The Okefenokee Swamp

The Okefenokee Swamp is a different world; a seemingly untouched, primitive landscape of serpents and dragons; a foreboding, dark land, yet exciting and evoking the urge to explore. I have explored this intriguing swamp habitat on many occasions; each time paddling a bit further, and each time investigating its details a bit more closely. My desire is to promote and preserve this majestic piece of Earth through my nature journals and photographs, and the travel blogs of other adventurers…  

The Okefenokee is the largest blackwater swamp in North America. The majority of the swamp lies within the state of Georgia, but straddles the border into Florida. It is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. Its Native American name means “The Land of Trembling Earth”.

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Hi, I’m wildlife photographer and nature writer William Wise. I am definitely not an Okefenokee expert, but I am certainly an Okefenokee enthusiast. I am provided the privilege of the Okefenokee lying within less than a half-day’s drive from my home. I was saved under a campus ministry while studying wildlife biology at the University of Georgia. My love of the outdoors quickly turned into a love for the Creator and His works. I’m currently an animal shelter manager/photographer and live in Athens, Georgia with my wife and two teenage daughters. William Wise Nature Notes is my wildlife and birding photo blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. I am also a guest author at Lee’s Birdwatching Adventures and The Creation Club.  I sell stock photography to support my creation ministry and pet adoption photography efforts. — “What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.” Psalms 104, The Message.

Latest Posts…

• Home Away From HomeNovember 22, 2020
  In 1851, the American songwriter Stephen C. Foster sang of the Okefenokee’s Suwannee River as “home” in the song, Old Folks at Home. And over 150 years later, my daughter and I are calling the Stephen C.Continue reading “Home Away From Home”
• Okefenokee Woodpecker ExcavationsNovember 19, 2020
  The flooded prairies and hammocks of the Okefenokee Swamp hold acre after acre of standing, dead wood. An abundance of snags (dead trees) means abundant woodpeckers. There are eight species of woodpecker found in the Okefenokee,Continue reading “Okefenokee Woodpecker Excavations”
• One Live Alligator is Worth a Dozen DeadNovember 16, 2020
  An excerpt from naturalist Bradford Torrey’s 1894 book, A Florida Sketch-Book: “But as we were skirting along the shore I suddenly called ‘Hist! An alligator lay on the bank just before us. The boy turned his head,Continue reading “One Live Alligator is Worth a Dozen Dead”
• Okefenokee Upland Pine TrailNovember 13, 2020
  By definition, a swamp doesn’t have much high ground not inundated with water. Therefore, there aren’t too many dry hiking trails in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Canoeing and kayaking are the primary means of enjoyingContinue reading “Okefenokee Upland Pine Trail”
• William Bartram’s “Little Green Chameleon”November 10, 2020
  – Excerpt from William Bartram’s Travels, Part II, Chapter X “THERE are several species of the lizard kind besides the alligator, which is by naturalist allowed to be a species of that genus. THE green lizard or littleContinue reading “William Bartram’s “Little Green Chameleon””