Okefenokee Swamp – Wandering Dawgs

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #412 – Places shaped by Water

September 10, 2026Posted in Georgia, Nature, PhotographyTagged Lens-Artists, Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Okefenokee State Park, Okefenokee Swamp, Photo Challenge, Places Shaped by Water, UNESCO World Heritage Site60 Comments

John is our host this week. His challenge: “Share up to six waterscapes—images where water shapes the scene. Choose your favorite places, your favorite photos, or a single location that inspires you. Natural or man‑made, peaceful or wild—if water helps tell the story, it’s fair game”

When I first read John’s challenge I thought it would easy. Oceans, rivers, creeks, lakes, swamps, bayous, and salt marshes are a few of my favorite places shaped by water. However, for this challenge I decided to focus on a place near and dear to my heart, the Okefenokee Swamp in my home state of Georgia. The Okefenokee Swamp is first site in the United States to be added as a World Heritage Site in over 30 years and is the only site in Georgia to receive the designation.

The Okefenokee Swamp is North America’s largest blackwater wetland and one of Georgia’s Seven Natural Wonders. It was designated as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1937 and on July 25, 2026, the Okefenokee Swamp was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You can read more about the Okefenokee at Okefenokee World Heritage Site.

One of our favorite state park campgrounds was once named Stephen C. Foster State Park located in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Fargo, Georgia. The state of Georgia renamed the park Okefenokee State Park on September 1, 2026. We camped there many times during the years. Our favorite thing to do was to take a boat ride into the swamp. Sometimes we went on a Ranger led boat tour, sometimes we rented a canoe to paddle through the swamp, and sometimes we rented a small motor boat. As we rode through the swamp through Spanish Moss Covered Cypress trees we always saw plenty of wildlife including alligators and birds.

Here are a few of my favorite images of the Okefenokee.

Alligator in the lily pads, Okefenokee Swamp

Last week Sofia’s fun challenge of What is it? had us guessing what was depicted in a photo. You had some really great photos that made me think “I have no idea”. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.

Many thanks to our host John for this week’s fun challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to his post Lens-Artists #412: Places shaped by water.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 12 at noon eastern time when I will be your host for the challenge.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #375 – Where to find the Mysterious

November 25, 2025Posted in PhotographyTagged Black and White, Lens-Artists, Mysterious, Okefenokee Swamp, Photo Challenge29 Comments

I am happy to welcome Patti back as this week’s host. For this challenge she is asking us to explore the mysterious. Her wonderful post contains great examples and tips to help inspire us.

I chose to include black and white images because I like the way they create a more mysterious feeling.

Cypress swamps are mysterious places. The featured image was taken from the Swamp Trail in Silver Springs State Park, Florida. The next image is from a different swamp, the Okefenokee Swamp in south Georgia.

*Into the unknown in the Okefenokee Swamp*

I find mystery in old abandoned buildings and other old structures.

*Abandoned mental institution on Milledgeville, Georgia*

Abandoned dairy barn in rural Georgia — *Old dairy barn in rural Georgia*

Last week your responses to John’s On the Move challenge took us around the world on many interesting types of transportation.

Many thanks to Patti for her challenge Lens-Artists #375 – Finding the Mysterious. I hope you will join us for this week’s challenge. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and link back to Patti’s post.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, November 29 at noon eastern time when I will be your host for the next challenge.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #265 – Black and White and Monochrome

September 9, 2023Posted in PhotographyTagged Black and White and Monochrome, Black and white photography, Everglades National Park, Lens-Artists, Monochrome photography, Monument Valley, Okefenokee Swamp, Photo Challenge19 Comments

Our challenge from Anne is for Black and White and/or Monochrome images.

Monochrome photos contain only variations of one color. Monument Valley in Utah was the filming location for many old western movies. I thought it would be fun to bring back memories of those old western movies so I chose a few images from Monument Valley and converted them to sepia tones.

Some of those movies were directed by John Ford and starred John Wayne. In the image above John Ford’s Point is in the foreground with Monument Valley in the background. The next three images reminded me of other scenes in the movies.

One of the Mittens formations in Monument Valley, Utah

John Wayne’s cabin from the movie “She wore a Yellow Ribbon”

Stage Coach at Goulding’s Trading Post, Monument Valley, Utah

Black and white images contain only the colors of back and white. I chose three images from Florida and Georgia and converted them from color to black and white to add some drama to the landscapes.

Pa-hay-Otee overlook in Everglades National Park, Florida

Laura S. Walker State Park, Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia

Many thanks to our host Anne for the challenge Lens-Artists Challenge #265 – Black and White or Monochrome

Lens Artists Photo Challenge # 207 – Seeing Double

July 12, 2022Posted in Birds, Nature, PhotographyTagged Lens-Artists, Okefenokee Swamp, Photo Challenge, Reflections, seeing double30 Comments

In this challenge guest host Jez tells us that “seeing double is all about reflections.” The best opportunities for me to capture reflections occur when I am photographing landscapes and wildlife close to a body of water.

One of my favorite places to see reflections is in the Okefenokee Swamp in south Georgia. The header image and this next gallery were all taken while exploring the Okefenokee.

The next gallery shows some of my favorite bird reflections. The trio of Roseate Spoonbills was taken in Texas, the other three images were taken in Florida.

One of my favorite reflection images is this final image taken at Crescent Lake, Washington.

Many thanks to guest host Jez of Photos by Jez for this Lens-Artists Challenge #107 – Seeing Double

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #188 – A Special Place

March 5, 2022Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, WildlifeTagged A Special Place, Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Lens-Artists, Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Okefenokee Swamp, Photo Challenge, Wood Stork Nesting15 Comments

Our host Karina asks us to show us the places that are or were special to you and tell us why. I’ve chosen to feature two National Wildlife Refuges located in Southeast Georgia.

Working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people.
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Mission

The National Wildlife Refuge System is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These public lands and waters across the United states are set aside to protect many species. They are special places to experience nature and to view wildlife. There are over 560 National Wildlife Refuges in the United States.

The Okefenokee Swamp is one of North America’s most unspoiled natural wilderness areas. According to the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge web page, “the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge has 353,981 acres of National Wilderness Area within the refuge boundaries. In addition, the refuge is a Wetland of International Importance (RAMSAR Convention – 1971) because it is one of the world’s largest intact freshwater ecosystems.”

The refuge headquarters are located in Folkston, Georgia. There is also access to the refuge in Georgia’s Stephen C. Foster State Park in Fargo and the Okefenokee Swamp Park in Waycross.

*Alligators in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge*

*Turtle in Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge*

*Swallowtail Butterflies in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge*

*Wild Turkey in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge*

*Snowy Egret in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge*

Located just a few miles east of I-95 in Townsend, Georgia, Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge provides habitat for a diversity of wildlife, including nearly 350 species of birds. In the spring, hundreds of wood storks, egrets, and other birds can be seen building their nests in the trees on Woody Pond.