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This 11,000 acre park is named after a Quaker merchant from Jamaica, Jonathan Dickinson. In 1696, Mr. Dickinson and his family were shipwrecked near the present day State Park. Jonathan Dickinson wrote a journal recording his adventures and journies.
Much earlier before Mr. Dickinson's crash landing, there was a glacial period known as the Pamlico Period. South Florida was mostly covered by sea. Erosion occurred resulting in sands, fossils, and some carbon materials. Soon there was a plethera of sandbars, beach ridges and tall dunes in the higher elevations known as the barrier islands.
In an ancient lagoon, the Loxahatchee River drainage basin formed. similar to where the Indian River is located today. The final period of the Wisconsin Ice Age began after the Pamlico period approximately 100,000 years ago. As the glacial ice increased, the sea level steadily fell until about 20,000 years ago. Finally, the sea reached a low point approximately 300 feet below the present ocean level.
Shortly after this period, the sea level rose at a relatively rapid rate of more than 3 feet per century. Soon, the rise in sea level slowed and climate vegetation became established. The Loxahatchee River estuary transformed from a fresh water marsh to an area influenced by salt water.
Two geological formations occurred, aquifers underlying the area separated by confining beds. Approximately 15 to 150 feet below the land surface is a shallow surficial (non-artesian) aquifer. This aquifer is the main source of fresh public water along the coast. It consists of permeable sand, limestone, and shell beds. The Floridan (artesian) aquifer is 600 to 1500 feet deep and it contains more mineralized water, especially south into Broward County. It is made up of marl and clay.
Today the Loxahatchee River flows through Jonathan Dickinson State Park and is one of only two Florida rivers receiving the designation of a National Wild and scenic river. The Loxahatchee River meaners through fresh water creeks, into brackish estuary, and flows into the Atlantic Ocean via the Jupiter Inlet.
On the outskirts of this majestic river, Jonathan Dickinson State Park teems with wildlife and plant life. There are four scenic nature trails, camp sights, and a bike trail.
Twenty percent of the park is covered with coastal sand pine scrub. Scrubs are normally dominated by pinewoods with an understory of oaks and saw palmetto in nutrient poor, sandy soils. Plants that florish here have adapted to dry conditions.
To earn credit for this Earth Cache please do the following:
2) Go to N26 59.503 W 080 08.771 and e-mail me two geological facts about the surrounding area.
3) Finally, go to N 26 59.520 W 080 08.777 and e-mail me the necessary geological information listed on the bottom right hand corner of sign. This known fact assists with preserving this beautiful State Park.
Happy Caching
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