O'Leno State Park, Florida
October 11, 2020
We were up and out on the road this morning at 9:00 am
Drove to O'Leno State Park arriving around 2:30 pm and set up camp.
It's an L shaped campsite, long enough for the trailer and truck and some.
A fire pit and picnic table in the back L section.
Nice sandy base, we are still in Florida after all.
Trees that keep the site nice and shaded.
It has been awhile, since I have hiked, so we hit the trail as soon as we were set up.
Today we went on the River Trail starting at the Swinging Suspension Bridge
built by the CCC in the 1930s
We walked over from our campsite, so we are already slightly sweaty
it's about 88 degrees and humid here.
Solidly built the swinging bridge still stands 90 years after it was constructed.
Here's the view down the river
Signs warned of alligators in the area, but we did not see any today.
We did see about 20 turtles sunning themselves on 3 separate logs where the Sante Fe River
goes underground.
turtles close up
looking at the sink from the viewing platform
Its wild to think that water is going underground here
and coming back to surface 3 miles later
Sante Fe sink
"A half mile downstream from the main parking area at O’Leno State Park, the Santa Fe disappears for a little over three miles before resurfacing at River Rise Preserve State Park. The river isn’t actually disappearing, though. It is flowing into a sink in the karst limestone formation which underlies this area known as the Cody Scarp."
Historical sign on the origins of the park.
It's Monday and today we will hike the Paraner's Branch Trail which meanders through the woods and passes near several natural sinks, providing a window to the Sante Fe River's underground travels.
We went back to the bridge to start this trail and today the dining hall built by the CCC was open for viewing. So of course I went in to see it.
An owl totem, do you see it Kayla?
turtle totem
blue beard totem
Great beam construction, and stone fireplace
Glad they opened it up for viewing.
Okay now off to hike.
The first water we come to his Hog Lake
I am not sure why its half algae covered and half clear.
I prefer the reflective clear half.
We walked thru a variety of areas
open areas of grass and spaced trees
denser trees covered with palmettos
And what Jim describes as the Prehistoric look
this is how the world looks when they animate dinosaurs roaming
about chewing on the tops of trees.
It must have been his day because we came upon
yes he seems to have a Sink named after him
As far as a sink goes it was pretty
and included some of his favorite Spanish Moss
hanging off a Cypress tree.
After lunch it was time for some chores. We drove to Lake City
and got the oil changed in the truck
Jim got a haircut
and we went grocery shopping.
With some time left in the day I went back to the Sante Fe Sink
by myself, Jim stayed back at the campsite.
Sante Fe Sink, no gators, but the turtles were there
You know I love a reflection shot
Remember Cypress knees from Congaree National Park
they are here along the river banks too.
The bridge from the opposite shoreline.
On my walk back I came upon 4 deer
who ran and leaped away. They run fast and leap high.
It's pretty cool to see.
Sorry they were too fast for a photo.
That's all folks.
Never knew about the sinks... neat
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