This week for Adventure Friday we continued working to earn our Florida State Forest Trailwalkers badge with a trip to Cary State Forest to explore their nature trail. Despite areas of the trail still holding water from the hurricane back at the beginning of the month, it was a wonderful trip. The area was unlike any that we've seen up until this point.
Florida's second oldest state forest, Cary is an interesting area. We walked the 2.6 mile nature trail and it took us through both swamp land, cypress stands, along marsh land and through the historically primary forest of the region, the long-leaf pine stands. The trail follows a rough figure eight meandering through various ecosystems, but we choose to start at the southern boardwalk. Here we entered a mangrove swamp where we were greeted by a snake. The day was cloudy and the temperature was a breezy 82 degrees so it was a perfect day for hiking. The two boardwalks included in the nature trail were filled with signs both about the forest and the animals that one might encounter. Other than the snake, the only wildlife we saw were mosquitos and spiders. However, we did find a deer print and a wood duck print in the soft mud along the trail at one point.
The trail was quite wet in places, which isn't surprising since most of the Nature Trail area skirts marsh land and covers mangrove and cypress swampland. This seemed to only make the trail that much more fun for the kids. The little boys and Kate in particular had a marvelous time stomping through any amount of water. Even the occasional stumble in the standing water didn't seem to dim their enthusiasm. In fact, according to Kate, this was the only good trail we've done so far. Everyone agreed that it felt like another world, as much of the trail roamed through such tall thick growth that it was completely impossible to leave the trail. All of the kids begged to do it again once we finished the trail, or to at least come back another time, so it definitely will be a place that we visit again.
While at the park we drove through the campgrounds just to have a look. All 6 of the RV sites (plus an overflow spot) had nice concrete pads, and water and electric hook-ups for only $25 a night. They also have a dump station that can be used for an additional $10. The sites are spaced out exceptionally well, but with the few pine trees and the low growing cabbage palms in the area there are long lines of site in every direction. Gary and the kids all agreed that it would be an excellent place to stay in the future.
There were no geocaching opportunities along the nature trail, other than a single premium cache which we don't have access to so we didn't do any geocaching. However, we were able to explore the impact of selective logging and the use of fire to control woodlands through the signage along the trail. Furthermore, we learned a bit about the Sherman's fox squirrel which is endangered in the state of Florida, but much to the kids disappointment we were not able to find one. We had a great time and all in all, we had a great learning experience.
If you'd like to make a trip the address to the trailhead is 7465 Pavilion Road, Bryceville, FL. Entrance to the Park is $2 for a car load of up to 6 people over the age of six. Though we've chosen to invest in the year long State Forest pass for $45, and have used it now to access several of the state forest, on several occasions.
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