Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges
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Winter Solstice Without Rain!

12/22/2022

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Picture of Donna Thalacker leading the Dennis Creek walk.
Donna Thalacker leads the Dennis Creek walk
Picture Friends members and visitors on the Shell Mound walk.
Friends members and visitors on the Shell Mound walk
Photos by Joe Hand
Picture Dr. ginessa Mahar leading the Shell Mound walk
Ginessa Mahar leading the Shell Mound walk
Picture of the group Walking up onto the pier
Walking up onto the pier
About 50 participants gathered at Shell Mound to celebrate the Winter Solstice. It was Friends 6th annual Winter Solstice celebration, and the first with no rain. On the other hand, we shall have to try again next year for one where we can actually see the sun setting. For this year, we were happy for less blustery wind and warmer temperatures.
Both guided walks were successful. The Dennis Creek walk, led by Friends member Donna Thalacker, crossed through not-quite-upland, not-quite-marsh scrubby woods, a tidal flat with unique plants such as glass wort,  a tidal pool ringed with both cordgrass and black needlerush, trees scarred by early  commercial turpentining, and a maritime hammock canopied by oaks, redbay, and yaupon holly. A short side trail led to Dennis Creek itself, flowing into the Gulf and visible from the Shell Mound pier.

Along the way, despite the cold weather, they also saw animal life, including a pygmy rattlesnake, tricolor heron, great blue heron, little blue, great white egret, snowy egret, and a palm warbler.
The Shell Mound walk, led by Friends president-elect Dr. Ginessa Mahar, was a trip through the history of the people, geology, and culture of the civic-ceremonial site. It crossed time from the Ice Age to the present, lingering especially over what archaeologists have found about this particular location at the peak of its activity about 1,500 years ago. The dune on which Shell Mound is built provided high land for dwellings. The sea waters, mixed with the fresh water of the Suwannee River, provided food in abundance. The alignment of the dune with the annual cycle of the sun, setting off the open arms of the dune  at 240 degrees on Winter Solstice and rising above the closed end of the dune at 60 degrees on Summer Solstice provided a sacred reminder of the cycle of daily, seasonal, and generational transitions.
After the walks, we all gathered for conversation, hot  herbal teas, and cookies before we went out to the pier to imagine the sun setting near the former burial ground on the dune arm. A good time was had by all.
Picture Friends president Debbie Meeks, with board member Jeri Treat in the background
Friends president Debbie Meeks, with board member Jeri Treat in the background

Photos by Joe Hand

Picture of Friends board member Barbara Woodmansee with camera along the Dennis Creek walk.
Friends board member Barbara Woodmansee capturing images along the Dennis Creek walk
Picture of Visitor and dog on the Dennis Creek walk.
Visitor and dog on the Dennis Creek walk
Photos by Michael Miller
Picture of visitors walking Along the Shell Mound walk.
Along the Shell Mound walk
Picture of Ginessa Mahar explaining the archaeology along Shell Mound walk.
Ginessa Mahar explaining the archaeology along Shell Mound walk
Picture of visitors enjoying Hot tea, cookies, and socializing after the guided walks and before the talk on the pier
Hot tea, cookies, and socializing after the guided walks and before the talk on the pier
Picture of Peg Hall, immediate past president of Friends, talking about the story of Winter and Summer  solstices at Shell Mound.
Peg Hall, immediate past president of Friends, talking about the story of Winter and Summer solstices at Shell Mound
Picture of Ginessa Mahar explaining fishing capture tactics
Ginessa Mahar explaining fishing capture tactics
Picture Ginessa Mahar and visitors walking up onto the pier
Ginessa Mahar and visitors walking up onto the pier. Photo by Joe Hand
Picture visitors on the pier
Enjoying the pier and socializing. Photo by Debbie Meeks
Picture of the group on the pier, Watching for the sun to set.
Watching for the sun to set. Photo by Jeri Treat
Picture of the Scene off the pier, where the sun must be setting behind the clouds.
Scene off the pier, where the sun must be setting behind the clouds. Photo by Peg Hall
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An Afternoon at Vista

12/9/2022

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About 30 Friends members and visitors enjoyed an afternoon of meandering around the Vista property and taking photos.

We met at the River Trail parking area. Friends president Debbie Meeks presented an brief overview of the history of the property and of future plans for it.

Friends member Bob McKinstry, whose father was the Land and Timber Manager for the Cummer Company, answered questions about Vista's history. Bob was there many times as a boy.

Deputy Refuge Manager John Stark welcomed the group to the Refuge and mentioned that there was a tree planting operation ongoing on a nearby section of the Refuge as we met to walk at Vista.

The group spent a couple of hours of gorgeous Friday afternoon sunshine walking and exploring.

Photos will be highlighted soon in the Photo Gallery on the Wildlife page of this website. A sneak peek is below.
History and Characteristics of the Vista Site
  • The Vista camp is a 14 acre property that was part of a massive purchase of cypress timberlands by the Cummer Lumber Company in 1902.  The 100,000 acres (156 square miles) stretched from Fort Fanning to the Gulf.
  • There is a historic boat landing slightly upriver that was possibly used by steamboats around 1900 when the Vista site was a cedar sawmill operated by Thomas J. Yearty.
  • The camp was largely constructed between 1936 and 1942 by the Cummer Cypress Company.
  • It was used as a hunting and fishing resort by male executives of the Cummer company. Sandra jokes that women were not invited.
  • The property looks very much the way it did soon after it was completed since many of the trees had already reached mature size. The sabal palms lining the walk to the boat dock have grown up since the 1940's.
  • The cook's cabin is a vernacular style building that was originally designed as a duplex and appears identical to worker housing constructed for the Cummer Cypress Company lumber town in Lacoochee. It may have been moved to the site from the company mill town in Sumner. The building retains the original doors and windows, trim and pecky cypress sheathing.
  • Nearly 1,000 acres of riverfront land were donated in 1971 by the Cummer Company to the Nature Conservancy and later incorporated into the LSNWR.
Refuge ownership and importance to the Refuge
  • Vista was donated in 2011 to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by Sandra Roe Smith and Linda Roe Alexander, descendants of the Cummer lumber family who held it in a life estate.
  • In 2021 ownership was transferred to the Refuge.
  • The propert may be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Place
What is planned for the property?
It is the intent of the Friends and Refuge to eventually use this property and the historic buildings to develop publicly accessible displays that explore and interpret:
  • The role of the forestry industry that developed this area after the Civil War into the mid-late 20th century
  • The role of the refuge in bringing the area back to a natural state that protects the Suwannee River and other natural resources and preserves the unique character of this region.
What is the Friends role?
  • The Friends, as an independent 501(c)3, is able to secure funding and contract work to preserve Vista more quickly and less expensively than FWS.
  • In 2020, Friends used their unique position to secure a $50,000 grant from the state to do a preliminary assessment- the Bender report.
  • In 2022, Friends were awarded a $75,000 grant from the state to weatherproof and stabilize the cook's cottage.
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Come to a Photo Walk at Vista

12/3/2022

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Picture of The walk to Vista from the River Trail parking area.
The walk to Vista from the River Trail parking area.
Picture a Wild azalea along the walk
Wild azalea along the walk
Picture The Cook's House, which is the subject of our grant funding
The Cook's House, which is the subject of our grant funding
To celebrate our $75,000 grant from the Florida Division of Historical Resources, Friends will hold a Photo Walk at Vista on Friday December 9 from 2:00 to 4:00. The area is closed except during special events such as this one.

We will gather at the River Trail parking area, near Refuge headquarters, off County Road 347 about 1:45. At 2:00, we will walk to the Vista property.

It is a lovely nature walk, even if you don't want to take photos. However, we proclaimed this event as a Photo Walk because, as restoration begins, changes will happen. Some trees need to be removed. Old buildings with no historical value will come down. This is a last chance for photos before any changes commence.

Board members will be at each building to chat about the property and assure that no one enters the buildings, which are not safe for visitors.

There are no restroom facilities in this area. The restoration will need to address that issue.

It will take years and lots more grant funding and philanthropic support to make the area safe and welcoming for visitors. Still, we are enjoying the chance to celebrate each step of the way.

Join us on the Photo Walk. If you get some great pics, we would greatly appreciate your sharing them with Friends and the Refuge.
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Friends' Wish List

12/2/2022

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Friends has a list of items we fund each year and items we plan to fund when we have the income to do so. If you are considering making an end-of-year gift to Friends, you could be a part of one of these Friends projects becoming a reality.
Wish List
  • Print 13 iGuide QR Posters - $3,400
  • Vista Grant Matching Gift - $3,400 still needed to achieve our required $15,000
  • Mobile Outreach Center - A 10'x16' enclosed trailer or $14,000
  • Junior Ranger Badges and Booklets - $250
  • Print 2,500 brochures - $380
  • A Year of Adobe Design Software or Website Hosting - $360
Particularly high on the Wish List right now is funding for the iGuide panels. They are ready to go to the printer but cost more than our print budget can afford. They would be rigid, outdoor panels to be placed at the entrances to roads, and also at libraries and visitor centers around the region, increasing access to information for visitors and saving both money and paper.
Picture of poster showing refuges and trails
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Sales, and New Merchandise

12/1/2022

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Friends' Online Store's year-end sale features the luna, butterfly and women's tree shirts.
Picture of luna moth shirt on model
Picture of butterfly shirt on model
Picture of tree shirt on model
It also has some fun gift-idea items to consider. Take, for example, our earrings. They are made in America, actually in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, by a family of nature enthusiasts. There also is a Florida connection . . . earring artist and co-owner Kevin Abbott has a Wildlife Ecology degree from the University of Florida.
Picture of white pelican earrings
Picture of spicebush swallowtail butterfly earrings
Picture of manatee earrings
The nature-themed earrings are made of re-cycled, locally-sourced cereal boxes. We select sets that are appropriate to our part of Florida, such as roseate spoonbills, dolphins, box turtles, white pelicans, luna moths, swallow-tailed kites, red mangroves, and spicebush swallowtail butterflies. Most sets have different versions of the plant or animal for each ear. They are a charming $15 gift.
In 2022, we added a long-sleeved hooded shirt with trees specific to the Lower Suwannee Refuge and a short-sleeved shirt with an animals-at-sunset  design.
Picture of hoodie on model
Picture of animals-at-sunset shirt, with no model
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If you're looking for an alternative gift, the online store now has an option for you to make a gift to Friends "in appreciation of", or "in the name of" a nature-lover, especially one who cares about the Lower Suwannee and Cedar Keys Refuges. Donate any amount to Friends and we'll send a card with a refuge photo and a short message of your choice hand-written by one of us inside.

All the purchases help Friends print brochures, maps, and trail guides; host the Annual Meeting (on the last Saturday in February); pay for the website platform and software; and sponsor our other activities. Purchases are an important revenue stream for Friends and your shopping with Friends is greatly appreciated.
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Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges
P. O. Box 532
Cedar Key, FL 32625
friends@friendsofrefuges.org

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.


  • Home
    • Current News
  • About
    • About Friends >
      • Who We Are
      • What We Do
      • Current News
      • Contact Us
    • About the Refuges >
      • Our Refuges
      • Places of Interest
      • Hunting Brochure
  • Join
    • Donate
  • Maps
    • Paddling Guides
    • Refuge Maps
    • Trail Brochures
    • Places of Interest
  • Wildlife
    • Science
  • Hunt & Fish
    • Hunting
    • FWS Hunting Brochure
    • Fishing
  • Search
  • Store
    • Shirts
    • Hats
    • Books
    • Earrings
    • Gift Donation
    • On Sale