I got a chance this weekend to take a photograph that I have always wanted to take. A few years back I read “The Orchid Thief” by Susan Orlean. The book has a lot of Everglades history in it and the part that intrigued me was about the great Forida swamp land swindle. The book said that there was a place in the Everglades where the streets were laid out complete with street signs and all as preparation for one of the great swindles of all time. I wanted to get a photograph of those street signs!
I did some research for my latest Everglades trip and found that that land had mostly been bought up and turned into a state forest called Picayune Strand State Forest. I immediately put it on my list of places I wanted to see. I just hoped they hadn’t taken those street signs down. The only thing slightly daunting was a note on one of the websites to “be sure and put out bread crumbs, it’s very easy to get lost”. Well it wasn’t easy to get there either!
According to my maps there were two ways there. One is from Sabal Palms Road in Naples and one is from Janes Scenic Drive. Since Janes Scenic Drive was also on my list that was the plan. So after a morning of driving “The Loop” (more on that in a future blog), Clif and I set out down Janes Scenic Drive. A guy back at the hotel had told us that Janes Scenic Drive was totally impassable but one thing I love about Clif is that he loves a 4 wheel drive challenge. Actually rumors of impassibility were over exaggerated. I wouldn’t try it in a car and 4 wheel drive was nice although probably not required if you’re gutsy. After stopping a lot for photographs and bouncing our way through mud holes we arrived at Picayune Strand State Forest.
There is a very strange feeling about the place. Knowing the history of the place, the greed of man is palpable here. From the Picayune Strand restoration plan:
“This development dramatically changed the natural landscape. The
water table dropped by several feet, turning what was once a healthy,
cypress-dotted wetland into a distressed system that became a target of
invasive nuisance plants. These alterations to the natural system also
caused an increase in wildfires, both in frequency and intensity. Runoff
that once flowed in a broad, shallow sheet to the coastal estuary was
funneled into the Faka Union Canal system. Coastal areas that
historically received smaller freshwater discharges over a wide area
became too salty. At the same time, the concentrated fresh water
discharge from the canal reduced salinity in that area, damaging oyster
reef communities and altering the composition of fish and crabs species.
Drinking-water well fields near the estuary also became vulnerable to
saltwater intrusion.”
http://www.evergladesplan.org/docs/fs_sgge_061504_english.pdf
There were no street signs but there were stop signs. As we went further in we found that the street signs were actually painted on the roads. Remembering that people were sold these lots from the air it made sense.
The photograph says to me that we are at a crossroads. We need to stop and think about where we are going next. This restoration is a start but the damage that we have done to the Everglades is so vast and extensive that it may never completely recover.
I did some research for my latest Everglades trip and found that that land had mostly been bought up and turned into a state forest called Picayune Strand State Forest. I immediately put it on my list of places I wanted to see. I just hoped they hadn’t taken those street signs down. The only thing slightly daunting was a note on one of the websites to “be sure and put out bread crumbs, it’s very easy to get lost”. Well it wasn’t easy to get there either!
According to my maps there were two ways there. One is from Sabal Palms Road in Naples and one is from Janes Scenic Drive. Since Janes Scenic Drive was also on my list that was the plan. So after a morning of driving “The Loop” (more on that in a future blog), Clif and I set out down Janes Scenic Drive. A guy back at the hotel had told us that Janes Scenic Drive was totally impassable but one thing I love about Clif is that he loves a 4 wheel drive challenge. Actually rumors of impassibility were over exaggerated. I wouldn’t try it in a car and 4 wheel drive was nice although probably not required if you’re gutsy. After stopping a lot for photographs and bouncing our way through mud holes we arrived at Picayune Strand State Forest.
There is a very strange feeling about the place. Knowing the history of the place, the greed of man is palpable here. From the Picayune Strand restoration plan:
“This development dramatically changed the natural landscape. The
water table dropped by several feet, turning what was once a healthy,
cypress-dotted wetland into a distressed system that became a target of
invasive nuisance plants. These alterations to the natural system also
caused an increase in wildfires, both in frequency and intensity. Runoff
that once flowed in a broad, shallow sheet to the coastal estuary was
funneled into the Faka Union Canal system. Coastal areas that
historically received smaller freshwater discharges over a wide area
became too salty. At the same time, the concentrated fresh water
discharge from the canal reduced salinity in that area, damaging oyster
reef communities and altering the composition of fish and crabs species.
Drinking-water well fields near the estuary also became vulnerable to
saltwater intrusion.”
http://www.evergladesplan.org/docs/fs_sgge_061504_english.pdf
There were no street signs but there were stop signs. As we went further in we found that the street signs were actually painted on the roads. Remembering that people were sold these lots from the air it made sense.
The photograph says to me that we are at a crossroads. We need to stop and think about where we are going next. This restoration is a start but the damage that we have done to the Everglades is so vast and extensive that it may never completely recover.
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