Sill Ya' Later, Alligator!

 Friday, February 4, 2022

Hi Blog!

After several hours of paddling yesterday, we felt we needed a good long walk. Not far from the Stephen C. Foster State Park is the Suwannee River Sill Recreation Area. Built where the famed Suwannee River flows from the Okefenokee Swamp, the Sill is a massive water control structure (i.e. dam) built by the Federal government in 1960. It is five miles long and was designed to hold water in the swamp during times of drought. It promises visitors views of wildlife and it did not disappoint.

We debated whether or not to take our usual trailhead selfie at the information kisok or the start of the sill. We couldn't remember who did the last blog, so we decided that Kathy should do the blog and Kathy wanted the trailhead photo at the sign. Having won, you would think she would look happier!

On the way to the Sill, we happened upon a couple of does with their fawns eating at the side of the road.

This just proves you always end up seeing more wildlife in the campground than you do in the wilderness.

The start of the Sill is less impressive than it used to be. Water levels have come down in recent years due to breaches in the Sill. This used to be the boat launch.

The new boat launch is about 100 yards further down the Sill.

The first part of our hike was along a paved path at the top of the Sill. Just as we started, a plover yelled at us and flew further along the Sill. Each time we approached, he or she yelled at us and continued another 100 yards down the Sill. This continued for almost a mile before the stupid bird actually flew back behind us, never to be bothered by us again. In the meantime, the snowy egrets were more than happy to pose for a few photos.

The cool thing about the Sill is the way it divides the different ecosystems. On the wet side is the cypress and on the dry side is the pine forest. However, every once in a while, the cypress find a nice wet spot and set up camp on the dry side.

Between 1954 and 1955, five major fires burnt almost 360,000 acres of the Okefenokee (almost four fifths of the total area) and 142,000 additional acres of the neighboring uplands. The fires were preceded by a terrible drought - in 1954 only 26 inches of rain (less than half the annual average) fell in the swamp. Water levels were so low that boat travel became nearly impossible.

When the series of fires burned, much of southeast Georgia lay under such a heavy blanket of smoke that drivers were forced to travel with their headlights on high beam at midday. Heavy rains finally drenched the fires in the summer of 1955, but by this time, many areas of the Okefenokee were reported to be unrecognizable.

The fires scared a lot of people, including the U.S. Congress, which decided that the drastic fires demanded drastic action. At the urging of conservationists, forestry officials, and owners of land around the swamp, Congress mandated the construction of the Suwannee River Sill, a five-mile-long earthen dam built in 1962. With two concrete and steel water control structures which provide an outlet for the Suwannee River, the sill was built to hold water in the swamp and prevent catastrophic fire.

Here is the first of the two steel water control structures:

Flaws in the construction of the sill have led to damage which requires costly repair. Naturally occurring acid in the swamp water is eating holes the size of basketballs in the concrete. Leakage from these holes creates a strong current which the refuge says is dangerous to boaters and anglers. Refuge reports also say that further deterioration could cause a breach in the sill and possible devastating consequences downstream. Today the gates of Sill are wide open to allow water to flow down the Suwannee.

While the first mile and a half was paved, the next mile and a half is along a grass surface.

The second concrete and steel structure is much smaller. It controls the flow of the North Fork of the Suwannee River. It also remains open to allow a more natural flow.

From our vantage point atop the dam, the Okefenokee seems vast and unending.

As we approached the end of our hike, we saw a couple of gators lounging on the banks of the Sill.

We didn't realize when we stopped to photograph the above pair, that another gator had his or her eye on us.

By the time we reached the end of the trail, the pair of gators slid into the canal.

The gator that had its eye on us, still continued to watch our progress.

In 2010, a decision was made to breach the Sill in three places to allow more water to flow. While the Sill continues for another couple miles, we were not able to continue our trek as we reached the first breach.

As we meandered our way back, the snowy egrets were still willing to pose for us.

Some gators preferred to keep their distance. They would slide into the canal and watch us as we trekked by.

Others couldn't be bothered. 

The End!