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Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park

9/28/2016

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One of the best things about living in Gainesville is the accessibility to Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park. Ellison and I posted about the a small segment of the prairie (La Chua trail) last year, but never about the park itself so we decided this was the week. I brought along two of my nephews and Ellison was so excited to get out and hike with her cousins - especially after I read the list of animals we could potentially see on the trail. The boys are both so in love with the outdoors and their enthusiasm for the hike was contagious.
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We love this park so much and, after having such a great time on this particular outing, Ellison and I decided to make a list of the reasons that everyone should visit Paynes Prairie. 
1. The Observation Tower
This is basically a big tree house with three levels that, from the top, offers the opportunity to survey the grassland below from 50 feet in the air. The kids loved it and swore they could see the prairie bison that roam alongside the wild horses and cattle. There didn't appear to be any of the ever elusive bison and as many times as I've looked over the past 16 years, I haven't had a sighting yet. Trevor and Ellison claim they have, but I'm not sure I believe it. But regardless of false alarms, the tower offers a fantastic view of the expanse of Paynes Prairie and Ellison loved running up and down the stairs.
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2. Wild Horses!
A herd of Florida Cracker horses (and cattle) runs free within the park. They've been there since a band of Seminole Indians corralled them here in the 1700s and we were lucky enough to have a group walk by us on Cone's Dike trail. While they seem unphased by our presence, they made a huge impression on Ellison and the boys. There were about six of them and, clearly hurrying off to somewhere specific, they rushed by without even giving us a glance. For the rest of the afternoon, all Ellison could talk about were the horses- how beautiful they were, how close they came to her on the trail, how desperate she is for riding lessons. This is quite a departure from the attitude she had on our one and only riding experience in the Hawaiian mountains last summer. She swore off horses forever and claimed she never even wanted to see one again (it actually had been really fun, but it was her first time even being around a horse, let alone riding one by herself). Honestly, seeing this herd was a pretty unique experience. I have been to this park dozens of time and have only ever seen them far off in the distance.
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3. The variety of trail options
The park contains 8 trails, the longest of which is 8.5 miles. We took the Wacahoota Trail to the observation tower first (its only like 1/4 mile) because the kids were dying to climb to the top and then walked about 3.5 miles on the Cone's Dike trail. According to the rangers, this is where you are most likely to see wildlife. There is an interactive map in the Visitor Center that allows people to place magnetic images of viewed wildlife on trail locations  - this was a big draw for Ellison and they boys. Each really wanted to have a unique sighting and to be able to move the magnet. Cone's Dike worked well for us this visit because the majority of the trail offers a clear view ahead and the kids could run free. They loved it and were off planning their lives, which on this day naturally included a tree house and a barn for the horses. 
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Paynes Prairie is worth a visit if you ever find yourself in Gainesville. If you can't make it to the park, there is also a roadside boardwalk off of I-75 that offers a short walk out into the prairie where, even though it's right off the highway, you'll frequently see sunning alligators, grazing swamp rabbits or any number of different types of wading birds.

​The years go by so quickly and to see Ellison out with her cousins, in the woods, laughing and talking about silly and serious things, was a reminder that they'll all be grown up before I know it. These boys are the closest people she has to siblings and I just hope that the fun they have on days like this one encourage countless more hikes that strengthen their bond with each other and the outdoors. They're such great kids and so lucky to have each other!

​See you back here soon!
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Way Down Upon the Suwanee River (Big Shoals State Park)

9/13/2016

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It's been awhile since Ellison and I got out and did some hiking. First it was the heat, then school started, then hurricane Hermine. But last weekend we decided that rain or shine, we were going to get back in the swing of things. At the top of our list of places to visit was Big Shoals State Park in White Springs. It is the only place in Florida to have whitewater rapids and we knew that the excessive rain would have made the rapids even stronger. Definitely worth the drive.
Despite it's relative proximity, Big Shoals isn't a park we have been to often (or ever, in Ellison's case) and we were both looking forward to seeing the rapids and maybe getting into the "fall spirit" with a change of scenery. About an hour north of Gainesville, Big Shoals runs along the Suwanee River. It has a terrific network of trails, particularly if you're looking for something longer distance, and has some of the most scenic north Florida terrain. Frequented by kayakers and canoers looking for a more challenging experience than just floating down river  (it has an official Class III Whitewater classification- is that good? I don't know anything about whitewater rafting), you can also camp, bike, trail ride and fish. Dogs are also welcome (but we didn't bring Waylon because he is old and it was hot).
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We started out by heading down to the Big Shoals rapids through the main entrance to the park. You can also enter from the Little Shoals entrance and then take the connecting Woodpecker Trail to Big Shoals. From the parking lot it was a little over a mile to the river. There was some evident storm damage, but nothing so severe that it prevented trail use. So Ellison and I were thinking that it was going to be relatively overcast, with maybe a nice breeze since it had been so rainy lately. We were surprised by the total lack of shade and blazing heat. Why?  I don't know. It's the beginning of September in Florida - the hottest time of year. But yet, there we were, sweating and complaining like we hadn't experienced this every summer of our lives. 

That being said, it was an awesome trail - beautiful pine and scrub forests, cypress swamps  and numerous overlooks along the river. This all used to be cattle ranchland (the oldest in the state), then was used for logging and turpentine production. It is also being used to test for the prevalence of emerald ash borer beetles, an invasive pest that kills ash trees. The purple traps are set up throughout the park - the one below was knocked down during the storm. Trevor recently gave a presentation on the emerald ash borer (you can see it on the Florida Channel) and has been in charge of Florida's eradication program.
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 Once we reached the rapids, we walked along the riverbank and out into the water to get better views of the rocky limestone shoreline. The bluffs drop off roughly 80 feet and it almost makes it look as though flat Florida has some interesting topography. Almost. Ellison was really excited about the fact that the rushing water made it look more like the river and streams of Tennessee (don't think that she isn't already counting down to our annual trip to the mountains). Lately she has been really into photography,  and into taking pictures of mushrooms in particular, so we spent quite a bit of time searching the trail and the banks for all sorts of fungi. The picture below is hers. ​
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After scouting around for mushrooms, we continued another mile or so down the same route and then headed back to the car, where we drove over to the Little Shoals entrance. As previously mentioned, we could have taken the 3.4 mile paved connector, but driving was preferable given the heat. From there we walked roughly a mile down to the Little Shoals portion of the Suwanee. This area certainly wasn't as dramatic as Big Shoals, but it was still beautiful. Had there not been so many mosquitoes, Ellison and I would have hiked at least a few more of the 28 total miles of trails. In our opinion, this is absolutely one of the prettiest parks in Florida and worth numerous visits to really give it the attention it deserves.
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Ellison took a video of the rapids to include with this post and we were both really excited about it, but then my phone died and something happened to the video in the process. So we found a couple on YouTube that we think really captures the beauty of Big Shoals in a unique way (definitely better than our iPhone clip). Enjoy!
​See you back here soon!
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    Welcome! 

    My family and I love to get outside and explore every chance we get. My daughter and I started this blog as a way to chronicle not only the places we have visited, but also as a way to preserve our time together. We hope you enjoy it and will make a little time for a hike with friends! 
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