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Grassy Waters Preserve: Pristine Nature For All Ages · Inside West Palm Beach

• 0:15
  Welcome to the City Center podcast from West Palm Beach Florida.
• 0:19
  I'm Jerry Marcelo.
• 0:21
  Some people think of the city's grassy waters preserve as a beautiful relic of our area's primordial past.
• 0:28
  Some see it as a vital part of West Palm Beach's future.
• 0:31
  Both are true.
• 0:33
  The 23 square mile wetland ecosystem is a pristine remnant of the Once Great Everglade system.
• 0:39
  A mosaic of wetlands,
• 0:41
  tree islands and forested hammocks.
• 0:44
  It also provides fresh water to the city quenching the thirst of a growing community.
• 0:49
  There's a long list of activities residents can do while visiting grassy waters and there's a lot that needs to be done to protect this fragile preserve for future generations.
• 0:59
  Joining me today is Charlie Wilson environmental education coordinator for the city of West Palm Beach.
• 1:05
  Charlie.
• 1:05
  Welcome.
• 1:06
  Thank you for having me.
• 1:07
  Now,
• 1:08
  for those who don't know much about grassy waters preserve,
• 1:11
  give us an overview of what it is and what it's like.
• 1:15
  Grassy waters preserve is a wonderful location.
• 1:19
  How I see it is.
• 1:20
  It's almost half of the land mass of the city of West Palm Beach.
• 1:23
  So when we think about the city of West Palm Beach.
• 1:25
  A lot of people think about downtown,
• 1:27
  the Square Sunfest.
• 1:29
  All the great things that downtown has to offer.
• 1:31
  But seven miles away,
• 1:33
  you've got half the city and that's just grassy Waters Preserve.
• 1:36
  Wait a minute,
• 1:37
  you're saying that half the city's area is in the preserve itself,
• 1:41
  correct.
• 1:42
  It's about 48%.
• 1:43
  So we typically say half.
• 1:44
  Wow,
• 1:45
  that,
• 1:45
  that's a new fact for me.
• 1:47
  Go ahead.
• 1:47
  Continue.
• 1:48
  So it's a great location.
• 1:49
  How I see it is just that remnant of the old school interior of South Florida.
• 1:54
  When you come out there again,
• 1:56
  if you come on a canoe ride or a kayak tour with us,
• 1:59
  about five minutes into the trip,
• 2:01
  there's no noise.
• 2:03
  You're only hearing the birds,
• 2:04
  you're hearing the cricket frogs and it's just a amazing how quiet it gets so quickly.
• 2:09
  Once you get away from the roads,
• 2:10
  Charlie,
• 2:11
  why is that area so unique and so uh different from the other areas that are still not as developed as say,
• 2:19
  the,
• 2:20
  the,
• 2:20
  the coastline.
• 2:21
  So what makes grassy waters so unique is to me,
• 2:24
  it's surrounded by communities,
• 2:26
  there's communities on all sides of us.
• 2:28
  But when you're out there,
• 2:29
  you still have this 23 square miles of Pristine Everglades habitat.
• 2:33
  And again,
• 2:33
  many people think you have to go all the way to South Florida to experience the Everglades.
• 2:37
  That's what we think about Everglades National Park and all the other preserves.
• 2:42
  And this is just right here in our backyard.
• 2:44
  So is the area that it's within grassy waters comparable to what you would find in the National Park further south?
• 2:51
  I believe so.
• 2:52
  I'm gonna say yes.
• 2:53
  Ok.
• 2:54
  Now.
• 2:55
  Ok.
• 2:55
  So it's a beautiful place.
• 2:56
  It's a pristine natural environment with birds and animals that we won't normally see in the more developed areas of,
• 3:04
  of the area of our,
• 3:05
  of our town.
• 3:07
  For those who don't know,
• 3:09
  what role does it play in supplying water to the city.
• 3:13
  So this is a great fact when we have students come out almost every weekday,
• 3:16
  they come on school buses.
• 3:17
  And one of our biggest mission is to teach all of our students that Grassy Water Preserve holds a direct water supply for about 100 and 30,000 people.
• 3:27
  Everyone who lives in West Palm Beach and a couple of the surrounding communities around us.
• 3:30
  So it is the direct water supply.
• 3:32
  We're completely rain fed system.
• 3:34
  So there's really nothing flowing into grassy waters pretty much except for rain.
• 3:38
  So the water is clean pristine,
• 3:40
  not polluted when you come out there.
• 3:42
  It's surprising you can scoop up the water.
• 3:43
  It's crystal clear,
• 3:45
  which is a,
• 3:45
  just a different mindset that a lot of people have.
• 3:47
  When they think about the Everglades,
• 3:49
  they think about it as being kind of a harsh environment full of alligators,
• 3:52
  mosquitoes.
• 3:53
  The water's murky when you come out the grassy waters,
• 3:55
  it's not like that clean water lucky if you see a couple of alligators,
• 3:59
  mosquitoes aren't bad.
• 4:00
  Wow.
• 4:01
  Well,
• 4:01
  ok.
• 4:02
  So,
• 4:02
  just to dispel a myth and I don't want you to get too bogged down in the,
• 4:06
  in the science here.
• 4:07
  But,
• 4:08
  uh,
• 4:08
  some people think that our water here in West Palm Beach is fed to us directly from Lake Okeechobee.
• 4:13
  That's not the case.
• 4:14
  Correct.
• 4:15
  There's definitely a choice we could if we needed to.
• 4:18
  But those lev levees are typically closed off and again,
• 4:21
  we are just completely rain fed.
• 4:22
  So as the summer rains come in,
• 4:25
  we fill up with water and that water will leak and kind of fill into the canal canal is gonna bring that water right,
• 4:31
  too clearly in Lake Manon,
• 4:33
  right where the water treatment plant is.
• 4:35
  Well,
• 4:36
  so there is many,
• 4:37
  there are many things for people to do while they're visiting,
• 4:40
  uh,
• 4:40
  grassy waters.
• 4:41
  You touched on that a little bit when you first gave us the overview.
• 4:44
  Uh,
• 4:44
  what specifically,
• 4:46
  uh,
• 4:46
  what sort of outdoor activities can someone expect and may are,
• 4:50
  do they change from you from season to season?
• 4:53
  Yeah,
• 4:53
  they do change from season to season.
• 4:54
  So summertime it's hot and sweaty and we like that here in South Florida.
• 4:58
  So we're still gonna go canoeing,
• 5:00
  we're still gonna go kayaking.
• 5:01
  We're gonna push it toward the mornings,
• 5:02
  but it's really amazing to get out there and just really enjoy the Everglades in,
• 5:06
  in summertime.
• 5:07
  But as winter time rolls around.
• 5:09
  We do a lot more activities.
• 5:11
  So we're gonna do sunset canoes.
• 5:12
  We're gonna do full moon canoes.
• 5:14
  We're gonna do more lecture programs in the Nature Center.
• 5:17
  So there's a lot to do year round and you can come out on your own.
• 5:21
  Be out there by yourself.
• 5:22
  Enjoy the boardwalk,
• 5:23
  enjoy over 30 miles of trails out there on your own or come on an educational tour with one of our naturalists.
• 5:30
  So,
• 5:30
  we're leading all the tours out there from thigh high water.
• 5:35
  We're swamp trapping in the water.
• 5:36
  We're dip netting with Children.
• 5:38
  We're collecting crawfish and class shrimp and dragonfly larva's and we're examining them up close.
• 5:44
  You can do all those education programs right from the Nature Center.
• 5:46
  Fantastic.
• 5:47
  And I gotta ask the question because moms are asking this question right now.
• 5:51
  Any danger from gators,
• 5:52
  they gotta to worry about their little ones.
• 5:54
  It's a fantastic question.
• 5:55
  And in the Everglades you should always be weary.
• 5:57
  But out here at grassy waters,
• 5:58
  the biggest rules that we really enforce is there's no fishing allowed at grassy waters except for Gator Lake on the north side of North Lake Boulevard.
• 6:05
  But the whole reserve 99% of it,
• 6:08
  you can't fish in it.
• 6:09
  There's no feeding of wildlife,
• 6:10
  especially alligators.
• 6:11
  So they really don't associate us with food.
• 6:13
  Ah,
• 6:13
  very important.
• 6:15
  Ok.
• 6:16
  Well,
• 6:16
  great.
• 6:17
  Uh,
• 6:17
  so you mentioned there's 30 miles of hiking,
• 6:20
  correct?
• 6:20
  So,
• 6:20
  we have five different trails at grassy waters starting from the southern end is our entrance again.
• 6:27
  That's seven miles.
• 6:28
  I measured it today from the square.
• 6:30
  So it's really close.
• 6:32
  But our main entrance is off North Lake Boulevard.
• 6:34
  That's where the Cypress boardwalk is just about a mile of awesome boardwalks.
• 6:38
  You got railing.
• 6:39
  So it's really great for families.
• 6:40
  Anyone with strollers,
• 6:42
  it's a really easy boardwalk.
• 6:43
  That's where the Nature Center is.
• 6:45
  And then across the street,
• 6:46
  we also have Hog Hammock and Eagle Trail.
• 6:48
  A little more of a crush shell path and you can just take your time out there.
• 6:51
  That's really just self guided.
• 6:53
  Um,
• 6:53
  really great location over there.
• 6:55
  So you have trails that are appropriate for every ability and age.
• 6:59
  Is there any anything that with folks with disabilities should be who can take,
• 7:04
  take part in?
• 7:05
  Yeah,
• 7:05
  I would definitely push anyone with that situation to the Nature Center.
• 7:09
  We have wheelchairs that you can borrow that are specifically for the boardwalk.
• 7:13
  But again,
• 7:14
  it seems like anyone who has their own wheelchair or strollers,
• 7:16
  it's very easy to get around out there.
• 7:18
  Now,
• 7:18
  you mentioned North Lake Boulevard when I think of North Lake,
• 7:21
  I usually think of one of our communities neighboring us to the north.
• 7:24
  So you get there by going out on North Lake.
• 7:27
  Correct.
• 7:27
  Yep.
• 7:27
  That is where our main entrance is just about a mile west of Beeline Highway.
• 7:32
  And we talked about kids and obviously the kids are gonna be doing a lot of stuff outside.
• 7:37
  What sort of educational opportunities do you have for kids,
• 7:40
  both in the summer and during regular school time.
• 7:42
  So during the school year,
• 7:43
  we are hitting pretty much any Palm Beach County school that wants to come out to grassy waters and we're running all of our educational programs and each one has a specific standards and specific talking points for every grade.
• 7:56
  And then on the weekends we're open seven days a week.
• 7:59
  So come on out,
• 8:00
  we do a lot of activities specifically for kids such as free hiking crafts.
• 8:04
  Those are just for the young ones.
• 8:06
  Come out to grassy waters.
• 8:07
  We're gonna do a quick little hike on the boardwalk,
• 8:10
  some type of fun craft and send you on your way.
• 8:12
  But if you want to step it up a little bit,
• 8:14
  we do marsh critters.
• 8:15
  This is where we go into the water.
• 8:17
  We've got nets and this is where we're catching again,
• 8:19
  those crawfish and shrimp and all the fun invertebrates they call the Everglades home.
• 8:23
  And if you want to get even further into the swamp,
• 8:25
  where do you want our swamp tramps?
• 8:27
  So,
• 8:27
  tell me a little bit about the swamp trumps.
• 8:29
  What exactly happens?
• 8:31
  What's the appropriate age for that?
• 8:33
  Tell me about that.
• 8:34
  That is really,
• 8:35
  I'm gonna say upper elementary middle school is wonderful.
• 8:38
  Again,
• 8:39
  it's open for all ages,
• 8:40
  but uh it is definitely a fun one to get the students and kids into the water and into the Everglades because for most people,
• 8:46
  they think of the Everglades as being again,
• 8:48
  that harsh kind of scary environment and say no way.
• 8:51
  Am I ever gonna step on the water?
• 8:52
  Come on a tour with us.
• 8:54
  We're gonna take it nice and easy.
• 8:55
  We've got walking sticks so we take it real slow and we just walk a little bit,
• 8:58
  stop,
• 8:59
  bring us all together,
• 9:00
  you know,
• 9:00
  talk about the cypress trees,
• 9:01
  the cyrus knees,
• 9:03
  we're picking up fun plants,
• 9:04
  we're smelling things that smell good out there and then we're gonna cruise a little bit further and it's just fun to really immerse yourself into the Everglades because even as Floridians,
• 9:12
  not too many people really experience the Everglades in the water,
• 9:16
  there's certainly a lot that will go out there on their own in the middle of nowhere.
• 9:19
  But for the average person,
• 9:20
  if you want to come and really enjoy the Everglades off the boardwalk,
• 9:24
  off the trail,
• 9:25
  we're the place to do it.
• 9:26
  Fantastic.
• 9:27
  Um Is there opportunities for folks who are interested in learning about or getting into birding bird watching?
• 9:34
  Absolutely.
• 9:35
  So definitely winter time when migrating birds are coming down.
• 9:38
  That's definitely the time for bird watchers there.
• 9:42
  Birds all,
• 9:43
  all year round.
• 9:44
  If you want to see snail kites,
• 9:45
  that's definitely a,
• 9:46
  a checklist bird for a lot of birds out there.
• 9:48
  If they want to come see our mascot bird,
• 9:49
  the Everglade snail kite.
• 9:52
  But wintertime we're gonna do tours in our restoration area that is not open to the general public.
• 9:57
  So it's only for guided tours and we specifically do birding walks in the winter time.
• 10:01
  What is the restoration area?
• 10:03
  So,
• 10:03
  it's an area just on the western side of Grassy Waters Preserve.
• 10:08
  And it has been years ago,
• 10:10
  it seemed like different things have happened to that area.
• 10:13
  You know,
• 10:14
  it was,
• 10:14
  had full of invasive plants and that kind of stuff.
• 10:17
  So the city had gone in and really just restored.
• 10:20
  It's got the invasives out of there,
• 10:22
  replant the natives and there's a,
• 10:23
  a bit of a trail out there,
• 10:25
  but again,
• 10:25
  not open to the general public just yet.
• 10:28
  Got you,
• 10:28
  you do mention restoration.
• 10:30
  And obviously,
• 10:30
  we have to keep in mind that Grassy Waters Preserve is a fragile environment that needs to be taken care of.
• 10:36
  Uh,
• 10:36
  people I know who have been out there come back and say this is amazing.
• 10:41
  You get a sense of the pristine quality that of,
• 10:44
  of everything out there and how wonderful it is.
• 10:47
  What advice can you give to people who want to help preserve and uh take care of um grassy waters?
• 10:54
  Yeah.
• 10:54
  The easy answer for sure is water conservation.
• 10:57
  You know,
• 10:57
  we've heard for years to turn the water off when you're brushing your teeth,
• 11:00
  try to take shorter showers,
• 11:02
  all that kind of stuff.
• 11:03
  But water conservation is the big one and there's so many things that are really easy to do.
• 11:07
  But if the more water we're using is a kind of a direct taking water from grassy water preserve.
• 11:13
  You know,
• 11:14
  I've,
• 11:14
  I've never thought of that.
• 11:15
  So really what we can do to directly help preserve that environment is to be aware of what we're doing with our faucets and our garden hoses and not using up the water that needs to be kept in the preserve to keep that system running.
• 11:31
  Correct.
• 11:32
  Absolutely.
• 11:33
  We kind of see Florida as,
• 11:35
  you know,
• 11:35
  we have our wet hot season and we go into our cooler,
• 11:38
  dry season and as humans,
• 11:39
  we like to have that yearly,
• 11:41
  you know,
• 11:42
  averages,
• 11:42
  things should happen when they do happen.
• 11:44
  But year to year,
• 11:44
  we're gonna have years that have a lot of rain and we're gonna have years that have very little rain and we really need that water to sit and stay in grassy waters.
• 11:52
  So,
• 11:53
  we're not at it.
• 11:54
  Well,
• 11:54
  where do we get our water from?
• 11:56
  So,
• 11:57
  we've talked a little bit about outside activities.
• 11:59
  Let's talk about what we can do to maximize some,
• 12:02
  the people's visits to the actual,
• 12:04
  uh,
• 12:04
  indoor activities you have available.
• 12:06
  Absolutely.
• 12:07
  So,
• 12:07
  come into the nature center.
• 12:09
  So we've got two great new aquariums that really represent the swamp and the marsh.
• 12:15
  So those are great to see.
• 12:16
  You can see all the,
• 12:17
  all the cool invertebrates and things really up close.
• 12:21
  But inside the Nature Center,
• 12:22
  we've got,
• 12:22
  again,
• 12:22
  those search and finds for kids,
• 12:24
  we've got Bino for anyone to borrow.
• 12:26
  If we have got Children ones,
• 12:28
  we've got adult ones.
• 12:29
  So come in the Nature Center.
• 12:30
  We love the questions when people come in.
• 12:32
  Hey,
• 12:33
  what bird is this?
• 12:34
  They show us a photo on the phone.
• 12:35
  Hey,
• 12:35
  what snake is this?
• 12:36
  You know,
• 12:36
  it's really great to see those,
• 12:38
  those visitors come in and ask us those questions,
• 12:40
  especially anyone from downtown West Palm Beach.
• 12:43
  You know,
• 12:43
  we get visitors that are like,
• 12:45
  hey,
• 12:45
  I'm here on vacation.
• 12:46
  I heard about grassy waters.
• 12:47
  We came out here,
• 12:47
  we,
• 12:48
  you know,
• 12:48
  we saw these cool plants and like,
• 12:50
  obviously it's like our favorite thing to do is just talk to anybody out there and say,
• 12:53
  all right,
• 12:54
  you know,
• 12:54
  that's an everglade snail kite.
• 12:56
  Amazing.
• 12:56
  That's a great blue heron.
• 12:57
  All right,
• 12:58
  that's a,
• 12:59
  you know,
• 12:59
  a non venomous Everglades rat snake.
• 13:02
  And it's great to have those conversations.
• 13:04
  We just love having any questions,
• 13:05
  comments from the general public come into the Nature Center and you can get all the information that you need.
• 13:10
  It really expands what people think about the area,
• 13:13
  everyone thinks about beach,
• 13:14
  everything thinks about stores and businesses.
• 13:17
  Then you have this other side of West Palm that as you,
• 13:21
  you blew me away.
• 13:22
  It's,
• 13:22
  it's over nearly half the,
• 13:24
  the area of the city.
• 13:25
  It belongs to grassy waters.
• 13:27
  Absolutely.
• 13:28
  Again,
• 13:28
  hiking.
• 13:29
  We've got bike trails.
• 13:30
  Come on,
• 13:31
  come on educational tour.
• 13:33
  We've got everything for everybody.
• 13:35
  Ok.
• 13:35
  Well,
• 13:36
  you know,
• 13:36
  we've covered a lot of ground.
• 13:37
  We've talked about a lot of things that are going on in grassy.
• 13:39
  Is there anything that you'd like to tell folks that maybe isn't common knowledge that you'd like to share with,
• 13:46
  with the audience about grassy waters.
• 13:47
  Yeah,
• 13:48
  I got a couple of things for sure.
• 13:49
  So,
• 13:49
  I would say before you come out,
• 13:51
  I would say visit our website.
• 13:53
  We've got handouts on there.
• 13:54
  We've got,
• 13:55
  you know,
• 13:55
  things for Children.
• 13:56
  If you want to print out,
• 13:57
  search and finds all that kind of stuff,
• 13:59
  you can watch videos such as science in 60 seconds.
• 14:02
  Really good fun videos to get an idea of where I should go in grassy waters and where should I start my activities?
• 14:07
  Where is that?
• 14:07
  What is that URL?
• 14:08
  That is gonna be W PB dot org forward slash grassy waters?
• 14:13
  Got you.
• 14:13
  Ok.
• 14:14
  So lots of good information,
• 14:16
  ways to get directions.
• 14:18
  Find out what programs are available.
• 14:20
  What about,
• 14:21
  is it necessary to make reservations for some of these activities for most of our guided tours?
• 14:26
  We do take reservations.
• 14:28
  I like to say we're still a little bit old school.
• 14:29
  We do paper and pencil.
• 14:30
  So just call the Nature Center and we're just gonna write down your name and phone number and we're gonna get you reserved for that spot.
• 14:35
  What sort of costs are involved.
• 14:37
  So again,
• 14:38
  many of our kids activities are free such as those hiking crafts and a handful of our lectures are free.
• 14:43
  Come on out again,
• 14:44
  if you want to come on a more educated tour with us.
• 14:47
  Our Swamp Trump start at $5.
• 14:49
  Can do tours at $10.
• 14:51
  Ok.
• 14:51
  Very good.
• 14:52
  While there's a lot going on down in grassy waters,
• 14:55
  just tremendous amounts of activities going on.
• 14:57
  How do you manage to keep staff rolls?
• 14:59
  Do you have volunteers to take part?
• 15:00
  We certainly do.
• 15:01
  So,
• 15:02
  we have just about 87 active volunteers are grassy waters.
• 15:05
  Some that come out once a week,
• 15:07
  some come out once a month and literally,
• 15:09
  we cannot do our programs without them.
• 15:11
  So my job is fun.
• 15:12
  I get to be the face of grassy waters.
• 15:14
  I'm out in the swamp,
• 15:15
  I'm leaving canoe and kayak tours,
• 15:17
  but we always have volunteers that are sweeping behind,
• 15:19
  helping us load canoes.
• 15:21
  They're helping the kids programs,
• 15:22
  they're pushing everybody along.
• 15:23
  So make sure everyone stays nice and safe.
• 15:25
  So again,
• 15:26
  we really can't do half of our programs without our volunteers.
• 15:29
  They're such a big help for us.
• 15:31
  Charlie Wilson.
• 15:32
  You've been fantastic.
• 15:34
  I appreciate everything you do and,
• 15:35
  uh,
• 15:35
  we appreciate you spending some time telling us about what is probably one of the most important,
• 15:41
  uh,
• 15:41
  assets we have here in the city of West Palm Beach.
• 15:43
  Grassy Waters Preserve.
• 15:45
  Absolutely.
• 15:46
  Thank you.
• 15:46
  For having me.
• 15:47
  The City Center podcast is produced by the City of West Palm Beach.
• 15:52
  If you have any questions or comments,
• 15:53
  please write us at podcast at W PB dot org.
• 15:59
  If you wish to learn more about Grassy Waters Preserve,
• 16:02
  visit the web page at W PB dot org slash grassy waters.
• 16:08
  Thank you for joining us.
• 16:09
  We look forward to the next time.