Florida, we had an abundance of squirrels in our pine rich backyard. Of all the trees on earth, the pines are my favorite. They take me down memory lane. For me, they represent nature in the world I know the most. The smell of pine, on a wet rainy day, or sunny day, in a thick pine forest, is a good and satisfying aroma, to me.

 

The Florida Trail, which goes 1,400 miles, from Big Cypress National Preserve in far south Florida, all the way to Fort Pickens in the Gulf Islands National Seashore close to Pensacola, Florida, in the far northwest corner of the state.  No, it is not the Appalachian Trail, with its many challenges, but the Florida Trail offers a different variety of challenges, from hiking through swamps, thick jungle like sections, and very high temperature, and humidity. Also, Florida has what some would say, every kind of dangerous snake, spider, and other critters, found in North America. The Florida Trail is not a fast walking trail. Caution is always necessary when on the trail.

 

There are many smaller hiking trails all over Florida, even within my nearby community of Tallahassee. There are many people in Tallahassee who are passionate about hiking, and camping, and the other day, I went to one of the local hiking group’s meetings, and listened to what the new schedule of hiking and camping trips consist of and where the events will take place.

 

To get involved in group hikes, trail maintenance, and to learn more about Florida’s trails, a good organization to join is the Florida Trail Association. Invididual membership is $30. Family membership is $35. The Apalachee Chapter which in in northwest Florida has a website, and it is http://apalachee.floridatrail.org. There toll-free phone number is 800-343-1882.

 

Northwest Florida has caves, in Mariana Caverns State park, in which the public can enter and view the rock formations, and learn about cave formation. There are other caves which I have found in north Florida as well, on private property as well as public lands. North Florida even has waterfalls, rolling hills in and around Tallahassee, and other parts of the region, many lakes, swamps, rivers, creeks, streams, bays, inlets, islands, white sand river banks, such as on the Blackwater River, near Milton, Florida, shell banks, shell mounds, Indian mounds, and sink holes. North Florida, which I know the most, is a great study of nature, and what the glaciers left so long ago as they helped to construct what is today, Florida.

 

One of my favorite activities growing up in northwest Florida, was swimming. I swam everywhere where there was water. I swam across lakes, and rivers. I loved swimming so much that during high school, I was on the Milton High swim team. During my college years at the University of West Florida, I divided my recreational time between swimming, playing tennis, camping and hiking.

 

Come on, you just got to experience the Florida outdoors, and if you live in Florida, experience more of land. I am always discovering something new in the land of northwest Florida. Now, I can share my outdoor love, with my son, and wife.

 

To find camping vacancies and reserve your campsite in any of Florida’s state parks, go to http://reserveamerica.com.

 

When I am in my organic garden, here in northwest Leon County, just outside of Tallahassee, looking over at the green zone conservation area, in back of our property, or when I am sitting beside a campfire in one of our favorite parks, or when, I am on a trail hiking, I think of the verse from Genesis, which always means much to me: “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” The bible does not say it was just good, or just beautiful, or just OK, but it says that it was “very good.” That is exactly how I feel about nature in northwest Florida. It is so comforting to acknowledge this “very good” work of the Creator, especially on a very hot August day, or a cold January

day.

 

Here are some other useful Florida sites:

http://floridagreenwaysandtrails.com  Florida has many greenways

http://fl.dof.com  About Florida’s forests

http://floridastateparks.org  Good resource on state parks in Florida

http://VisitFlorida.com  A must see for people interested in Florida

 

Remember our Florida state parks

Around Tallahassee, Florida, there is an abundance of nature. There are state parks, with forests, lakes, rivers, and sandy beaches along the Gulf of Mexico. Florida is a state with an abundance of state parks and recreational areas. There are 161 state parks in florida with 700,000 acres and 100 miles of beach front. Florida is among the nation’s leads the nation in number of parks. We have nature, and plenty of it. This is the nature I grew up in as a resident of Florida for most of my life.

July 13th is a special day in our state’s park system. Admission that day is free. The state is encouraging individuals, children, and families to get out into nature. This is a state, and national attempt to contribute towards the reduction of that nature deficit disorder which seems to be crippling many of our children and young people who spend hours a day indoors and on the computer. Hey, I am a computer geek too, but I love the outdoors too. I get my love of nature from my childhood roamings through nature.

You see, as a child, I had a forest in back of the home, that I often played in, hiked in, ran in, made forts in. My buddies and I made plenty of forts in the woods back there. We made our own trails. We even made little fires for fun, and fished in the little creek that ran through the woods in back of my Milton, Florida, home. I just about memorized the trees, paths, interesting land formations, and route of the creek. Even today, I have the forest all mapped out in my thoughts. I remember those moments of solitude, and those moments of hanging out with friends back there, and the team work involved in making forts, and having our own special club. The things we did, hahaha. Boys will be boys. Those were the days before the widespread use of computers, in the seventies. Yeah, those wonderful seventies.

Prior to that, we lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and we had an arroyo not far from the house. Along the dried up arroyo, there were streaks of bamboo forests, and open land. I am my friends played there, had rock fights from one side of the arroyo to the other, wrestled in the arroyo, made sand trails, hiked as far as we could toward the Sandia Mountains. Yes, nature was all around us. I also learned the ways of the high desert trees, bushes, wind, cliffs, arroyos, and the southwestern sky.

Now, in my Tallahassee home, my back yard is beside a green zone on Little Lake Jackson. We have deer, fox, rabbits, lizards, snakes, alligators, and different bird species. Nature is alive here as in almost every place I lived throughout my life.

When I was a kid, dad took me camping in the New Mexico mountains, and when living in California, during the first eight years of my life, dad took me into Yosemite, Sequoia, Big Bear and other parks and forests, and taught me how to climb mountain rocks, how to walk across mountain streams, how to set up camp. Dad also loved nature.

Where will I be July 13th? I will be in one of Florida’s state parks, reuniting again, as always, with nature, along with my wife and son. We will be out there smelling the green of the trees, hearing the sounds of the creatures, hiking the paths of the park, swimming in the lakes or rivers, bicycling around the park, canoeing. Wow, so many things we can do. Outdoor recreation is almost unlimited. Free admission.

To be in our Florida’s state parks

Around Tallahassee, Florida, there is an abundance of nature. There are state parks, with forests, lakes, rivers, and sandy beaches along the Gulf of Mexico. Florida is a state with an abundance of state parks and recreational areas. There are 161 state parks in florida with 700,000 acres and 100 miles of beach front. Florida is among the nation’s leads the nation in number of parks. We have nature, and plenty of it. This is the nature I grew up in as a resident of Florida for most of my life.

July 13th is a special day in our state’s park system. Admission that day is free. The state is encouraging individuals, children, and families to get out into nature. This is a state, and national attempt to contribute towards the reduction of that nature deficit disorder which seems to be crippling many of our children and young people who spend hours a day indoors and on the computer. Hey, I am a computer geek too, but I love the outdoors too. I get my love of nature from my childhood roamings through nature.

You see, as a child, I had a forest in back of the home, that I often played in, hiked in, ran in, made forts in. My buddies and I made plenty of forts in the woods back there. We made our own trails. We even made little fires for fun, and fished in the little creek that ran through the woods in back of my Milton, Florida, home. I just about memorized the trees, paths, interesting land formations, and route of the creek. Even today, I have the forest all mapped out in my thoughts. I remember those moments of solitude, and those moments of hanging out with friends back there, and the team work involved in making forts, and having our own special club. The things we did, hahaha. Boys will be boys. Those were the days before the widespread use of computers, in the seventies. Yeah, those wonderful seventies.

Prior to that, we lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and we had an arroyo not far from the house. Along the dried up arroyo, there were streaks of bamboo forests, and open land. I am my friends played there, had rock fights from one side of the arroyo to the other, wrestled in the arroyo, made sand trails, hiked as far as we could toward the Sandia Mountains. Yes, nature was all around us. I also learned the ways of the high desert trees, bushes, wind, cliffs, arroyos, and the southwestern sky.

Now, in my Tallahassee home, my back yard is beside a green zone on Little Lake Jackson. We have deer, fox, rabbits, lizards, snakes, alligators, and different bird species. Nature is alive here as in almost every place I lived throughout my life.

When I was a kid, dad took me camping in the New Mexico mountains, and when living in California, during the first eight years of my life, dad took me into Yosemite, Sequoia, Big Bear and other parks and forests, and taught me how to climb mountain rocks, how to walk across mountain streams, how to set up camp. Dad also loved nature.

Where will I be July 13th? I will be in one of Florida’s state parks, reuniting again, as always, with nature, along with my wife and son. We will be out there smelling the green of the trees, hearing the sounds of the creatures, hiking the paths of the park, swimming in the lakes or rivers, bicycling around the park, canoeing. Wow, so many things we can do. Outdoor recreation is almost unlimited. Free admission.

Another Fabulous Florida State Park

You know, I am in awe at the beauty in Florida’s many, many state parks. They all contribute to protecting Florida’s nature, and wildlife. I am blessed to be living in a state with so many natural areas where we can run, and play, view nature, swim, fish, camp, hike, and interact in so many ways with the outdoors.

 

 I recently went on camping trip with my son, to Three Rivers State Park, in northwest Florida. It is on Lake Seminole which is on the Florida, Georgia border. It is a large lake, and there is a dam, on it. It is the first hydroelectric that my son ever saw. We walked as close to the dam as possible, and found some people fishing in its waters. I explained to my son, that often, where there are dams, there is boating and fishing going on.

 

The weather was PERFECT. We set up our tent, made our campfires, and my son, helped to prepare, and cook some meals for us over the fire. He is a good boy scout, and knows how to make campfires, the right way. He knows that a good campfire needs proper attention, including oxygen and fuel arranged correctly. He knows fire safety as well.

When we camp, we follow the rule of “Leave no trace,” at the end of each campout, so that the next individual or family, will find the campsite so natural and clean.

The main highlight of Three Rivers State Park, is the lake activity: fishing, canoeing, boating. It is not a park for swimming however. The campsite is densely wooded, many, many trees, compared to some other parks. There is a very big, open picnic area, great for those day get-togethers, birthdays, family reunions. It is a good place for those frisbe games, or for the kids to run around in.

My son and I went canoeing on the lake, and found the water to be kind of rough. We were in one spot and found about 4 feet in front of our canoe, a big alligator swimming perpendicular to the canoe. This is Florida, and probably, most lakes do have alligators. This was a big creature, and so graceful as it swam away from us.

My son and I are eagerly waiting for our next fun-filled campout, in another state park.

Northwest Florida adds a new State Park

Many people from all over the world, including myself, are attracted to Florida’s many state parks. There are now 161 state parks in Florida, many of them in northwest Florida. The parks offer natural Florida ecosystems, campgrounds, well maintained bathroom/shower facilities, hiking trails through the forests, fishing, swimming, boating, canoeing and much more. I grew up learning a lot about nature in these parks.

Florida’s newest state park, St Marks River State Park, is just 20 miles from Tallahassee, the state capital and home to Florida State University, where I worked on my graduate program.

St Marks State Park is so new no infrastructure has been created for the park. Currently, the historical and archeological resources are being studied and planning is being developed regarding where to put roads, restroom and picniking facilities, and whatever else will be available to the public. The park does have hiking trails that can be used now. There are old dirt roads through the park from the historical days. The forest products industry was an important industry through much of northwest Florida’s history. Today there are still vast forest lands all over Northwest Florida, but new real estate developments are anchoring in many places in the region.

Northwest Florida is a healthy, good place to live in. Nature is abundant here.

Kenneth Fach, REALTOR ePRO
Weichert, REALTORS-Anchor
1607 Village Square Boulevard, Suite B 103
Tallahassee, FL 32309
Direct/Text 850-339-5753 KennethFach.WordPress.com

Each ffice is independently owned and operated.