Beidler Forest, SC (4-13-14)
Read MoreArriving at the visitor center. Though small it contains a wealth of information regarding the ecology of the forest. They also have guidebooks and binoculars that can be borrowed for a small fee...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Exiting the back of the visitor center we immediately emerged onto the 1.75 mile boardwalk which would take us through the forest...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Where the ground was higher and drier the understory was covered in clumps of Dwarf palmetto. Despite their small size these miniature palm are extremely long-lived, the oldest on record surviving 500-700 years!...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
A busy sapsucker has left its tell-tale marks on this pine...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
It wasn't long before the understory became much wetter...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Every so often we passed small shelters like this one which no doubt are handy escapes from the hot summer sun or in the case of a surprise storm...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Our first swamp resident of the day...an Eastern Mud Turtle catching some rays...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
By nature, this swamp is an ever-changing place...this means that frequent repairs of the boardwalk are needed as you can see here...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Bald cypress and Tupelo gum are the dominant tree species in the forest. Of the preserve's 16,000 acres some 1,800 consist of virgin forest, part of which we'd be passing through on this hike...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Cypress knees, above water extensions of the Bald cypress root system, are a common sight in the swamp. Scientists to this day haven't nailed down their exact purpose, though one thing is for certain...the bigger the knee the older the tree it belongs to...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Running along the boardwalk rail ahead of us was this Green Anole...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Getting into the virgin stand of cypress we started passing some seriously large trees. Some of the cypress in the forest measure 10' in diameter and are over 1,500-years old...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
We had been anxiously awaiting a glimpse of one of the forests most popular residents, the Prothonotary Warbler. It didn't take long before we spotted one, darting in and out of his home in a nearby hollow cypress knee...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Wandering through the Four Hole Swamp...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
We spotted this Brown Watersnake lounging on a log next to the trail. It looked a bit like he had just had a big dinner...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
At the eastern end of the loop the main trail heads right while a spur boardwalk heads left to an overlook at Goodson Lake...we'd head right first...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Making the turn right at the east end of the loop the boardwalk immediately became a bit more aged than the one we had been using to this point...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Our booklet stated that the preserve also offers guided canoe tours, I'd love to be able to do that someday...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
A look at our lush surroundings as we began the south half of the loop...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
The trees were starting to get big...real big...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
The highlight of the whole hike was being able to sit and watch this Barred Owl, not 100' off the trail, for a good 20 minutes. He seemed completely indifferent to us snapping pictures as he patiently waited for a tasty snack to pass by beneath him...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
As you can see the terrain had elevated a bit and we were now crossing dry ground. Though we could hardly tell this was the 'high point' of the hike...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Winding our way between two immense old cypress...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Looking into the canopy, well over 100' above...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
There were a number of these huge cypress stumps marking the locations of long-gone giants. Due to the rot resistant nature of the cypress these stumps persist for a very long time, on the order of hundreds and hundreds of years...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
The dark waters of the swamps in this region are known as 'blackwater'...it gets its dark coloring from tannins, a chemical which leaches from the bark and leaves of the trees in the swamp...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Nearing the closed portion of the loop we passed what was likely the biggest cypress we saw on the hike...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Unfortunately the last half mile of the boardwalk loop was closed for much-needed repairs so we would have to backtrack from here...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
A panorama of the surrounding swamp near where we turned back...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Backtracking to the T-intersection, we next headed over on the spur towards Goodson Lake...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
After a short time we arrived at the wooden overlook above Goodson Lake...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
A swamp panorama near Goodson Lake...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Climbing the tower we got a good view of the boardwalk below...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Goodson Lake isn't so much a stand-alone body of water but rather a somewhat deeper section of swamp, too deep to allow trees to grow in it. As it is permanently covered in water, this is a popular place to see wildlife in the summer when the rest of the swamp sometimes dries up...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Another good sized water snake sunning itself along the dock at Goodson Lake...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Where earlier we had found the Green Anole, now a Five-lined Skink greeted us along the railing...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
Straining our necks to look at another huge cypress...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion
I don't know that I've ever been on a hike quite like this one...the virgin forest, the plethora of visible animal life, and just the overall quality of the experience left us with quite a sense of wonder as we departed...
audubon societyFour Hole SwampCharlestoncypresstupeloswampvirgin forestNational Natural LandmarkwildlifebirdblackwaterFrancis Marion