It is truly the wet season at CREW. Though some may argue, it is definitely known that Florida has two seasons, the rainy season and the dry season. Luckily for us, the rainy season brings unique opportunities for people to see the watershed doing its most important job- collecting and cleaning our drinking water.
Drought was one of the reasons the CREW project was started in 1989 was because of a drought. During 
that time people realized the importance of preserving land for water. The acronym CREW stands for Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed. A watershed is an area of land where water flows from a high point to a low point and collects there. CREW is a rain-fed watershed, and because of that water levels in CREW are highly affected by rainfall.
Without places like CREW, where water can collect and soak into the ground, filling our underground water supply and saving it for those dry winter months, the rains would flow quickly off of impervious surfaces like concrete and get dumped into a canal that flows quickly to the ocean. That quick loss of fresh water off the surface of our lands creates conditions for droughts during the dry season. We depend on underground water supplies for our year-round drinking water. That’s why it is so important for us to conserve wetlands and protect areas like CREW.
So what does all this mean for you? It means the trails are wet. Be happy that we have this preserved this watershed in our ever-developing Southwest Florida. Be happy that CREW provides us with drinking water. Be happy when you come to CREW to hike the trails, even when they are wet! Just dress appropriately if you decided to hike at one of the three CREW Trails because they are WET this summer.
If you are uncomfortable walking in high water or have never been on a wet walk, join Jessi Drummond our Environmental Education Specialist, on August 11th for a guided wet walk that will help you and ease into our beautiful swamps. To register click here.