SR 98 & SR 70 from Sebring, FL to Fort Pierce, FL is rich with history and parcels of natural beauty. Immensities of pasture, Hardwood Hammocks, Pinelands, and Marshlands compose a plethora of ecosystems divided by two lanes of open road.
Classic texts such as A Land Remembered are actualized in this environment. Florida Crackers earned their salt upon this land which shaped the tides of commerce, war, and cultural adaptation. Historically this route traverses the Florida Cracker Trail. The Florida Cracker Trail Association adeptly points to the organic formation of the trail, existing below the Kissimmee flood plains, yet above Lake Okeechobee directly south.
The Association's website also points to the accreditation of the road as a Community Millennium Trail. I include this excerpt :
"Millennium Trails is a partnership between the White House Millennium Council, the Department of Transportation, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, the National Endowment for the Arts and other public agencies and private organizations. The goal of Millennium trails is the creation of a nation-wide network of trails that protect natural environment, interpret history and culture, and enhance alternative transportation, recreation and tourism." (About)
Innumerable accolades dot the surrounding area with historic preservation. Multiple locations along The Great Florida Birding Trail and The Florida Trail provide opportunities for hiking, biking, remote camping, bird watching, wildflower and wildlife viewing.
Rolling by fence posts and railroad tracks brown signs mark stops such as Big Slough, Kissimmee Prairie, and Hickory Hammock. Fresh rains swell the earth in Florida's summer heat making watering holes for Cattle Egret, Great Egret, Wood Stork, Mottled Duck, Gallinue, a feathery display. In late winter American Kestrels line the telephone wire speckled with Merlin in between. Red Shouldered and the occasional Red Tailed Hawks perched upon the poles with Crested Caracara bathing in sandy Pine forest nearby.
Early mornings may reveal Wild Turkey, Eastern Meadow Larks set upon a fence post eliciting attention with its illustrious song. Late evening may produce Sandhill Crane flying to their roosts, Mottled, Black Bellied Whistling, and Wood Duck flap towards their comfort zones. Osprey poke their heads out one last time atop their platform nests lining the roadways. Coming or going a sense of ancestral home akin to the Florida Crackers and wild natives that roamed these lands sweeps across the glass panes of car windows.
My advice?
Stop. Get out and smell the fresh air. Sit a spell with the one you love. Pack a picnic and take a ride down this old back road.
“About.” CrackerTrail.org, crackertrail.org/history.html.
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