For those of you who don’t know me well, being outside, especially in the woods, is food for my soul. I know that sounds like a cliché, and it is to some degree. It’s hard to describe how it affects me, the way it calms me, relaxes me, and slows me down. There is a quiet joy, a seed buried by the earth of daily decisions, that grows into a full blossom of gratefulness. A smile of praise erases the mask on my face before I even realize it is there. I’m sure people think I’m crazy because I start talking to plants, insects and animals – like telling the butterfly “thank you” for holding still long enough for me to take a photo. Anyway, I recently had the opportunity to spend a couple of days outdoors around Gainesville, FL.
The first place I went way Paynesville Prairie Preserve State Park, which is the only spot in Florida that has wild-roaming bison and horses. The park is massive, and gorgeous, and a wonderful combination of woods and prairie. I hiked trails in the woods, climbed up on a couple of observation decks overlooking the prairie, and spent a wonderful day. I was really looking forward to seeing herds of both the bison and horses, but that did not happen. I saw one horse from an observation deck, but no bison. When I ventured out into the center of the prairie, I could smell the bison, and crossed a couple of piles of fairly fresh buffalo chips, bud did not see a single one. The grasses and other plants were taller than I am, so there were plenty of places for bison to rest unseen.
I was able to see a herd of horses from the highway when I left the park. They were along the highway on the edge of the preserve. I didn’t take any photos, though I did pull over and put on my 4-way blinkers so I could step out to watch the horses for a few minutes. They were gorgeous, their brown and black coats shining in the sun. It was such a privilege to see them.
After a good night’s rest, my next stop was Devil’s Millhopper Geological State Park which has a large bowl-shaped sinkhole that is 120 feet deep, with a miniature rain forest at the bottom. What I found interesting is that small streams and waterfalls trickle down to the bottom and disappear into crevices in the ground. There is no pool or pond at the bottom. Though Florida has a lot of sinkholes, this is one of the largest, and because of the depth, researchers have learned a great deal about Florida’s natural history by studying fossilized remains left in the layers and at the bottom of the sinkhole.
Along with climbing down the 126 steps to the observation deck in the sinkhole, I was able to hike trails in the lush forest that surround it.
From there, i headed to the Kanapaha Botanical Garden, a 68-acre facility with a variety of plant and garden collections. One of my favorite gardens was the herb garden. It is huge, and broken up into categories of medicinal and culinary uses. I am a pinch-and-smell herb gardener, so it was fun to do the same there. Signs throughout the garden gave historical information on how the herbs were used in the past, and how they are used now. I learned a lot, but honestly, there was so much to learn my brain did not absorb it all!
Wandering along the paths I passed bamboo forests, vine collections growing over arbors and pergolas, areas of pine cone ginger, a butterfly garden, a palm garden, and much more. I also spent a lot of time at the water elements, and it was fortunate that the giant Victoria water lilies were still there and hadn’t disappeared yet. I made it to the garden before the weather cooled off enough for them to disappear.
I’m glad I spent a couple of days outside in the woods, prairie and gardens. It reminded me of how much I need to be in out in nature.