Reason for blog...

Macayla Isler

Blog #1

I'm a Colorado native and while I love my home state, Florida has become like a second home for me since we started traveling there about 5 years ago. My parents property sits on a canal that goes out to Lake George, the second largest lake in Florida. 

It's surrounded by Lake George State Forest which is completely protected, so the land will never be developed; it's like a private, nature lover's oasis. It also connects to the St. Johns River, and before you even come to the river, there is a natural clear water spring.

 

 This map shows the lake, and the St. Johns River flowing from the south and through Lake George. The river will eventually take you to the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean after that.

These are pictures of the surrounding forest from the lake that I took when I was there over Christmas break. 

 We didn't see any a few weeks ago, but in the summer we often see Bald Eagles nesting in these huge trees outside our front door.

These are pictures of the canal itself. You can see that the water is brackish and unclear which makes for a surprisingly exciting time fishing since you never know what you'll catch; anything from catfish and bass to this sting ray my dad caught once!    

 This is a juvenile alligator that was in the canal during one of our trips that couldn't be removed because it wasn't BIG enough yet...

 These grasshoppers are everywhere! And just to prove how big they are, I had to take a picture with something for scale. But I couldn't find anything and was afraid he was going to move, so I took this awkward picture of my hand and a freakishly huge insect. You're welcome.

 I love the Spanish moss, and the trees that line the edge of the lake. It really makes you feel like you're in a desolate, wild, (kinda creepy) swamp.

 There are so many more awesome (Physical Geography-related) things to talk about regarding Florida, but I chose to do my blog on Florida because of Lake George.