Georgia Natural Wonder #106 - Swamps of Savannah – Chatham County (Part 1). 1,485

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Georgia Natural Wonder  #106 - Swamps of Savannah – Chatham County (Part 1)

OK we already did Ebenezer Creek as a natural Wonder of Georgia GNW #51. That is probably your best swamp float in Savannah, mainly in Effingham County.


Ebenezer Creek Swamp.

We did a two part Tybee Island post GNW #47 (Part 2), to include the approach islands GNW #46 (Part 1). We visited other islands in Chatham County GNW #44. We explored Thunderbolt and the Isle of Hope GNW #39 and  Skidaway Island GNW #40 already.


Wormsloe.

We explored the Savannah - Ogeechee Canal on earlier post involving Bryan County GNW #37 (Part 1). We have been all over Savannah, but have avoided a complex history tangent. 


Savannah - Ogeechee Canal.

I intended to present the top ten swamps in Georgia and I researched for hours the North Field Swamp and other Savannah area swamps. It turns out there are several.

Culvert Swamp in Garden City



Egret Pond in Raccoon Key



Goose Pond in Raccoon Key

Horse Pen Swamp in Meldrim SE



North Field in Raccoon Key



Pine Barren Pond in Raccoon Key



Rice Pond in Raccoon Key

Romerly Marshes on Isle of Hope



Walthour Swamp in Meldrim



Willows Pond in Raccoon Key



Then when you dig deeper for places you can visit, it turns out there is the somewhat new Chatham County Wetlands Preserve at 6811 Basin Rd. Savannah, Georgia.



Once littered with abandoned furniture, tires and deer carcasses, a former illegal dumping ground commonly used by poachers has been transformed by Chatham County into a 494-acre wetland preserve and park for nature and recreation enthusiasts.



The county bought the property, located in west Chatham off US 17, 13 years ago from Union Camp for about $950,000. Since then, more than 20,000 trees have been planted and a 20-acre lake was created on the site of former borrow pits dug to provide material for US 17 and Interstate 95.



Trails now wind around the lake and through the wetlands, where green algae-covered water envelops looming Cyprus trees. Arched bridges traverse the waterways, and launch sites provide lake access for kayaks and other non-motorized boats. Commissioner Helen Stone, who said it would be a good place to ride her horse, called the property an asset to the community.



Recreation was not the only motivation behind the land purchase. The property also serves as a wetlands mitigation bank. By preserving and creating wetlands there, the county became eligible for about 900 mitigation credits that can be applied to future county projects that impact wetlands such as road construction and drainage improvements.To obtain the credits, the wetlands have to meet specifications set by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The site will be monitored to make sure adequate water levels and plant growth is demonstrated.



County Engineer Al Bungard said the $2 million investment in the property is only about half of what it would cost to purchase the amount of credits they will get, which should be enough for the next decade. The county also mitigated the cost by selling, or using, about $250,000 in timber and dirt from the site.“You don’t get a better deal than that,” Bungard said. “And we get a park.”A little work still needs to be done. A fence will be installed around a storage pavilion and some details still need to be worked out for some of the mitigation credits. It  is west of Ogeechee Farms and southwest of Henderson.



Explore the most popular trails in Chatham County Wetlands Preserve with hand-curated trail maps and driving directions as well as detailed reviews and photos from hikers, campers and nature lovers like you. The main Nature Trail is a 1.3 mile lightly trafficked out and back trail located near Savannah, Georgia that features a river and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round.



Chatham County Wetlands Preserve has an elevation of 33 feet, and is nearby to Kings Ferry Bridge and Kings Ferry Park.


Kings Ferry Bridge before demolition.

While researching swamps you can visit, we see that the Georgia Ports Authority is dedicated to meeting the needs of the present without compromising the future. They are committed to conducting port operations in an environmentally sensitive and responsible manner by using natural resources most efficiently and mitigating impacts to preserve our wetlands and protect natural habitats. Nine Acres of diverse wetlands (at the Garden City Terminal) are protected by the GPA. By directing runoff into wetlands, GPA removes multiple types of pollutants while providing flood control and habitat protection.The wetlands include nearly a mile of littoral shelves and are composed of native vegetation, including bald cypress, cord grass and soft rush, while supporting such diverse wildlife as fish, amphibians and birds.



6 silt suspension units are online at the Garden City Terminal, substantially reducing the need for maintenance dredging at the berths. The silt suspension units produce a low-velocity flow to keep water moving and reduce siltationthat would need to be dredged.



212,000 turtle hatchlings have been released into the ocean thanks to the Caretta Research Project, a study sponsored by GPA. GPA is dedicated to protecting right whales and loggerhead turtles, and to protecting and preserving tidal marshes.



Runoff from 1,000 acres is treated by GPA’s storm water system, which captures sediment and pollutants. The storm water master plan includes best management practices, reducing sediment, total suspended solids, oil and nutrients.

Blue Sky Preserve

Tucked away in west Savannah on land owned by Chatham County, the 641 acres of forest and wetlands known as the Blue Sky Preserve serves as a refuge for wildlife and nature lovers. But back downtown, the nature preserve is shaping up to be the latest source of debate between city and county leaders.That is because city officials say they were caught off guard after learning from the Savannah Morning News that the county is seeking help from state lawmakers to remove the preserve from Savannah’s boundaries using de-annexation legislation. “I’m very disappointed by that,” City Manager Rob Hernandez said Tuesday. “That no one from the county reached out to us.”



The preserve is located south of Fort Argyle Road and west of Interstate 95 with the Ogeechee River running along its western boundary. Previously owned by timber companies and used for agriculture and light timber production, the county purchased the property for $1.5 million in 2008 for land conservation and passive recreation purposes.In addition to a 1.7-mile trail, the preserve contains about 570 acres of wetlands that the county wants to be able to use as credits for development purposes, Commission Chairman Al Scott said Friday. Such credits could possibly be used to offset the loss of wetlands for county projects — such as improvements to U.S. 80 going out to Tybee Island — or be sold to private developers for their own projects, Scott said.



“The county attorney said it needed to be de-annexed ...,” he said. “If we’ve got a project and we’ve got to have some credits for wetlands, he felt that it would be cleaner if it was in the county and we’re not offering wetlands to another jurisdiction.” The preserve has been located in Savannah since the city annexed the property in 2004 as part of a 6,561 expansion in west Chatham.



The expansion of the city’s boundaries also included the 4,045-acre New Hampstead planned development site north of Fort Argyle. Scott said he did not see any reason why the city would oppose the de-annexation since the preserve cannot be developed or taxed.“In the meantime, it’s just a nature reserve and we have to go in and maintain the trails, so it has no reason to be in the city,” he said.



If the de-annexation is approved, the city could be getting its own nature preserve around the same time it would be losing Blue Sky. The developers of New Hampstead recently presented the Savannah City Council with a proposal to dedicate more than 800 acres of wilderness and wetlands to the city for parks and passive recreation. The site is also protected from development after being placed in a conservation easement, according to New Hampstead officials.Some council members expressed concerns about the potential maintenance costs of such a large swath of greenspace during an October workshop and no decision has yet been made regarding acceptance of the tract of land.



Looking around the map out around I-95, we notice a spot that may well be a future Georgia natural Wonder by itself. Before the Civil War, the South was dominated by large plantations. One family, who owned 46-acres of land, was gifted a few clumps of Japanese timber bamboo from their neighbor. In just 20 years, the bamboo had grown almost 60 feet. An employee on the farm wanted to protect the plant from being destroyed by future owners of the property, so he petitioned the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The land was eventually used by the USDA as an introductory research station for “economically important agricultural plants for the Southeast.”



A much longer story short, the farm, accompanying bamboo grove and surrounding land are now called the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens, operated by the University of Georgia’s College of Agriculture and Environmental Science.



Another possible future Georgia natural Wonder, the land that is now Lebanon Plantation was part of a 500-acre grant from King George II to French colonists in 1756.  Lebanon Plantation has a history of being at the forefront of agricultural experimentation and production. Lebanon was originally an agricultural experiment by the French settlers in the mid- and late-1700's with indigo, mulberries and olives being some of the initial crops grown.



In the years thereafter, Lebanon participated in the growth of rice production along the Georgia coast followed shortly by cotton. The land passed ownership over the years to several notable Georgians including James Habersham and George Anderson. In the early 1900's, C&S Bank founder, Mills B. Lane, conducted experiments that included satsuma oranges, pecans, carnation cows, and mule deer from the American West.



Lebanon Plantation is a state historic site near Savannah, Georgia, in the southeastern United States. The address is 5745 Ogeechee Rd, Savannah. The site is over 500 acres (2.0 km2) consisting of a large estate granted to James Deveaux in 1756, and was named for the many cedar trees on the property.



Lastly, in our search for Savannah swamps, we see the enormous Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. It is a 31,551 acre National Wildlife Refuge located in Chatham and Effingham counties in Georgia and Jasper County in South Carolina.



Of the total area, 15,395 acres is in Georgia and 15,263 acres is in South Carolina. The refuge was established to provide sanctuary for migratory waterfowl and other birds and as a nature and forest preserve for aesthetic and conservation purposes.

History

By the mid-eighteenth century, rice planters were farming much of the land that is now part of the refuge. The old rice levees, which were built by hand, form the basis for current impoundment dikes. Remnants of the original rice field trunk water control structures and narrow dikes are still visible in some places. Within the impoundment system there are 36 historic and prehistoric archeological sites which have been located and inventoried.



On April 6, 1927, Executive Order No. 4626 established the Savannah River Bird Refuge and set aside 2,352 acres as a preserve and breeding ground for native birds. On November 12, 1931, Executive Order No. 5748 added 207 acres to the refuge and renamed the area the Savannah River Wildlife Refuge. An additional 6,527 acres were assigned to the refuge on June 17, 1936, by Executive Order No. 7391. On July 25, 1940, Presidential Proclamation 2416 renamed the refuge the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge.



These three Executive Orders established the 9,086-acre core of the present refuge; subsequent acquisition using Federal Duck Stamp funds and other special funding added 3,557 acres. An additional 459 acres were added when the fee title to Hog Marsh Island and adjacent lands to the north were acquired through an exchange of spoilage rights with Chatham County, Georgia. In 1964, Savannah Electric and Power Company deeded 34 acres to the refuge in exchange for a power line right-of-way. In 1978, the 12,472-acre Argent Swamp tract was purchased from Union Camp Corporation using Land and Water Conservation Funds. Bear Island was purchased in fee title, from a private individual, on October 19, 1993. In order to straighten the east boundary, two tracts totaling 54 acres were purchased from Union Camp Corporation on August 27, 1996. The Barrows tract, which lies adjacent to the southeast boundary, was purchased in fee title during 1998. Another tract of land was added onto the mid-western portion of the refuge; the Solomon tract was purchased in 1999 and is 887 acres. The total current refuge area is 29,174 acres.

Topography

The refuge is located in the heart of the Lowcountry, a band of low land, bordered on the west by sandhill ridges and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, extending from Georgetown, South Carolina to St. Mary's, Georgia.



There are 38 miles of river and over 25 miles of streams and creeks within the refuge boundaries. Refuge habitats include bottomland hardwoods, palustrine, estuarine and tidal freshwater wetlands. Managed freshwater impoundments make up about 3,000 acres.

Wildlife and protected species

Known for its rich flora during the humid summer months, the region also supports a diverse wildlife population. The variety of birdlife within the Lowcountry is enhanced by its location on the Atlantic Flyway. During the winter months, thousands of mallards, pintails, teal and as many as ten other species of ducks migrate into the area, joining resident wood ducks on the refuge. In the spring and fall, transient songbirds stop briefly on their journey to and from northern nesting grounds.



The refuge is home to a large variety of wildlife including: ducks, geese, wading birds, and shorebirds. Several threatened and endangered species are protected on the refuge, including the American alligator, flatwoods salamander, bald eagle, wood stork, shortnose sturgeon, and Florida manatee. The refuge also provides nesting areas for wood ducks, great horned owls, osprey and swallow-tailed kites.

Facilities

A visitors center on the South Carolina side of the refuge opened in March, 2010, approximately eight miles south of Hardeeville and seven miles from downtown Savannah, GA on US Hwy 17. The Visitor Center features exhibits describing the history and denizens of the refuge, an introductory video, and "The Gator Hole", a nature and book store. The Visitor Center is open from 9AM until 4PM Monday thru Saturday, closed on Sunday and all Federal holidays. There are opportunities for hiking, cycling, photography and wildlife observation. Pets are not allowed in the refuge.


Pets become Gator Bait.

All dikes are open to foot travel during daylight hours, unless otherwise posted, and provide excellent wildlife observation points. The Cistern Trail, Tupelo Trail and other walking routes are also available to the visiting public.



The Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive is open from dawn until dusk every day. This one-way loop meanders along 4.5 miles of earthen dikes through managed freshwater pools and hardwood hammocks. The dikes and pools are remnants of pre-Civil War rice plantations.



Fishing is permitted in the freshwater pools from March 1 to November 30 and is governed by South Carolina and refuge regulations. The refuge administers a variety of hunts during the fall and winter. Hunt regulations and schedules are available at the Visitor Center and on the web at Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. For our next few post, we will tangent on Chatham County and the City of Savannah. The first European visitors to the Savannah, Georgia area arrived in 1526. James Oglethorpe established the city of Savannah in 1733. It took us five post to cover Athens, but one of those post were on the Music history. I figure we will have at least a three part history tangent on Savannah so get ready for an extended GNW #106 folks.


Shannon Michelle Wisley is our GNW gal for the day. Honk if you know why.