F.D. Roosevelt State Park

When you think of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, you could be forgiven for not thinking of Georgia. He was born in New York, which is home to his Presidential Library. But he died in Warm Springs, Georgia, where he had first visited in 1924, built a rehabilitation center in 1926, and then built a house—known as "The Little White House"—in 1931, just before he became the 32nd president of the United States. I didn't actually visit the historic site (perhaps on another trip), instead spending the day in F.D. Roosevelt State Park, Georgia's largest state park and home to the 23-mile Pine Mountain Trail.

I drove into the park past the Liberty Bell Pool to the Park Office and Visitor's Center. 

Both structures—and others in the park—were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s and 1940s, using local Hollis Quartzite.

 

 

 

On the advice of one of park staff, I stopped at Dowdell's Knob on the way to the trailhead. The drive through the park itself, was beautiful, lined with trees that were mostly still green, but with little pops of color.

 

Dowdell's Knob is the highest point in Harris County (1,395 feet; 425 meters above sea level), with beautiful views to the south.

 

 

It was also one of FDR's favorite spots to drive out to himself or host picnics, and it is now home to a bronze statue of the man himself. 

 

One of the signs notes: "An avid picnicker, FDR held many luncheons at what he affectionately called 'The Knob.' Here, surrounded by the tranquility and beauty of Pine Mountain, FDR was able to unwind with friends and family. Away from the public eye, he could wear his exposed leg braces, unconcerned and unhampered by his disability."

 

 

Then I drove on to the trailhead: I started at the eastern end of the Pine Mountain Trail, and then took the Beaver Pond Trail, completing the so-called "Wolfden Loop". The entire 6.7-mile loop was very well signed and blazed.

 

One of the main attractions of this loop is Cascade Falls, a lovely spot about 2 miles in.

 

But the trail passed lots of other tiny waterfalls that added a lovely soundtrack to the hike. 

 

 It was the perfect season, with gorgeous fall foliage, especially the Black tupelo, which was bright red and glowing in the sunlight.

 

Pine Mountain Trail is aptly named, as it follows the Pine Mountain Range (the southernmost mountain range in the eastern U.S.), which is itself aptly named, as it is home to at least three different pine species that I saw: shortleaf (Pinus echinata), loblolly (Pinus taeda), and longleaf (Pinus palustris), with a dramatic range of pine cone sizes.

 

 

 

Longleaf pines are listed as endangered. Before European colonization, they dominated the Southeast, but they have been decimated by clear-cutting for timber, as well as fire suppression. Their seeds are dependent on fire for germination. Here are some longleaf saplings, which I think look like floppy mop head creatures out of a Dr. Seuss book.

 

The trail also passed "Ferney" a massive loblolly pine. (I believe it's the tallest known specimen of its species in Georgia.) It's so tall (>150 ft; >45 m) that it's hard to even see the pine needles, with all the foliage of shorter trees in the way.

   

 

Speaking of large seed-related things, the second part of the hike was dominated by oaks, and there were some very impressive acorns.

 

I also enjoyed abundant seeing—and attempting to identify—wildflowers, ferns, and fungi. Not pictured: multiple turkey vultures, about four white-tailed deer, one chipmunk, and countless eastern gray squirrels.

 

Pineland Silkgrass (Pityopsis aspera)

Sphagnum moss, maybe Prairie Peatmoss (Sphagnum palustre)

Gilled Polypore (Trametes betulina)

Some kind of American Aster (Symphyotrichum sp.)

Bouquet Aster (Eurybia mirabilis), I think

Phaeolus tabulaeformis?

Crowded Parchment (Stereum complicatum)

On the whole, a lovely day of hiking and nature. I don't know whether I'll make it back before I leave Georgia, because I'm trying to get to as many of the state parks as I can this year, but it certainly merits a return trip!

 

Bookclub in Savannah

My Atlanta bookclub spent this past weekend in Savannah, on the Georgia coast. We enjoyed the beach on Tybee Island, as well as wandering through Savannah's bookstores, tea shops, and art galleries. Two of us pulled ourselves out of bed early to go birding on Sunday and were rewarded with sights of roseate spoonbills, wood storks, herons, anhingas, and a family of raccoons. Here are a few highlights.

 

We spent most of the first day on Tybee Island, a barrier island just east of Savannah. With an air temperature over 90 °F, and a water temperature of 87 °F, it was almost too warm, but we all enjoyed the water and were very excited to see a pod of dolphins swimming just offshore. On the way home, we stopped by the Tybee Island Light Station, the third lighthouse on this site, built in 1773 (since repaired), and still actively maintained and operated by the Coast Guard.

We visited multiple bookstores and tea shops in Savannah, but the highlight was certainly E. Shaver Booksellers, a cute independent bookstore with a great selection, and four resident cats: Bartleby, Skimbleshanks, Mr. Eliot, and the elusive Morticia (who hangs out in the backrooms and was not sighted).

      

Skimbleshanks

Mr. Eliot

Savannah is known for the iconic southern live oaks (Quercus virginiana) and dangling Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides). Spanish moss is rather misleading, as it is not from Spain, but native to the U.S. and much of the Americas; it is also neither moss nor lichen, but a member of the bromeliad family!

We enjoyed Savannah's urban planning, which from the beginning included small neighborhoods (wards) and open space. Twenty-two of the original city squares remain, adding shade and walking routes through downtown.

On Sunday morning, I headed to Skidaway Island, specifically Priest Landing, which I'd heard of from other birders. We arrived to to a completely empty beach along the Wilmington River estuary, with only a few laughing gulls in the distance.

 

We started by walking along the beach, and soon realized there were crabs everywhere! I believe they were Squareback Marsh Crabs (Armases cinereum)

 After a few minutes, we saw a flock of wood storks (Mycteria americana) fly in...

   

And a few minutes later, my first roseate spoonbill (Platalea ajaja). 

 

  

They all flew past us, across the beach and into the trees, and I couldn't tell if they landed somewhere or just kept flying. So I was very excited when we found them all roosting (assuming it was the same individuals... it might not have been). First, we came upon a whole tree of wood storks. 

 

  

I counted 20 individuals, but there may have been more. Although they look small in comparison to the pine tree, wood storks are very large birds, approximately a meter tall with a wingspan of 140-180 cm (55-71 in).

 

  

I noticed that their feet are pink! Wood storks were formerly listed as endangered in the U.S., but populations have been recovering and they have been delisted; they are also more plentiful in South America.

 

 

I was watching the wood storks when I heard some movement to my right. When I looked over, I saw a family of three raccoons! 

 

 

 

  

As we walked down the trail parallel to the beach, we were rewarded with views of quite a number of lovely birds. Several species of water birds were roosting in the trees together.

 

  

I was most excited to see the roseate spoonbills, which unlike Spanish moss, are very aptly named; like flamingos, their pink coloration is derived from pigments in their diet. Spoonbills were almost hunted to extinction for their feathers, but have also recovered well thanks to conservation efforts.

 

  

There were also several yellow-crowned night herons (Nyctanassa violacea), my first time seeing them in the U.S.

  

 

 

And one tricolored heron (Egretta tricolor).

 

 

 

We also saw a great blue heron (Ardea herodias), a much more common bird in the U.S., but still a favorite. I hadn't realized until writing this today how many different genera there are of egrets and herons (family Ardeidae). Herons and egrets are not biologically distinct, but apparently are named differently only on the basis of their plumage.

 

 

This anhinga (Anhinga anhinga... that one's easy) was sunning itself in its typical posture. Anhingas dive to catch fish, but unlike ducks, they don't have oily, waterproof feathers, so they need to dry out!

 

  

And I'll leave you with a few more roseate spoonbills. Aren't they gorgeous? And also kinda funny looking?

 

 

 

 

I'm thankful for my bookclub friends, who managed to go from idea to blocking off the weekend in approximately five minutes. We all had a great time and agreed we'd be happy to go back. (Next year?) Not pictured: reading time, book discussions, several delicious meals with lots of seafood, and laughter-filled word games.