Monday, July 21, 2014

Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge

Saturday, July 19, 2014 - Suffolk, VA

Happy Birthday Tony!  We love you!  :)


This morning Mike and I headed for Norfolk to pick up Mike J, Jess and boys.  Then we headed for Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.  I originally thought we were going to the state park.  We were hoping to find a picnic table to have lunch, then go on a hike.  Well, we arrived at the Railroad Ditch entrance, where we read a sign about all cars must have a permit.  We were sure we would come upon a pay station, but we did not see one...  The Railroad Ditch entrance is an auto tour for the park.  Once we arrived at Lake Drummond we were stopped by Federal DNR who let us know without the permit we were trespassing.  So we got a warning and a permit.  The permit is free, you just need to pick one up at the sign at the entrance.  :)  If this is your second time getting caught without a permit, it is a $250 fine.  So be sure to pick up your permit!  :)

Lake Drummond is a very shallow lake, with an average depth of 3 to 4 feet, with the deepest spot being 6 to 7 feet deep.


And it is not one any of us wanted to swim in.  Not sure you can really tell from the picture, but the water is about the color of very strong tea.  It does not smell.  I am not sure I would want to fish here either.


Here are some sights on the auto tour.




Alex and Avander enjoyed seeing the turtles.

The Federal DNR told us we could have a picnic at the underground railroad pavilion, so we went back to the pavilion.  It was a short walk back to the pavilion.



Then we laid out a blanket and enjoyed our lunch.


After our picnic lunch it was getting late and there weren't any trails to hike in the area, so we packed up and headed back to Jess and Mike J's place.  We had a nice dinner and headed back home.

It was another wonderful day!

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