According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Suwannee River Basin starts in Waycross, Georgia, around a line south down Gibbs Street, east on Walker Road, south on Gilmore Street, south down Swamp Road, then east along Washington Drive.

Where does southwest Waycross drain? Through Lees Branch, into Middle Fork, Suwannee River

But what about the drainage canal you can see running southwest from Brunel Street across Gibbs Street?

Looks to me like that goes into the Suwannee River Basin.

People who live in Waycross, tell me if I got this right.

Map: SW from Brunel Street on the WWALS map of the Suwannee River Water Trail (SRWT).

North across Washington Street, there is a network of ditches that drains into Caney Branch into the Satilla River.

Map: North of Washington Street into Caney Branch and Satilla River 2025-11-23

But those ditches south of Washington Street seem to drain south towards the Okefenokee Swamp.

Zooming out a bit, USGS tracks agree that most of Rice Rail Yard drains east and then south into Lees Branch (the highlighted creek on this map).

Map: Rice Yard into Lees Branch —SRWT

With the same spot highlighted, you can see how the water coontinues to flow south to join the Middle Fork of the Suwannee River in the Okefenokee Swamp. The thick green line is the boundary of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Map: Lees Branch Middle Fork Suwannee River —SRWT

You may have noticed on that map, the private Okefenokee Swamp Park (OSP) nestled in a notch out of the Refuge.

Map: Okefenokee Swamp Park —SRWT

At the road entrance to OSP, there is this sign.

Okefenokee Swamp Park, Waycross, Georgia, Headwaters of the Suwannee River & St. Marys River, 2024-07-10 –jsq for WWALS

OSP is in the headwaters of the Suwannee River.

It’s a bit of poetic license to say OSP is in the headwaters of the St. Marys River, which is a bit to the east. Unless the sign is meant to say the Okefenokee Swamp is the headwaters of the St. Marys River, which is not wrong.

Anyway, the waterflow from southwest Waycross and Rice Yard to the Middle Fork of the Suwannee River is actually more complicated than depicted here.

See this google-earth-pro map, in which I have put all the waterway tracks in this area that are known to USGS.

Map: Waycross Middle Fork Suwannee River –Google Earth Pro 2025-11-23

USGS stream tracks are quite useful, although not always up to date.

Looks to me like some ditches have been dug in southwest Waycross since USGS delineated the boundary there between the Suwannee and Satilla River Basins.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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