Okefenokee NWR
I spent this morning visiting Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. The park is quite extensive, and I biked about 15 miles inside it. The photo above is a good example of what much of the scenery was like.
I got on the road shortly after dawn. It was about a 15 mile ride to my first stop inside the park. Since there was essentially no traffic for my entire ride to the park, I could freely bike down the centerline to take this photo.
At my first stop in the park, I went out on a boardwalk from the main parking lot. I could hear quite a number of birds in the bushes and trees, but I made it all the way to the end of the boardwalk without actually seeing one. This photo of my bike is my only photo from that walk.
Next, I left the main parking lot and headed further into the park on Wildlife Drive. I came across this beautiful pond.
When I arrived at the pond, this Little Blue Heron flew up into a tree.
As I biked along, I would stop now and then when I heard birds singing. Occasionally, I would even see them. Here is a Carolina Wren which was being quite vocal.
I was hoping that I might see a number of warblers here, but this Palm Warbler was the only one I saw all day.
My understanding is that when they are making the roads, they build them up by taking soil from alongside the new road, thereby creating trenches which get filled with water. Alligators seem to be fans of this construction approach.
At the end of the road, there was another boardwalk. This time, I was able to see an occasional bird. The first bird I was able to photograph was this Red-Headed Woodpecker.
I also saw this Great-Crested Flycatcher.
Along the boardwalk, many of the trees were completely draped in Spanish Moss.
Leaving the park, I was able to photograph this Brown-Headed Nuthatch. It was a life bird for me, my fifth life bird on the trip so far. I am now up to 235 birds on the year, having added 41 species since arriving in Georgia.
The rest of the day was spent biking south to Macclenny Florida. The temperature was in the low 90s, and I faced a moderate headwind most of the way. I was quite happy to get to my hotel and take a shower.