There is always two sides to every story. While plenty of beauty exists in and around the Okefenokee Swamp, it has its share of horror as well. The area was devastated by wildfires in 2007 and again in 2011. To describe the extent of the wildfire in 2006, smoke could effected visibility as far south as Central Florida… and impacted areas even as far south as Fort Lauderdale, Fl and as far north as Atlanta, Ga. I personally remember smelling smoke. Jacksonville, Fl was essentially covered in smoke.
This was a picture NASA took from space of the area. (Source: CNN)
By May 2007, it was reported that more than 600,000 acres had been ravaged by wildfire.
To put what happened into some perspective, the pictures below show what the Okefenokee looks like today. You can see the scorched trees as far as the eye can see. A gentlemen I talked that said he visits there atleast once a month told me that the pathway we were walking along… was like a canopy. Completely shaded.
That said, Mother Nature won’t go down without a fight. It’s definitely good to see signs of life across the land.
Woody Bass III 