Georgia Natural Wonder #53 - Lewis Island Tract. 924

[Top Row Dawg]

Georgia Natural Wonder #53 - Lewis Island Tract

Lewis Island Tract OK this sounds like a neat place. I remember reading a little about this when I was doing the Islands of McIntosh as an earlier natural wonder. I did not want to go upstream to cover this island preserve, as I was already overloaded just staying to marsh islands, but now we see it is a National Natural Landmark. It stands as its own Georgia Natural Wonder. So let’s float 5 miles upstream from Darien on the Altamaha River, this is the official NNL designation…..


Lewis Island Tract official NNL photo.

One of the most extensive bottomland hardwood swamps in Georgia, the Lewis Island Tract contains stands of virgin bald cypress and associated swamp hardwood species. Located within the Lewis Island Natural Area, the site also supports several uncommon wildlife species.

Location: McIntosh County, GA

Year designated: 1974

Acres: 5,969

Ownership: State


To visit these trees, one has to "trudge"through 100 yards of "wetland"; but definitely worth the effort.



This part of the Altamaha Bioreserve contains diverse ecosystems as it includes a fresh water river (largest on US East Coast), the tidal braided streams that have varying degrees of salinity, marsh, high bluffs and fresh water tidal swamps. All this in an easy day's paddle. Approximately 6 hours total.



The interior of Lewis Island was saved from further timber cutting by the Nature Conservancy in the 1960's as loggers were attempting to harvest the last of the ancient cypress trees.



Lewis Island Natural Area

Without sandy beaches and high-rise condominiums, this is not what people generally imagine when you say "island." But Lewis Island, located five miles up the Altamaha River from Darien, is accessible only by boat and is a natural treasure that has fascinated scientists and naturalists alike.



The 8-mile-long island contains a remnant of the great hardwood forests that bordered Georgia's Coastal Plain rivers, including the largest known grove of virgin tidewater cypress and tupelo gum trees in Georgia.



One 300-acre stand of baldcypress has trees 6 to 7 feet in diameter, which are estimated to be 1,000 years old, with one tree believed to be over 1,300 years old.





The primitive island is defined on the west by the main channel of the Altamaha River and on the east by Lewis Creek and the broad, dense Buffalo Swamp.



Loggers attempted to get to the trees, but thankfully logging cables were not long enough to reach them and today never will because the tract was purchased from the Georgia-Pacific Corporation by the State of Georgia in 1973 to be protected as part of the Altamaha State Wildlife Management Area.



The 5,633-acre natural area is home to deer, otters, raccoons, feral pigs, and gray squirrels.



Swallow-tailed kites nest here, and also observed on the island are Mississippi kites, parula warblers, yellow-crowned night herons, green herons, Louisiana herons, pileated woodpeckers, egrets, ibis, and wrens.


Mississippi kite

Snail-loving limkins have occasionally been seen near the island. Common reptiles are alligators, Florida cooters, yellow-bellied turtles, as well as rainbow, mud, cottonmouth, yellow rat, and red-bellied water snakes.


Florida cooter is evidently a turtle. Learned something new with this post.

Near the water's edge, streamside flowers such as the pink-flowered Physostegia are common, along with wild potato vine, spider lilies, and swamp mallow.


Streamside Physostegia

An interesting characteristic of Lewis Island is that it is a tidewater swamp, which means it has adapted to daily fluctuations in water levels and current flow, unlike river swamps that are affected mainly by seasonal fluctuations in water levels.



The island must be approached by boat. The floor of Lewis Island may be under water from January to June, when the river leaves its banks, submerging a half-mile trail leading to the big trees. When the river is down the rest of the year, the trail reappears, but be sure to take shoes that can get wet and muddy.


Tupelo Gum tree.

The trailhead is located approximately 0.25 mile southeast of the intersection of Studhorse Creek and Pico Creek. The Department of Natural Resources attempts to keep the trail marked, but floods may remove or hide the blazes, so its best to ask for directions and river conditions at the area's headquarters on Butler Island.



Directions: Access is difficult to Lewis Island, located 5 miles upstream from Darien. A boat is mandatory and an experienced guide is recommended for attempting the trip. Contact Two-Way Fish Camp for wildlife charters, phone (912) 265-0410; or outfitters that offer guided wildlife tours, such as Southeast Adventure Outfitters, phone (912) 638-6732, or Altamaha Wilderness Outfitter, phone (912) 437-6010. For directions and local conditions, contact the area manager's office on Butler Island, phone (912) 262-3173.

For more information: Altamaha River Waterfowl Area, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, One Conservation Way, Brunswick, GA 31523. Phone (912) 262-3173.

Altamaha River

Someone described this river as Egypt comes to Georgia. While we appreciate Lewis Island alone, we should take this opportunity to expand on the Altamaha River itself while we are down here. The Altamaha River, formed by the confluence of the Ocmulgee and Oconee Rivers, is the largest free-flowing river on the East Coast. The river is 137 miles long and runs from central Georgia to the southeastern coast of the state. The Altamaha watershed drains about ¼ of the state of Georgia, making it one of the three largest river basins on the Atlantic Seaboard.


Devil's Den - Future GNW?

The Altamaha was declared the 7th most endangered river in the United States in 2002 due to the loss of water flow that has resulted from reservoirs and power plants along the shoreline. Due to the unique character and rich natural diversity of the Altamaha River, the Nature Conservancy has identified the river as one of “America’s Last Great Places” and has established the Altamaha Bioreserve.



The Nature Conservancy of Georgia and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are working together to protect several thousand acres of unique longleaf pine forest and Altamaha River bottomlands. For example, Moody Swamp is an area rich in species diversity and includes many 300-year-old trees and several threatened wildlife species.


Moody Swamp.

Biological Resources

The Altamaha River supports the largest concentration of rare species of any river in Georgia. There are 11 endangered mussel species and over 120 species of rare or endangered plants or animals in the Altamaha basin. Seven of these mussel species are found nowhere else in the world.



Mussels of the Altamaha, including the rare Altamaha spinymussel or Georgia spiny mussel.



The Altamaha River is the source of one of the most mysterious plant species ever found in North America, the Franklinia alatamaha, or the Franklin tree. The species is a tree in the tea family. Franklinia, the only representative of its genus, disappeared from the wild some time before the early nineteenth century (it was last sighted in nature in 1803).Botanical oddities attract naturalists, who know the legend of the Franklinia alatamaha, a flowering tree that was identified and collected by 18th-century naturalist Bartram and never seen in the area again. We did a small tangent on this flower last week at Big Hammock Natural Area.



Recreation

In 1972, the state acquired the 6,177-acre Big Hammock Natural Area and the 5,633-acre Lewis Island Natural Area, which consists mainly of bottomland hardwoods and sloughs, and an 800-acre sandhill community that supports the largest population of the Georgia plume. Lewis Island Natural Area contains virgin cypress tidewater forest, with Georgia's oldest trees.





Barrington County Park provides access to the river and a beautiful setting for picnicking, camping, or fishing on the Altamaha River near a historic colonial fort. Tangent to Fort Barrington.


Site of Fort Barrington on Altamaha River.

The 27,078-acre Altamaha Wildlife Management Area/Altamaha River Waterfowl Area (ARWA) is the second largest waterfowl area east of the Mississippi (the largest being the Chesapeake Bay), and is visited by more than 30,000 ducks from mid-October through mid-April.



Water Trail: The Altamaha Canoe Trail offers 138 miles of trail, originating near Lumber City at the confluence of the Oconee and Ocmulgee Rivers and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean.



Natural History

65 million years ago, during the late Cretaceous geological period, the now lower reaches of the Altamaha River were below the sea.


I am going to leave this map oversized so you can see the canoe points of interest.

The marine waters gradually receded during the Eocene epoch (55-38 million years ago), so that millions of years later the freshwater followed natural courses from the Georgia uplands to the Atlantic Ocean, ultimately forming the river systems we know today.

Cultural History

The Altamaha River marked the western border of the Colony of Georgia prior to the American Revolution and, thus, the western border of the English settlement in North America.





The ruins of more than 1,000 Native American sites along the river are evidence of how important the river was to Native Americans, who relied on it for food and transportation. The first “Mississippian Culture” town in the Southeast was established on one of its main tributaries around 900 AD or earlier. That initial trading village founded by newcomers eventually spread to a megapolis about 14 miles long.



De Soto’s chroniclers got the ball rolling by recording the town name of Toa along the Lower Ocmulgee River. Its province’s name was Toasi, which English speakers spelled Towasee. Upstream from the probable site of Toa is a large town site with 28 mounds. This must be the Ocmulgee Indian Mounds.



Unfortunately, despite being the focus of some of the earliest colonial activities by European explorers, the Altamaha Basin has largely been ignored by archaeologists. Today, the Altamaha is the most primeval river entering the ocean from temperate North America. Canoeing down its dark waters was one of the most exotic vacations I ever took. It looks like a river in the Amazon Rain Forest.



Stay in the boat.



Lewis Island Tract and Preserve along with the Altamaha River. Georgia Natural Wonder #53. Now we take the next three days to dodge hurricanes and head to Lip Stick, where General Sherman worked before the war. Lot of reasons to dislike LSU. Our GNW gal for today loves her Altamaha River Mussels.