3 Best Sights in Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, The Coastal Isles and the Okefenokee

This privately owned and operated park serves as the northern entrance to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, offering live animal exhibits and orientation programs for the entire family. The park has observation areas, wilderness walkways, an outdoor museum of pioneer life, and boat tours into the swamp that reveal its unique ecology. The 90-foot-tall observation tower is an excellent place to glimpse cruising gators and birds. A 1½-mile train tour (included in the admission price) passes by a Seminole village and stops at Pioneer Island, a re-created pioneer homestead, for a 15-minute walking tour.

Named for the songwriter who penned "Swanee River," this 120-acre island park is the southwestern entrance to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and offers trips to the headwaters of the Suwannee River, Billy's Island—site of an ancient Indian village—and a turn-of-the-20th-century town built to support logging efforts in the swamp. The park is home to hundreds of species of birds and a large cypress-and-black-gum forest, a majestic backdrop for one of the thickest growths of vegetation in the southeastern United States.

Extensive open areas at the core of the refuge—like the Chesser, Grand, and Mizell Prairies—branch off the man-made Suwannee Canal, accessed via the main entrance to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, and contain small natural lakes and gator holes. The prairies are excellent spots for sportfishing and birding, and it's possible to take guided boat tours of the area leaving from the Okefenokee Adventures concession, near the visitor center. The concession also has equipment rentals, and food is available at the Camp Cornelia Cafe. The visitor center has a film, exhibits, and a mechanized mannequin that tells stories about life in the Okefenokee (it sounds hokey, but it's surprisingly informative). A boardwalk takes you over the water to a 50-foot observation tower. Hikers, bicyclists, and private motor vehicles are welcome on Swamp Island Drive; several interpretive walking trails may be taken along the way. Picnicking is permitted.