What is the Vista Camp?

The Vista Camp's idyllic 14-acre site on the banks of the lower Suwannee River is at the heart of Refuge lands making it an ideal setting for visitors to connect to the unspoiled Florida wild lands and waters of the Nature Coast.
The majestic river-front setting, planned interpretive walkways, and historic camp buildings will tell a compelling story of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge’s conservation role in the area's wildlife corridor.
Vista will be a place to enjoy, and learn about the Refuge.
Currently, Vista is open to the public only for special occasions, such as the Friends’ Annual Meeting, Junior Ranger days, and scheduled photography, art, birding, and butterflying field trips. Friends’ goal is to make it available dawn to dusk, the same as the rest of the Refuge.

A Place Connecting People to Nature

Our hope is for Vista to become the Refuge's education center. In the near-term it might include a self-guided interpretive walk and an outdoor hub for the Junior Ranger program. In the future it might be a place to coordinate, facilitate, enhance and expand Refuge programs such as:
  • exploration of wild lands by paddling, walking and bicycling
  • scientific research
  • public talks and classes
  • wildlife exhibits such as the story of Gulf sturgeon in the Suwannee River 
  • art events
  • river cleanups
  • advocacy
Picture
Former Friends' president Jay Bushnell with Junior Rangers
Picture
The Vista houseboat by Mark Gluckman

A Place with Stories to Tell