[at-l] Fakahatchee Strand

[RoksnRoots at aol.com (RoksnRoots@aol.com)]

           Got into the Fakahatchee Strand wilderness today around noon. The 
park is a state park added onto the Everglades/Big Cypress spread on the SW 
tip of Florida by the Florida Trail. It is the result of a man named Finn who 
walked the swamps and cypress stands learning and cataloging its species and 
their importance to the south Florida ecology. He agitated and knocked on doors 
back in the 1960's, finally winning over officials to the Strand's uniqueness.

        The sun was hot in a late warm spell typical of semi-tropical south 
Florida and the slacking of the summer humidity made for more sharply-defined 
fair-weather clouds in a brightly-lit blue sky. The Strand is basically a 10 by 
25 mile wide cypress swamp at the very end of the Kissimmee/Okeechobee 
Everglades drainage. Because of its southern location and constant ground moisture, 
the Strand tends to possess tropical species that managed to blow in from the 
tropics to the south and adapt. What saves these tropical plants is the fact 
that the swamp allows enough moisture to linger in the canopy during dry winter 
cold spells to keep them from dying. Because of that Fakahatchee possesses 23 
varieties of orchid, 9 of which are only found there. 

            Fakahatchee is for hardcore naturalists because the Strand is 
mostly swamp of an average depth of a foot or so with 4.5 feet at the deepest. 
The area was originally gridded with logging roads with the old growth logged 
out years ago. After this was done there wasn't much worth to the Strand so it 
basically reverted back into semi-tropical swamp. These slightly elevated 
logging roads then became access points for swampers. As the years passed these 
berms then became host to plant and tree varieties that preferred the 1-2 foot 
elevation height over the surrounding swamp. 

          Anyway, the park is totally undeveloped and primitive. That is why 
it is a hardcore zone. The best way to access the best spots in this swamp is 
to do the unimaginable and walk straight into the thick cypress swamp right 
through the water. The water is remarkably clear considering it's swamp. I think 
this is because of the large volume of sheet flow the Everglades drainage 
creates. Once you get used to it, the swamp isn't as ominous as it first looks. 
However, you need to know what you're doing since the vegetation is so thick 
you can only see through it for 10-20 yards.

        I won't try to explain the hundreds of semi-tropical species 
encountered just by stopping the car on the park road and looking into the swamp, but 
I will say that it is a treasure to any northern person who hasn't experienced 
semi-tropical woods. The first things noticed are the abundant bromeliads and 
epiphytes. These are parasitic type plants that grow on tree limbs 
independently without sapping the host. They are a straight vestige of the tropics whose 
seeds either came in with birds or blew-in with hurricanes over the years. 
Next are the weird flowers dispersed with regularity as you walk. Some are 
delicate lilies that look out of place in a dark swamp. This concentration holds 
true for plants and creatures in general in the warm, wet, fecund climate. It 
also holds true for mosquitoes. Long pants and shirt are advised. Water 
Moccasins and Diamondbacks can also be encountered.

       Turtles and birds are plentiful in the virgin environment. This is 
also the heart of the surviving Florida Panther habitat. The best way to view the 
Strand is to just stop and stare at the trees and listen to the noises of the 
swamp. Most of the time it's pretty dead silent. Other times it can be a roar 
of bugs, crickets, and frogs - or if you are really lucky a roaring 
alligator. The swamp forest contains a mix of native palms, hardwoods, swamp maple, and 
bushes. The rest is a profusion of weeds and grasses. Everything in a 
tropical green. No space is wasted in this humid climate, so every trunk hosts a 
garden of lichen, vines, ferns, or some bizarre airplant. 

         Somewhere deep in those stands flowers the "Bumblebee Orchid" (or 
bee something). It is named that because it resembles a fiery yellow, orange, 
and red flurry of bees emerging from a nest. Take one look at it and you'll know 
why. - They're trying to keep these precious swamp jewels from being 
poached-out...