New Deal projects during the Great Depression helped put people to work and created infrastructure we still enjoy. Nine state parks were created in Florida including a jewel near the St. John’s River in the north central part of the state. The court of the states with pillars for the 48 states and an obelisk dedicated to President Roosevelt was a grand entrance to invite tourists to the formal gardens.
A few acres of the old formal gardens remain, though November is not a great time to see plantings. Beyond the formal gardens, you can see into the path leading down to the ravine that gives the park its name.
A spring creates a creek that carves through the sandy soil and flows into the St. John’s. The ravines had been formally planted, but have been left to revert to their more natural state.
Though only 59 acres, the park seems much bigger. A two and a half mile trail meanders along the ravine banks and across suspension bridges over the creeks. It’s called the Azalea trail and filled with those bushes which will bloom from January to March, though a few stray plants were flowering.
The day we hiked was overcast with the fringes of tropical storm Eta, and it dumped some rain on us, but fortunately the tropical air kept us warm.
The view from the bottom of the 120 foot deep ravine is one I’ve never encountered in Florida.
