The Jacksonville Aboretum and Gardens

[blizz01]

Man what a great place to quietly canoe or kayak - any plans for that (rentals?).  Are there even places around town now in which you can rent a canoe & take your children out for an hour or so?

[duvalbill]

Man what a great place to quietly canoe or kayak - any plans for that (rentals?).  Are there even places around town now in which you can rent a canoe & take your children out for an hour or so?

I know you can at Anastasia State Park.  I really wish that they'd start doing that at Guana because there is some great fishing there and you can't take a boat over 15 feet long.

[MegGaffney]

My husband and I rent kayaks occasionally from Kayak Amelia (http://www.floridasecrets.com/Florida_Kayaking_and%20_Canoeing/Kayak_Amelia.htm). I believe it is half or whole day rentals... its been too long since we've gone! I know there is a canoe/kayak trail on one of the islands up there. -Maybe Little Talbot Park rents..? (http://floridastateparks.org/)   -I'd call one of the two places.

-Meg

[duvalbill]

My husband and I rent kayaks occasionally from Kayak Amelia (http://www.floridasecrets.com/Florida_Kayaking_and%20_Canoeing/Kayak_Amelia.htm). I believe it is half or whole day rentals... its been too long since we've gone! I know there is a canoe/kayak trail on one of the islands up there. -Maybe Little Talbot Park rents..? (http://floridastateparks.org/)   -I'd call one of the two places.

-Meg

Meg, are there any plans to do these rentals at the aboretum?  I'd assume fishing would be a no-no, but I think kayaking/canoeing would be a nice addition.

[MegGaffney]

Personally I love canoeing and kayaking -as well as mountain biking -but all these activities are 1)"active" and we can only have activities which are deemed "passive" (per the property deed & our lease w/the COJ) and 2) there really isn't enough open water. The lake is about 2 acres and Jones Creek is not large enough until almost Fort Caroline Rd. -Sorry!

-Meg

[jacksonvilleconfidential]

So what are 'passive' activities?

Gays making out in the bushes? Like at all other parks.......

[Ocklawaha]

Why gays?

Why not straight couples?

Why not Lesbians?

Why not lovers?

Why not romantics?

Why not people of passion, soaking in nature and love?

Why not everyone?

Why Not?

Ocklawaha

[Ocklawaha]

A onetime superhero with a CANOE... I love canoes too. Meg, any chance after things are up and running we can approach the city about Jones Creek? Maybe something could be worked out close in, with some de-brushing?  Lakes and canoes don't go together well.

As for the railroad, talk to me, we'll work up a couple of great historic markers and maybe even find a wood frame car or two for display... I know of a couple of wooden (aprox period) cabooses in the Southwest (well preserved) about $10,000 dollars. Be great if CSX or NS would haul it here, and a local rigger deliver it.

Ocklawaha

[MegGaffney]

Passive recreation generally includes outdoor activities compatible with conservation of a natural area. Hiking, photography, bird watching and nature study are typical. Really canoeing is not out of range in an area with lots of water so the impacts on the shoreline can be minimized. Never say never, but canoeing is not on the Arboretum's agenda right now. Maybe in the future when the northern end of Jones Creek is examined and provided access. -All the site work for the first and secondary phases is on the south end of the site.

Now, the rail crossing is adjacent to this wide area of Jones Creek. -I am thinking that there will be opportunity for discussing railway interpretation and canoe access -at the same time..!

Oklawaha (did I get that right?), feel free to email me directly and we can work on ideas: (chair@jacksonvillearboretum.org)

-Meg

[blizz01]

It's been 4 months since we've discussed anything new on this thread, and, what do you know - it opens this weekend!

Grand Opening Event â€" November 15, 10am-4pm @ 1445 Millcoe Road!

Please join the Jacksonville Arboretum & Gardens as we celebrate our Grand Opening. Bring the whole family and discover this natural gem!
Activities:

    * Guided walks led by naturalists
    * Storytelling by a local historian
    * Children’s activities
    * Live music
    * Woodcarvers group
    * Florida-friendly plant sale
    * Free and open to the public

Time:

10:00am â€" 4:00pm

http://www.jacksonvillearboretum.org/

[civil42806]

Well I hope to see red buckeyes, button bushes, beautyberries and other native plants all over the place

[JaxNole]

If it's anything like the Boston Arboretum, it would make for a nice trip during an autumn day.  I hope this is marketed successfully and remains unspoiled as more people discover it.

Will anyone attend the grand opening this Saturday?

[Keith-N-Jax]

If I dont have to work Fri night I will go. Cant wait to go during the summer.

[duvalbill]

Has anyone checked this out yet?  If so, how was it?

[blizz01]

Man - THIS probably isn't the place; but a place LIKE this would be a cool zipline experience......

Jacksonville Arboretum and Gardens opens unique new nature trail Sunday

Happy trails to you Sunday,  as the Jacksonville Arboretum and Gardens celebrates the opening of a new trail and its second anniversary.
Only a month and a half after the Arlington nature preserve lost almost all of its gardening equipment to thieves, volunteers have completed the new mile-long Rosemary Ridge Trail to show off its variety of Northeast Florida wilderness.
The new trail may be the nature preserve’s most remarkable, said executive director Carlton Higginbotham.
“It goes through some really sensitive ecological areas,” Higginbotham said. “There are tall pines and palmettos and a place in the park a few weeks ago where I saw a bobcat, so we have some real wildlife out there. It is also the place where you can stumble on a rattlesnake, so we ask people to keep their eyes open.”
The 120-acre arboretum at 1445 Millcoe Road is a city-owned preserve. Its six trails (total 2.5 miles) and lake are open daytime hours for nature tours and hikes. Within its boundaries lie 13 ecosystems, from fresh water ravine to salt marsh, from oak hammock to upland sand hill. The Rosemary Ridge Trail, which is the longest at the arboretum, got its name because it circumnavigates an area where wild rosemary grows alongside fragile deer moss.
Higginbotham said the new trail has been a labor of love from volunteers.
“Our volunteers have been working diligently on the trail, building the bridge and removing stumps and trips,” Higginbotham said. “We have been working on it for a year. I had a team of University of North Florida students working on it last year and we only got a third of it done. It is pretty impassable scrub.”
Work had been hampered after a mid-September theft of the preserve’s chain saw, power trimmers, leaf blowers and motorized cart, valued together at $10,000. All purchased through a grant, the equipment has never been found. But Higginbothem said “very generous people” made donations to replace much of the gear, which is being done “one piece at a time.”

http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-11-17/story/jacksonville-arboretum-and-gardens-opens-unique-new-nature-trail-sunday
http://www.jacksonvillearboretum.org/