Okefenokee Swamp Park, Nature center at northern entrance of Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia, US.

Okefenokee Swamp Park is a nature center 12 miles south of Waycross, Georgia, reached via Highway 177 South to the southern side of Cowhouse Island. It is the northernmost entry point to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, a blackwater swamp covering over 438,000 acres. The park's 1,200-acre property includes Skull Lake, boardwalks, boat docks, and a 90-foot steel observation tower, the tallest in the swamp.

The park was established in 1945 to open the swamp to visitors while helping protect the headwaters of the Suwannee and St. Marys rivers. Long before that, Seminole peoples and later pioneers settled along the swamp's edges, and traces of their time here can still be found on the grounds.

The park's cultural displays trace the swamp's human history: a recreated homestead on Pioneer Island centres on the Highsmith Cabin, an authentic swamp residence with its outbuildings, and the Country Store/Museum holds photos and artifacts of events in the swamp and the park. A replica of the Wildes Cabin there is a memorial to Maximillian Wildes and those killed with him in the 1838 Wildes Massacre, dedicated in 1988 on the massacre's 150th anniversary.

Early morning is the best time to visit, when animals are most active and the air is cooler. The center offers both guided boat tours and self-guided options, so it is worth stopping at the entrance to check what is available on the day of your visit.

The park's 1.5-mile railroad, opened in 1999, is the only rail system permitted to operate inside the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. It recalls the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when track layers, loggers and turpentine workers harvested the swamp's resources for local and world markets.