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Article: Swamp in a QUAGMIRE.
- Article from:
- American Forests
- Article date:
- January 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 American Forests. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The Great Dismal's ancient trees and elusive wildlife have endured for centuries. But can they survive when civilization intrudes?
The April waters of the Great Dismal Swamp are so cold my shins ache. Thankfully, my flooded boats trap water against my skin like a scuba diver's wetsuit so my feet stay relatively warm. With countless roots and fallen logs hidden under the brown, knee-deep water, each step is a calculated risk. And numb feet would turn a possible fall into a certainty.
In front of me, Bryan Poovey, an officer at Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, travels a serpentine route through a flooded maze of trees and poison ivy vines to an ...