Tag Archives: Suwannee River Water Trail

Tour of Ichetucknee Springs 2023-12-14

Thanks to Rangers Cole and Owen for an informative tour of Grassy Hole, Mill Pond Spring, and Devils Eye Spring on the Ichetucknee River.

[Three springs on the Ichetucknee River: Grassy Hole, Mill Pond, and Devils Eye 2023-12-14]
Three springs on the Ichetucknee River: Grassy Hole, Mill Pond, and Devils Eye, 2023-12-14; see the WWALS map of the Suwannee River Water Trail, including the Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers.

This tour was part of the agenda of Stacie Greco’s Santa Fe River Springs Protection Forum.

Join us to paddle past these springs this Saturday on Iche Nippy Dip Day Swim and Paddle, Ichetucknee River 2024-01-06.

Apparently there was quite a town at Mill Pond Spring, formed around the undershot water wheel of the mill. Hurricanes, economic changes, and wars caused the demise of the town.

Water lettuce, the main topic of the Forum, is cultivated in nurseries at Devils Eye Spring.

Here’s a video on YouTube of some highlights of the tour.
https://youtu.be/WthagPBbUvI

Or on facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Wwalswatershed/videos/1019535769126733

There are more pictures below.

Or on facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/Wwalswatershed/posts/pfbid02DqDjVAdDJtnS7ZyYu84KSM5eqNEn24kBAeDeCyUUY1GD1AaHqhqqZdDh4TjQNAmSl Continue reading →

Videos: Food at Griffis Fish Camp on the Suwannee River with Seminole Pumpkin 2023-12-09

Part four is videos of the food at Campfire Cookout at Griffis Fish Camp and Suwannee River Paddle including what happened to the Seminole pumpkin C.B. “Turtleman” Adams gave us back in part zero.

[Food and Seminole Pumpkin at Griffis Fish Camp, Suwannee River 2023-12-09]
Food and Seminole Pumpkin at Griffis Fish Camp, Suwannee River 2023-12-09

Spoiler: it got cooked and eaten, after the seeds were saved by several people for planting.

Here’s the video:
https://youtu.be/hh1lEWsC9VE Continue reading →

Pictures: C.B. Adams speaks about Okefenokee Swampers at Griffis Fish Camp Suwannee Paddle 2023-12-08

Update 2023-12-19: Videos: Food at Griffis Fish Camp on the Suwannee River with Seminole Pumpkin 2023-12-09

Naturalist C.B. Adams spoke at Campfire Cooking at Griffis Fish Camp and Suwannee River paddle. He brought bring props and artifacts, including a Seminole pumpkin and a flintlock musket.

This was Friday evening, December 8, 2023, before we paddled from Stephen C. Foster State Park down the Suwannee River through the Sill back to Griffis Fish Camp on Saturday.

[C.B. Adams speaks around the campfire at Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-08]
C.B. Adams speaks around the campfire at Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-08

He told many stories, such as about a man and a bear, about a woman fighting a lion off her child, and about the Seminole pumpkins that the Native Americans used to feed themselves while hiding out in the Okefenokee Swamp.

He brought such a pumpkin, which he says he saw in pictures somebody took after a WWALS Banks Lake Full Moon paddle. For what happened to this pumpkin after Chris gave it to Shirley Kokidko, stay tuned.

Chris “Turtleman” Adams is Continue reading →

Videos: Suwannee River Sill Ramp to Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-09

Update 2023-12-19: Videos: Food at Griffis Fish Camp on the Suwannee River with Seminole Pumpkin 2023-12-09

Part three is video highlights of Campfire Cookout at Griffis Fish Camp and Suwannee River Paddle from Suwannee River Sill Ramp through the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge to Griffis Fish Camp.

[From Suwannee River Sill Ramp to Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-09]
From Suwannee River Sill Ramp to Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-09

Here’s the video:
https://youtu.be/Jxg6dZ5pn2Y


Videos: SCFSP to Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09
Videos by John S. Quarterman for WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS).

For more WWALS outings and events as they are posted, see the WWALS outings web page, https://wwals.net/outings/. WWALS members also get an upcoming list in the Tannin Times newsletter.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations

Videos: Suwannee River Sill to Lunch, Suwannee River 2023-12-09

Update 2023-12-14: Videos: Suwannee River Sill Ramp to Griffis Fish Camp 2023-12-09

Here’s the second part of the Paddle on Campfire Cookout at Griffis Fisth Camp and Suwannee River Paddle: through the Suwannee River Sill to lunch at the Sill Ramp, all in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

[From Suwannee River Sill to Lunch 2023-12-09]
From Suwannee River Sill to Lunch 2023-12-09

Here’s the video:
https://youtu.be/oEJJLBMJhA4?si=bT1I2Ho5tMVT4qQ2

Continue reading →

Videos: SCFSP to Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09

Update 2023-12-13: Videos: Suwannee River Sill to Lunch, Suwannee River 2023-12-09

Here are some video highlights of the first part of the Paddle on Campfire Cookout at Griffis Fisth Camp and Suwannee River Paddle: Stephen C. Foster State Park through the Narrows to the Suwannee River Sill, all in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

[From Stephen C. Foster State Park to the Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09]
From Stephen C. Foster State Park to the Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09

Here’s the video:


Videos: SCFSP to Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09
Videos by John S. Quarterman for WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS).

For more WWALS outings and events as they are posted, see the WWALS outings web page, https://wwals.net/outings/. WWALS members also get an upcoming list in the Tannin Times newsletter.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations

Levy County sand mine proposal tabled until February 6 2023-12-05

Update 2024-01-16: SWFWMD ERP 43046299.000 for 3RT Sand Mine, Levy County, FL 2023-04-19.

According to local citizens and WCJB 20 ABC TV, yesterday the Levy County Commission failed to decide on the proposed special exception, even though the meeting went on for more than six hours.

[Levy County Commission failed to decide if sand mine trucks could head for cows]
Levy County Commission failed to decide if sand mine trucks could head for cows

This is about the proposed Special Exception for the 3RT Sand Mine.

Next it will be back at the Levy County Board of County Commissioners, 9 AM, Tuesday, February 6, 2024, in the Levy County Government Center Auditorium, 310 School Street, Bronson, FL 32621.

Meanwhile, you can still Continue reading →

Suwannee Riverkeeper on The Spotlight Show, Talk 92.1 FM, 2023-12-07

Join us on The Spotlight Show on https://talk921.com at 6 PM, Thursday, December 7, 2023.

Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman and “Diamond” Jim Halter will talk about upcoming outings such as this weekend’s campout at Griffis Fish Camp where naturalist C.B. Adams will tell us old-timey stories before we paddle the next day from the Okefenokee Swamp down the Suwannee River.

[Spotlight Show on Talk 92.1 FM, C.B. Adams at Griffis Fish Camp on the Suwannee River]
Spotlight Show on Talk 92.1 FM, C.B. Adams at Griffis Fish Camp on the Suwannee River

Also this December we’re having a chainsaw cleanup on the Withlacoochee River in Georgia.

To begin the New Year, swim with us on Iche Nippy Dip Day on the Ichetucknee River in Florida, and then paddle down the river.

In September, join us for the second annual WWALS River Revue sit-down fundraising dinner with new songs in the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, 5-8 PM, Saturday, September 7, 2024, at the Turner Center for the Arts in Valdosta, Georgia. Continue reading →

Sewage spills: Ashburn, GA, Live Oak, FL 2023-12-01

Update 2023-12-08: Clean Santa Fe River 2023-12-06.

Live Oak, Florida, was much faster in reporting its Friday sewage spill than was Ashburn, Georgia, in reporting its Sunday-before-last spill.

Probably neither of these spills had any noticeable effect on the nearby Little or Suwannee Rivers, and certainly not on the far-downstream Withlacoochee River.

For more about WWALS water quality testing, see https://wwals.net/issues/testing.

[Ashburn, GA, and Live Oak, FL, sewage spills]
Ashburn, GA, and Live Oak, FL, sewage spills

Ashburn, Georgia, spilled 2,000 gallons on November 19, reported on November 28, into Ashburn Branch, which ends up in the Little River far upstream from Tifton. Continue reading →

South Georgia Naturalist Chris Adams to speak at WWALS Griffis Fish Campout and Okefenokee Swamp and Suwannee River Paddle 2023-11-08

Update 2023-12-27: Pictures: C.B. Adams speaks about Okefenokee Swampers at Griffis Fish Camp Suwannee Paddle 2023-12-08.

Update 2023-12-12: Videos: SCFSP to Suwannee River Sill 2023-12-09

Naturalist C.B. Adams will speak Friday evening, December 8, 2023, at Campfire Cooking at Griffis Fish Camp and Suwannee River paddle. He will bring props and artifacts. He said, “I can guarantee you it will be a jam up program.”

[C.B. Adams, Griffis Fish Camp, Campfire Cooking, Suwannee River, Okefenokee Swamp]
C.B. Adams, Griffis Fish Camp, Campfire Cooking, Suwannee River, Okefenokee Swamp

Chris “Turtleman” Adams is a South Georgia Naturalist, Historian, Farmer, & Folklorist. He has worked with Georgia Native Cattle Company and Okefenokee Adventures, and he runs the Wiregrass Ecological and Cultural Project, bringing awareness to the heart of the Deep South and showcasing its natural & cultural communities.

Join us to camp overnight Friday at Griffis Fish Camp. Campers arrive starting at 4 PM Friday. Chris will start talking around sunset at 5:29 PM.

Mastermind of this event, Shirley Kokidko, said, “Chris will have an hour before dark to show the artifacts but we’ll also have a fire so he can talk as long as he wants.”

Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman said, “You heard Chris briefly at the WWALS River Revue in September. Next Friday you can hear him at length.” Continue reading →