© St. Petersburg Times, published October 29, 2001
Wonders of Florida: Natural wonders
How can we talk about the wonders of Florida without focusing on our notable and nifty natural wonders?
Okay sure, you probably know all about the Keys and the Everglades. But what about those wild wonders right in your own back yard? In the coming weeks we hope to "wow" you with visits to local parks, preserves and trails that offer close encounters of the natural kind. (Parents, here's something you'll like: you won't have to drive too far. Our travels won't take us further south than the tip of Pinellas County, or beyond Hernando County to the north.) So grab your binoculars and your comfortable shoes. And remember: You can always relax on the drive home.
"A treasure."
"Like a national park in your own back yard."
"A sanctuary."
Spend an afternoon with Linda Paukstys, program supervisor specialist with the City of St. Petersburg, and you'll quickly discover how much she loves her "office," Boyd Hill Nature Park.
Linda's job is to coordinate the many activities Boyd Hill offers kids and adults. She works closely with teachers who bring their students to the park -- an "outdoor classroom that lets the student step into the textbook and experience first-hand the lessons being taught," she says.
In fact, this is what Linda says sets Boyd Hill apart from other local parks. "We're different because we have more educational programs." Do they ever! If you're a kid from kindergarten to eighth grade, Boyd Hill's got a special group just for you. In the Weird Science Camp held during public school pro-ed days, for example, students in fourth through eighth grades can plunge right in and explore kitchen science, air and water studies and even make a few mechanical contraptions.
Think it'd be pretty cool to creep through the park at night wondering "whoooooo's" up there eyeing you from the pine tree? Then you can check out the new Pioneer Nights program for kids from second to eighth grade. You'll go on night hikes, hay rides, have a marshmallow roast, even play special games that develop problem-solving skills and teamwork.
According to Linda, "If you don't work together, you don't survive. In our Pioneer Programs, we don't separate the kids into age groups, everyone works together. Like settlements in the 1800s, you really needed your neighbor."
You don't have to travel the four corners of the state to discover the ecosystems unique to Florida. Explore Boyd Hill's 245 acres of unspoiled land and you'll find hardwood hammocks, sand pine scrub, pine flatwoods, willow marsh and lakeshore -- it's like a little bit of the whole state in one park.
Traveling along six miles of trails (31/2 miles are paved) with names such as Gator Loop, Field Mouse Trail and Swamp Woodlands Trail, you'll see some of the most amazing flora and fauna Florida has to offer. The bay, sugarberry and red maple trees of the swamp woodlands is home to box turtles and star-bellied spiders. In Scrub Island, a scrubland environment that is one of the most endangered habitats in the world, gopher tortoises inch their way past turkey oak, sand pine and winegrass.
Like nature, Boyd Hill is constantly changing. The opening of the new birds of prey aviary will be held during November's Art Arbor and Family Fun Days. Injured (most often by humans), non-releasable birds such as raptors, hawks and owls will soon have a safe and comfortable habitat there.
Ever try your hand at building a log cabin? How about making bricks or blacksmith triangles? Older kids will have a chance to learn this and other skills at the Advanced Pioneer Camp coming soon.
Construction at the park will shift into high gear next year. The St. Petersburg Public Library's South Branch will be moving out of its Boyd Hill location, and the park's nature center will undergo major expansion. Museum-style exhibits will combine with an interactive lab area for parents and kids to make this a multifaceted educational center.
Still not convinced Boyd Hill needs to be on your "must-see" list? Listen to what some of the kids who regularly attend the park's programs had to say about why it is special:
"It is special to me because it holds animals -- because people are building a lot so it gives animals a place to live." -- Devin Collins, 11.
"Because there is not really any other nature park, it really is special." -- David Tuthill, 10.
"Because of Dot the chicken and giving her grapes." -- Ryley Pickrem, 3. (Note: Dot, raised by hand during summer camp two years ago, is one of the park's educational program birds.)
"Because there is a good variety of animals you can watch, and it really teaches how they behave in their own habitat." -- Kai Oglesby, 10.
As proud as she is of all the exciting programs Boyd Hill has to offer, Linda Paukstys says one of the most powerful attractions of the park is its simplicity -- visitors just "come and enjoy it.
"When people walk through the gate, they have a sense of entering a different realm," Linda says. This is one reason they haven't needed to post too many signs with the dos and don'ts of good park behavior.
The Boyd Hill brochure explains: "Because our park is surrounded by so much urban activity, it's important that we take good care of these few wild places -- you are nature's guest. Protect and nurture this special place while you enjoy your surroundings."
According to Linda, people can learn life's most important lessons from nature. "Each animal plays a role. Even the smallest bug has a unique job. Just like we play a role. When kids come to the park and are taught at an early age to respect nature, they tend to respect other human beings as well."
- Holly Atkins teaches seventh-grade language arts at Bay Point Middle School in St. Petersburg, where she is the language arts department head. Atkins, who has been a resident of St. Pete Beach nearly all her life, has been an instructor at the Poynter Institute's Writers' Camp and is the proud teacher of local and national award-winning student writers. "I have the best job in the world," she says. "Each year I get to write alongside some of the most talented and enthusiastic authors anywhere."
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