Taking advantage of a day off work for Memorial Day, a few friends from church accompanied my wife and I for a day hike at Tallulah Gorge State Park, Georgia. Being later in the morning, the bird activity wasn't too high, but I could hear several warblers in the woods as we descended the hundreds of stairs into the gorge. I managed only one good shot of a Hooded Warbler. Catching eye-level images of Turkey Vultures soaring within gorge from the rim is always an interesting perspective. I also got a Lifer: a Broad-winged Hawk! 

Just a short walk on the nature trails through my parent's Del Webb neighborhood in Greensboro, Georgia. 

A spur-of-the-moment decision to go hike Phinizy Swamp Nature Center in Richmond County, Georgia. 

Plain-bellied Watersnake removed out of a garage on an animal control call in Walton County, Georgia. It was approximately 2.5 to 3 feet long and surprisingly calm during a photo session before release nearby. 

Whenever I make a trip back to Illinois to visit family, I have to make a visit to the Exner Marsh Nature Preserve. This nice little refuge is just down the street from my brother's house in Huntley, IL. I wasn't expecting too much on this cool, overcast morning, but ended up coming away with 8 new Illinois birds and a Lifer: a Yellow-throated Vireo!

In May I drove from my home state of Georgia to Illinois, and then to Missouri. Of course, I couldn't resist a bit of birding in the hotel parking lots. 

Picked up out of a house on an animal control call today. Homeowner tried to stomp it but it got away under some furniture. About 3' long; end of tail missing. Walton County, Georgia.

The last leg of our three-day Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge paddling adventure was back down the Suwannee Canal (orange trail) from the canal run junction to the Suwannee Canal Recreation Area where our  vehicle was parked. 

​Paddling and camping the Okefenokee Swamp is truly a wilderness experience. Everything you will need must be brought with you... and it all must fit it in the confines of a canoe and without capsizing it! Gear must be kept to a minimum.  
Of course, we have the essentials - oars and lifejackets are a must, and I never neglect my small Rx pouch of bandaids, allergy medicine, ibuprofen and a bee sting pen (which my daughter actually needed on our last paddle). Yes, there are toilets at the overnight platforms, and sometimes there is toilet paper, but I strongly recommend bringing some extra TP along with you!

All of our snacks and meals must be able to be kept at air temperature, as there is no refrigerator on the canoe! An assortment of protein bars, trail mix, crackers and squirtable "cheese", peanut butter, bananas and a few other items fill our food bag. We bring a small propane stove to prepare our freeze-dried eggs and coffee for breakfast, and heat our camping meal each evening. Never forget trash bags to bring out all your refuse. 

Clothing is kept to a minimum (but nobody else is out there to catch our odor anyway!). Although I bring a toothbrush and deodorant, I gladly leave behind my razor. Needless to say, one can look like a true "Swamp Thing" when emerging from the Okefenokee after a few days. 
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The camping platforms are spacious, but you may have difficulty fitting several large tents on them. We bring a smaller 7' by 7' tent and our sleeping bags and tiny camping pillows. The only "unnecessary" comforts brought along are the canoe chairs and the thin camping pads to be used under our sleeping bags. 
Since photography is one of the primary purposes of my Okefenokee adventures, I have to keep room for that equipment. But that breakdown is an entirely separate blog. Even with the limited gear, the canoe can sit pretty low in the water. ​

Our final day came all too quickly. Thankfully the storms passed in the pre-dawn hours and the clouds dissipated as the sun rose. A cold front had passed through and the temperatures dropped and the wind increased as we paddled. The first leg of the journey back to civilization was along the short Blue Trail, just over two miles, that heads south from Floyd's Island until it meets with the Suwannee Canal (orange trail) that heads back to the Suwannee Canal Recreation Area where our vehicle was parked.

After struggling out of the narrower trail just south of Floyd's Island, the blue trail comes into the open along the edge of Chase Prairie. The sun reflected across this beautiful prairie illuminating the bouquets of Golden Club and White Water Lily. I had to stop a few times to catch photos of the beautiful Southern Blue Flag Iris blooms. The alligators were also out enjoying the warmth of the rising sun, which hadn't shined for the last few days.

The second day of our three-day overnight canoe paddle through the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge started with occasional rain and drizzle on Chase Prairie. We left Round Top shelter paddling towards Floyd's Island along the purple trail. 

After a rainy paddle across Chase Prairie on day two of our Okefenokee excursion, we crossed the intersection toward Bluff Lake and headed toward Floyd's Island, where we would be spending our second night. 

After leaving the prairie, the channel closed in around us with a wall of shrubs and thickets on the left and right, and overhead stood a moderately tall forest of  cypress, pine and bay. The waterway became so shallow, our oars often hit the peat in the blackwater, while the bottom of the canoe scraped over debris and fallen vegetation. 

The Green Trail was certainly green. Fresh spring growth on the trees and shrubs was made an even glossier green by the light rain. The thick floating carpets of sphagnum moss had a vibrant, viridescent glow. Emerald White Water Lily pads and Water Shield floated by on either side of our canoe. Here was a lush, green, living swampland! 

Just past 2 PM on the second day of our Okefenokee Swamp paddling adventure, we arrived at the bank of Floyd's Island. After setting up camp on the patio (it was bit too musty to sleep inside), we walked the island hoping to find some reptiles. But, alas, it was a bit too cool and rainy. However, we did find many other natural details of interest to post to iNaturalist. 

Obtaining permits to paddle the interior of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is a privilege. Because there are often many people seeking permits, and only one party is allowed at a time at each platform, the permits are often hard to come by. And because you have to call in advance to reserve your permit, this means the anticipation grows exponentially in the weeks prior to the trip. 

My daughter and I booked our three-day trip in early January 2022. Finally, on March 17, our launch day arrived! We checked in at the Okefenokee Adventures and put our canoe laden with camping gear into the waters of the Suwannee Canal on the eastern side of the Swamp. I can't fully express the elation I feel each time I push off solid ground and the canoe finally glides onto the smooth blackwater of the Okefenokee. I'm saturated with a calming satisfaction that I experience on very few other occasions. 

​Some may wonder why I have made so many trips to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. I'm in love. That's the simple answer. I'm in love with this great Swamp; in love with prairie landscapes, in love with the Cypress forests, in love with the jungle of vegetation, in love with the reptiles (even the dangerous ones!), and in love with the solitude of wilderness. As a conservation photographer, it is my goal to document the habitats and inhabitants in this place that I love so much.

In March of 2022 my daughter and I made a three-day, two-night paddle from the Suwannee Canal entrance, to the Round Top shelter, to Floyd's Island and back. All along the way I tried to photograph as many of the Okefenokee's inhabitants as possible. It is always my desire to photograph a species that I haven't yet documented. And things started off well on this particular trip with the awkward call and photograph of a Fish Crow. 

The fish crow (Corvus ossifragus) is a species of crow found in the wetlands of the southeastern United States. Before I became a birder, I didn't even realize there were different species of crows. I just thought every black bird was a "crow". Just like the American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) the Fish Crow is a heavy-billed, large black bird. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology states that the best way to distinguish the two species is by their call. "American Crows give full-throated "caw" notes in pairs, while Fish Crows are more nasal sounding, often giving short notes in pairs" (www.allaboutbirds.org). Most birders describe the Fish Crow's call as the negative exclamation "nuh uh". 
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Although I don't think I can distinguish them 100%, I have American Crows around my house all year round. When the groups of Fish Crows show up, I can hear the difference in their calls. And this black beauty that sounded off during our launch in the Okefenokee sounded just like that stereotypical Fish Crow. So I was happy to get a photo of what many would say was "just another crow", and add the Fish Crow to my Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge checklist.