places where you won't be able to wipe the wag off your dog's tail - Tallahassee FL
The Park
The original settlers of this land between the Aucilla and Ochlockonee rivers were the Apalachee Indians. Beginning around A.D. 1000 ancestors of the Apalachees started developing ceremonial mound centers, including the one at Lake Jackson. Atop these earthen mound were built temples or homes for tribal leaders. At its peak, the Lake Jackson Mound complex consisted of six temple mounds and a large village circling a central plaza. Scattered farmsteads surrounded the area. The area was abandoned sometime around A.D. 1500 as the community migrated elsewhere. In Florida’s nascent period before 1860, the land was part of a bustling cotton plantation owned by Colonel Robert Butler, who received the surrender of East Florida from the Spaniards on July 10, 1821 and was appointed Florida’s first Surveyor General by Governor Andrew Jackson. Today the Lake Jackson Mounds have proved to be one the richest troves of prehistoric artifacts and burial objects in Florida.
The Walks
For a tranquil outing with your dog, Lake Jackson Mounds has few peers. An interpretive trail leads through a large, open grassy area containing the remnants of the ceremonial mounds. Ideal for a game of fetch or even a picnic with your dog. A nature trail prowls around a wooded ravine and passes the remains of an 1800s grist mill. The path is roomy and soft under paw with enough elevation change to hold your dog’s interest. Along the trail you’ll pass several towering longleaf pines above and wildflowers beneath.
Where The Paw Meets The Earth: There is a mapboard posted at the information kiosk and you can scout the park visually from there.
Workout For Your Dog - About an hour of easy-going hiking.
Swimming - An old borrow pit is often filled with enough water for a quick doggie dip.
Restrictions On Dogs - Dogs are permitted on the trails and in the mounds area.
Something Extra
The largest of the six temple mounds at Lake Jackson is 278 feet by 312 feet at the base and 36 feet high. The mounds were built completely by hand. Each pail of dirt was gouged from the earth with just a digging stick or a hoe crafted from bone or shell and then carried to the top without a wagon or animal. Today, steps lead to the top of this mound that your dog can use and you can get the feel of the labor involved to build this ceremonial center.
Phone - (850) 922-6007
Admission Fee - Vehicle parking fee
Directions - Tallahassee; from Exit 199 off I-10, head north on US 27. After two miles turn right on Crowder Road and continue to park entrance on right.
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