10,000 Year Old Swamp Trees

Wednesday Nov 10, 2021

Ebenezer Creek, Rincon, GA

Kayak from Tommy Long boat ramp, with guide Cohen from Backwater Expeditions

Somehow, while looking for a place to get on the water, I came across the mythical ancient Swamp trees !?! The photos looked fake, so I had to call to ask if there really were 1000 yr old Bald Cypress and Tupelo trees in Georgia? “Heck Ya! best swampin‘ in the state.” is what the guy on the phone said. We did learn that the trees are legally protected, as long as they stay in the water… 😳

We teamed up with Backwater Expeditions for a guided tour of the area. They are awesome, and I highly recommend being led around the maze of swampland by them. First off, you would never find the Mother Tree in this endless water forest, or the paddle-thru tree, without their help. Luckily, we had perfect water levels, mostly due to dam release that flows into the Savannah river. With the right water level, you could go anywhere without getting stuck, and there was a perfect balance of the flared tree base being reflected in the dark water.

We had few swamp-monster distractions, except a few turtles, and stories of giant fishing spiders, to distract from the wonder of these trees and their crazy knees. We did have a crazy noise come to our ears that we had to ask “what is that?” to Cohen. He told us his grandpa called it ”swamp noise”, and explained that when the water level drops, the trees are hollow, and air escapes and makes a funny sound. I of course had to record the swamp music…

In closing: I will have to say, if there was ever a place for the ivory-billed woodpecker to hide from the world, this would be the place!

sound of a tree “breathing“ swamp noise

Not a place to stray and get lost

Swamp trails in the duck weed & paddle-thru tree

Mother tree and some tree knee goblins

Red Maple growing out of a bald cypress

Last look, and hopefully we will be back🤞