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ST MARKS WILDLIFE REFUGE TOWER POND TRAIL The Tower Pond Interpretive Trail is a great hike on its own if you are short on time or as an addition to the Light house/Cedar Point hike. The trail is only about a milelong, but offers a lot to see. It is located to the left as you drive down the main road toward the lighthouse. There are restrooms located beside the parking area. A very informative brochure was available at the trailhead describing 15 different historical and ecological points of interest.  As you leave the parking area and start out on the trail, Tower Pond will be on your right. These freshwater ponds were constructed by the reserve in the 1930s for wintering waterfowl. They are also used by a wide diversity of native wildlife. The water level was low the day of my hike exposing vast mud flats. Many different species of wading birds of were hunting for food on and along the edges of the flats. A little farther down the trail is a sign pointing to a blind. The blind offers you an opportunity to observe the birds and other wildlife without them seeing you. This is a place where you will want both your binoculars and camera. Among the birds I saw were black-necked stilt, dowitcher, tri-colored heron, little blue heron, great egret, a bald eagle and some peeps I could not identify. I think a serious birder could have spent a long time in that blind. One other thing I saw from the blind was a fairly large alligator making his way across the mud flat, so I decided to move on and see if I could catch up with him on the other side of the pond.  The
tower that is the namesake of this trail is an abandoned fire tower
that was erected to protect the surrounding timber lands from
wildfires. It was manned regularly from the mid 1930s until the mid
50s. Today it stands as a point of reference visible above the
trees. Further along the trail I came to a foot bridge over a ditch
connected to the pond. The alligator that I had seen from the blind
was making his way up the ditch towards me. I waited off to the side
until he was right under the bridge. I got some very close shots
from the safety of the bridge as he went right under me. Evidently
he was not happy with the photo session because he let out a long
hiss before continuing up the ditch. Even though I have been
observing gators in the wild for a long
time, it is still a thrill to have a close encounter like this.
While alligators are not normally a big threat, it is wise to give
them the space and respect they deserve.Along the south side of the trail as you are heading back, you will see the lighthouse across the salt marsh. Numerous animal tracks were visible in the sand on this part of the trail. The brochure available at the trailhead will help you identify some of the more common tracks. Once you are back to the parking area there is another short trail to an observation deck overlooking Headquarters pond. Before I even got out of the parking  lot,
I heard a very strange mix of grunting and wailing. It was double
crested cormorants nesting in the tops of the pines. I used to see
migrating cormorants every winter in the Apalachicola estuary, but I
had never seen or heard them nesting before. Every trip I see
something new and different. Get out there and start your own
collection of experiences today. |
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