Vista is an idyllic site on the banks of the lower Suwannee River. It is the only place on the south side of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge that provides easy public access to the river. Surrounded by Refuge lands, the 14-acre property has the final visible structures in the last 20 miles of the river before it arrives at the town of Suwannee at the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico.
Understanding of and support for conservation is an almost universal community value in Florida. Nevertheless, it is a challenge to learn about the conservation value of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, given its remote location and limited access roads.
With its majestic river-front setting and the interpretive walkways Friends and the Refuge will build, Vista will share with an already supportive public the peacefulness and beauty of Vista and the compelling story of the Refuge’s conservation legacy.
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’ intends to make it available much more often.