St. George Island is a barrier island with by far one of the prettiest beaches I have ever seen in my life. 22 miles long, and ranging from high density beach housing to luxury vacation rentals to desolate wind-blown beaches, it is easy to see why it is such a popular area. Steve and I bypassed the more crowded areas and headed directly for the State Park at the east end of the island. As we showed our annual pass at the gatehouse, we were warned of both red- and purple-flag conditions. No swimming, because of dangerous currents (due to Hurricane Sally a few days before), and wading only if you know the Stingray Shuffle, because stinging rays were in the area.
Oh, St. Andrews State Park! Over 30 years ago, I first saw this barrier island which protects an area of the Big Bend region of the Florida Panhandle. My husband and I were newlyweds, and he was on a business trip to Port. St. Joe. I was lucky enough to be able to join him in Mexico Beach for a weekend – a real treat since money was tight and vacationing really was not an option for us then.
While Steve was busy with audit business, I took the rental car and just started driving. The weather was terrible; it was drizzly and the sky had that unvaried gray that would herald a snowfall if it occurred in a less tropical clime. I really don’t remember much about that day, but here’s what I do remember: I walked through the drizzle over a dune on a boardwalk, and saw emerald green water so clear I could see sand dollars and white sand under the water. For over 30 years, I have carried this memory with me and I’ve wanted Steve to have the same experience of that shocking green water against the monotone gray sky.
Bear-N-Oak trail in Indian Lake State Forest is one of the Florida Trailwalker program trails, and we highly recommend it. It is an easy hike, and while the trail is blazed in a haphazard way, it was easy to follow and never far from the road. Part of this short loop trail was flooded on the day we hiked – but more about that in a minute. Beautiful swamp views are worth the mosquitoes, and I’m happy to report that my homemade beautyberry insect repellent was effective!
Flooded!
Indian Lake State Forest is located in Marion County very close to Silver Springs State Park. Comprising nearly 4500 acres, the main feature is a beautiful sinkhole lake which drains into the Floridan aquifer. The Bear-N-Oak trail is a wonderful place to observe a karst topography. We came upon several depressions that ranged from the size of a small room to full-blown sinkholes. This results when our Florida limestone is dissolved by water and falls away.
From the parking lot at the southern end of the trail, we proceeded counter-clockwise on the loop trail. The oaks — which outnumber the bears, thank goodness — were cloaked in resurrection fern. Many of them had long, graceful branches that created archways over the trail.
Really nice resurrection fern
All along the trail we could see remnants of sinkholes. Some were small and others were quite large. A side trail led to a large sinkhole that had water in it; the rain was insane in the days before our hike, so we aren’t sure if this is a permanently water-filled hole, but it looked like it. The picture below is of a puddle in the bottom of a much smaller sinkhole.
Depression in karst landscape
This trail was remarkable for the variety of fungi we noticed. There were many branches and fallen trees being worked on by these decomposers. What I loved was that so many of these fungi were on trees that have not yet fallen. Of course we’ve seen fungi on standing trees before, but never such an abundance and variety!
Just one example of beautiful fungi at Bear-N-Oak trail.
The lake itself is beautiful. Many cypress surround the shoreline, which was flooded on the day we were there. Still and reflective, the water mirrored the sky and trees perfectly.
As we neared the halfway point of the loop trail, it became flooded. There was a lovely little footbridge, but as the trail leading to it was flooded, we decided to turn around and hike to the other side of the bridge so we could feel confident about requesting our Trailwalker credits.
The standing water was deep! The flooding was so severe that there was quickly moving water in this general area. We tried to follow it to see the source, but the area was so swampy that we could not. With chest waders and hiking sticks, we might have dared, but we were in simple boots and had not brought our sticks on this day.
As we reached the north shore of the lake, we noticed a really nice recreation area. There are picnic tables, hanging gliders so you can really settle in and enjoy the lakeview, a vault toilet, and primitive campsites.
Terrific spot to enjoy the serenity of Indian Lake
Apalachicola, originally named Cottonton, and then West Point, is found where the Apalachicola River empties into the Gulf of Mexico. It’s just west of the halfway point between Jacksonville and Pensacola. The Hitchoti Indian words “apalachi” (on the other side) and “okli” (people) probably meant something like “people on the other side of the river.” Those who love the place call it Apalach.
Florida’s coastline is protected in many places by barrier islands. These islands are generally long and narrow and are separated from the mainland by a narrow lowland area. This lowland can take the form of a lagoon, a marsh, an estuary, or a combination of these. Occasionally, a peninsula may be long and narrow enough to be considered a barrier island.
Our recent trip to the Florida’s panhandle put us on three barrier islands that highlight the variety and beauty of these coastal protectors. We visited St. Andrews State Park (partially situated on a peninsula), Dr. Julian G Bruce St. George Island State Park, T.H.Stone Memorial St. Joseph State Park at Cape San Blas (another peninsular barrier island). All of these parks are known for their crystalline green water, but we arrived right after Hurricane Sally and the water was not beautiful. It looked like any north Florida Atlantic beach, and the water was too rough to allow swimming.
