Flat Land

The first thing I noticed when I moved to South Florida was how flat the land tends to be. Not only is it flat but there are very few trees. I grew up in the coastal plain of the Carolinas where the land is flat but we have huge pine trees and cypress trees galore. Without the trees the land feels naked and exposed.

To cross the peninsula of Florida you must cross a great expanse of flatness. This area south of Lake Okeechobee is mostly sod farms. In summer and early fall this is a great place for shorebirds because the farmers flood the land. One my last trip I decided to stop and finally see this infamous lake. Imagine my surprise when this was my view:

To me this looks like another canal. I guess the lake is farther off in the distance. The trail that you see around the lake is part of the Florida Trail. The FT circles the lake on all sides and over the Thanksgiving holidays there is an annual walk around the whole circumference. I bet that there are spectacular sunsets and sunrises over the water but I don't know if I would really want to spend a week circling this path.

After a brief stop at the lake I continued on to an owl spot mentioned in Bill Pranty's ABA bird guide. I have seen plenty of Barn Owls but not one in Florida and therefore I wanted to add it to my state list. Plus, time was on my hands and I felt like exploring some new parts of Florida. After a few miles down the County Road I hit gravel. The only change in elevation occurs at the canals. Pictured above is the Miami canal which I had to cross in order to arrive at the owl spot.

One of my favorite parts of this drive was seeing the color change of the fields. With each new plant a varying shade of green arrived. Other than that, everything looked the same: green, flat, and treeless. Nonetheless, it was amazing to drive down the seemingly endless dirt road with the windows down and the music blaring. I almost felt like I was in some movie. To give you some idea how flat this place really is I pieced together some pictures below to show you the open sky and the road that disappears on the horizon.

Click on the picture to get a better view.

After the long drive I finally arrived at a grove of Cypress Trees. On first glance the place seemed fairly quiet. After surveying the area I found lots of empty shotgun shells and makeshift targets. In the distance a pick-up truck rumbled by and I almost ran back to my car in fear. This place was so surreal that I didn't feel comfortable sharing it with other people. But the truck turned at the intersection and disappeared in the distance.

Once the truck was out of sight I turned back just in time to see a Barn Owl fly over the short trees and into the back of the stand. I couldn't locate it again but it was definitely my owl and that was a success. Before I left I did however find a beautiful male Northern Parula and a male American Redstart. All in all it was a great day crossing the state and definitely worth the drive to see not only the lake but the breathtaking vastness that is Florida. For those people who only visit Disney and Miami and the Keys, they are missing a part of the land that is unreal. I never thought I would say this but sometimes, I enjoy the flat land even if it lacks the trees.