THE MAGAZINE OF THE FLORIDA HUMANITIES COUNCIL

Every day before dawn, they saddle their horses, coil their
lariats and whips, and ride out to work the herds. They
are Florida cattlemen—living heritage of the pioneer
days, legacy to the longest history of ranching in America,
guardians of the landscape that has shaped them.
On this morning, fog blankets the moist
pastures, enveloping the riders as they leave
the stables. I follow close behind. The calls
of frogs and birds ring out from nearby
wetlands, echoed by more calls emanating
from a stream in the adjacent oak hammock.
White-tailed deer spring out of the mist and disappear into the
shadows of the trees. By the time the sun breaks the horizon,
we have reached the edge of the flatwoods. The pines glow
orange above saw palmettos still shrouded in the blue light of
the retreating fog. The brush of fronds against my horse forms a
rhythm with the creaking of my saddle.
F L O R i D a h u m a n i t i e s C O u n C i L F O R U M / W I N T E R 2 0 0 6 35