Do you feel guilty whenever you do nothing? If you are honest with yourself, the answer is probably yes. Even when we take a vacation, we can crowd our itinerary with too many places to see and things to do.
A four night camping trip to Suwannee River State Park in Florida gave me the opportunity to saturate my mind with nature. Each morning as I wrote in my journal, I marveled at the delicate streams of sunlight through the leafy trees. Herb named our campsite “Tranquility Base.”
Most of the time we relaxed in front of our trailer. On this trip we limited ourselves to one hike each day. Herb and I made this decision because we forgot our doggy backpack. (Hmm.. could Herb have forgotten the backpack on purpose, since he is the one who shoulders all of Buddy’s weight?) Because our beagle has degenerative disk disease, we limit his hikes to one mile. We planned our days with Buddy’s needs in mind. After all, at Suwannee no one is in a hurry.
If you are looking for a place to get away from it all, this is the park you should visit. Located at the confluence of the Suwannee and Withlacoochee Rivers, the state park is less than a three hour drive north of Orlando.
The Suwannee stretches from southern Georgia to the Gulf of Mexico for two hundred forty-six miles. The waterway has always been important to Florida history. The pioneer town of Columbus, was founded here in 1841. At that time steamboats traveled up and down the river carrying passengers and freight. Lumber companies utilized the current to move their logs downstream to market. At its peak in the late 1800’s more than five hundred people lived in the area.
Today, all that remains of Columbus is the cemetery, one of Florida’s oldest.
Herb and I paused to read some of the tombstones. Many of the pioneers died at a young age, probably due to a lack of medical care. The cemetery is accessed by foot on the Sandhill Trail, which meanders through wildflowers and longleaf pines.
We explored a different type of landscape on the Suwannee River Trail. The riverbank provided beautiful views through the cypress trees. A word of caution, I saw poison ivy along the sides of the trail. Fortunately, we circumvented disaster.
Private outfitters rent kayaks, or you can launch your own inside the park. The Department of Florida State Parks operates five river camps, spaced about ten miles apart for those who wish to kayak for a few days. The camps can be reserved in advance and they are free. Sorry Buddy, no dogs allowed. Sigh.
The Suwannee Trail continues along the riverbank to the site of Balanced Rock, which sadly lost its balance and collapsed years before we arrived. A limestone tower once stood twenty feet tall, but only the base remains. Since I don’t encounter very many rocks in Florida, I snapped a photo.
After our daily hike, we returned to our campsite for an afternoon of reading in our lounge chairs. At one point I looked up from my book to see something shimmering between two trees in the sunlight. “Wow! Look at that beautiful spider web.” Herb rushed to get his camera and focused on the web and the inhabitant thereof.
The golden orb spider not only spins giant webs, but the yellow color of the silk attracts bees during sunny hours. When a shadow falls upon the web, it becomes camouflaged into the surrounding foliage, and ensnares other insects. I also learned the spider can adjust the amount of pigment in their silk and change the intensity of the color of the thread. Nature’s artist at work. I’m not really afraid of spiders unless they start moving. Why is that?
Every evening we talked around the campfire and delighted in the nightly show performed by various celebrity stars. You know, the celestial kind.
Oh, by the way, the park also rents cabins for those of you who may not want to camp. What are you waiting for? The beautiful Suwannee River is calling you to quench your thirst for tranquility.
As I reflect on our four days in Suwannee, I realize “doing nothing” is good for something, after all.
Kevin drove us through three different ecological communities. The palm hammock, pine flatwoods, and cypress swamp. Along the way he stopped to describe the plants and animals. He told us that alligators often lose body parts due to fights with other gators. Yet, they never die from infection. 
And like all good conservationists, Kevin placed the flower back in the water after his demonstration so it can continue its work.
Highlands Hammock State Park is proud of its history. The park is one of eight in Florida developed by the 
The three of us worked as a team and followed our procedures for setting up camp. Buddy supervised from inside his crate. Herb performed most of the physical work. I walked around looking important with my clipboard and pen. My job entailed checking off each task as Herb completed it. At this point we still need to consult written directions for hitching and unhitching the trailer, but the process is taking less time. This was our third trip. Click on the link to read about our
There are many trails at Paynes Prairie. Most do not allow pets. On Friday afternoon we walked the Lake Trail with Buddy. I think dogs are permitted on the Lake Trail because it’s boring. We walked for quite awhile without seeing any wildlife until Buddy located and started to eat the remains of a dead bat. Herb is an expert at fishing things out of Buddy’s mouth. Whew! I can get along without that kind of excitement.
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