Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge - Georgia

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1936 to preserve the 438,000 acre Okefenokee Swamp, one of the oldest and most well preserved freshwater areas in America. Its name is a translation of the Indian words meaning "land of the trembling earth." The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is actually a huge bog inside a saucer-shaped depression that was once part of the ocean floor. Today, peat deposits up to 15 feet thick cover much of the swamp floor and are so unstable in parts, that stomping the surface can cause trees and surrounding bushes to tremble, hence the name. The refuge contains numerous islands and lakes, as well as vast areas of non-forested terrain. In fact, prairies cover about 60,000 acres of the swamp and are home to a variety of wading birds including herons, egrets, ibises, cranes and bitterns.

Visitors to Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge can enjoy more than 60 lakes and slow-flowing water trails, called "runs," as well as 121 miles of trails of which 70 are open to day-use motorboats. Seven overnight shelters are available in the swamp's interior, and during your visit, you can relax on the porch of the historic Chesser homestead on Chesser Island or walk the boardwalk and climb the steps of the Owl's Roost observation tower. And don't miss the Swamp Island Drive, a 9-mile driving, biking and walking loop.

To get to Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge from interstate 10 and St. George, take exit 48 from I-10 onto FL 121 North. Drive north on Fl 121 approx. 20 miles until you reach St George, GA. The road designation will switch to GA 121/23 when you cross over the St. Mary's River into Georgia. Proceed north approx. 14 miles until you see the "Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge" sign, where you turn left and follow the road about 4 miles to the Visitor Center.