- Wait, look at the baby bird. - [Narrator] On this episode of The Outsiders Club, Jalen and Sabrina are tracking bison and wild horses. - Oh, I found one. - Hey, watch it. - [Narrator] I hope you guys aren't riding them. - I don't think so. - [Narrator] Thank goodness. Then, they get into science fair mode, breaking down watersheds and sinks. - What's a sink? - [Narrator] Jalen, don't eat the samples. Later, we bump over to North Florida where Brandon and Selah are dodging stalagmites and stalactites at Florida Cavern State Park. - Oh man, this is amazing. - [Narrator] It sure is. - That's cool. - Wow. - [Narrator] And then they cap off a perfect day by stargazing. All of this star power packed into one show, just for you. The Outsiders Club starts right now.

♪ Come on let's go outside ♪

♪ We're gonna have some fun outside ♪

♪ It's where we are, it's who we are ♪

♪ It's The Outsiders Club ♪

- Okay, I'm gonna walk over here and see if I can find them. You guys walk over there and see if you guys see anything. - Hello, and welcome to The Outsiders Club. I'm Sabrina and this is Jalen. Today we're exploring Paynes Prairie State Preserve State Park-- - Right now, we're tracking' a herd of wild bison that roam this prairie. - And wild horses. I really want to see horses. - So why do horses and bison roam wild here?

(upbeat music) One of the many cool things about Paynes Prairie is that it preserves Florida's cultural heritage. Bison have been roaming this area for a super long time and wild crackle horses have been here since the Spanish brought them over more than 500 years ago. 500 years ago, that was a lot of years ago. Today, the park has an estimated 60 bison and 25 horses roaming 21,000 acres of land. As you can imagine, finding them is not easy. - Here at Paynes Prairie we preserve the bison and the wild horses as a cultural resource as they provide a window towards what the Florida used to be. These bisons are very incredible animals. They tend to move a lot and they can eat pretty much anything. They can move through water and they can move through land just as easily. I really want to show Jalen and Sabrina the animals, I just hope we can find them. - Oh, I found one. - Hey, watch it. - Oh, oh. Its just another tree. In the right lighting, a tree can look like a bison. - You're really good at spotting those bison trees. - [Oscar] Over here, I found something. - Hey, that's Oscar. - I bet he found the bison. - Or the horses. - So, did you find them? - No, but I did find some tracks. Looks like they're heading in that direction. - Wait, so how are we supposed to find them in all that tall brush? - You know, I used to be a cheerleader. You guys could throw me up in the air and I could look for them. - Is that a serious suggestion? - Yeah. - You know what, Sabrina? That actually gives me an idea. - See, I give good ideas. That's what I do. - We have a local partner that flies drones for us. I've asked them to help us find the bison. Understand, Paynes Prairie is a very large park. It's 22,000 acres with a 16,000 acre prairie basin. Approximately four miles long and eight miles wide. - While we keep searching for our bison and wild horses, I wanted to share a little more about this amazing park.

(upbeat music) Paynes Prairie preserve state park has a long list of TTDs like camping, fishing, and 30 miles of trails for equestrians, hikers, and bicycles. There's also wildlife viewing like you've never seen before, with 271 species of birds, plus alligators, deer, turkey, and of course, wild bison and cracker horses, and you can even go star gazing here. - Hey, can I get the drone to fly over zone 17? Approximately about 50 acres.

(soft classical music) Keep going through Zachery Ranch by the prairie basin.

♪ You just have to listen ♪

- Hey stargazer, get over here and check this out. - We found them. Look at them, they're right there. - You could see everything from this angle. I can't believe were gonna get to track the bison down with the drone. This is pretty cool. Its the bison. - That drone idea, that was me. There's so many. - I got to admit, that drone idea was pretty good. Ranger Oscar was able to pull up what the drone was seeing on his laptop. They were everywhere. - You know, I think I know exactly where that is. Let's go. - Check this out. There are 81 natural communities in Florida and Paynes Prairie is what is known as a basin wash. That basically means its a place with lots of plants that like water. Wet marshes are usually on flat, or mostly flat land and our surrounded by other cool natural communities. Learn more at the Florida Natural Areas Inventory. - [Narrator] Will Jalen find his bison or will Sabrina find her horses? - They're really hard to find. There's a lot of area to cover. - [Narrator] When we come back, Brandon and Selah discover soda straws. - Whoa. - [Narrator] Wait, they serve soda down there? - Oh, would you watch it with that thing? - What? - [Narrator] And later, its red powder, green powder, and soy sauce. Say what now?

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(energetic music) - Finally, we're gonna get to see a bison. - The ideas of wild horses roaming in the wild is so amazing. I really hope we can find them. - I'm looking around and I don't see anything but then I look and I see something, a bison. - I see the bison but I'm not seeing any horses. - Yes, we found them. - Studies show that we teenagers are having some serious neck issues. Yeah, its called tech neck and it comes from us walking around like screened out zombies and when you are on your phone, hold it up high to avoid looking down and you'll be less likely to collide with someone or something. So remember, keep tech in check. - I'm Selah. - And I'm Brandon and today, we're in North Florida at Florida Caverns State Park.

(upbeat music) Florida Caverns State Park is a 1,300 acre park located just northwest of Tallahassee. Believe me, this is a beautiful part of Florida. Large timber forests, rolling hills, very un-Florida you might say. This parks main attraction is, of course, the underground caverns that you can actually take tours in. A must see when you get here. Some added wow factor is the Chipola River and if I were a river judge, I'd score this one like a 20 out of 10 and that score doesn't even make sense. That's how great it is. Winding, full of wildlife, clear water, just an all around awesome river. Park TTDs include camping, horse bike riding, fishing, swimming, bicycling, and of course canoeing. Multiuse trails near the campgrounds over six miles of exploration for hikers, bicyclists, and horseback riders in the woodlands along the Chipola River. Whoa, what's this? It looks like a cave in the middle of the trail. - Well, it looks like exactly what it is. - Oh. - Did you know this is the only park in Florida that has a trail that runs straight through a cave? - Well then, let's go. - Hey, while Brandon and I work our way through this cave, this is a good time to intro this states park main attraction. - You guys ready to go cave exploring? - [Both] Definitely. - Earlier in the day, Brandon and I got to take a guided cavern tour and wow, it was amazing. This is amazing. - Yeah baby. I feel like I'm Indiana Jones or something. - Oh, would you watch it with that thing? - What? - [Selah] First, they teach you the different mineral formations. Stalactites are mineral formations that hang from the ceiling, stalagmites are formations that grow up from the ground and my fave are the soda straws. - These baby stalagmites are called soda straws. They're hollow in the center just like a drinking straw and if you look through the side here, you'll see the stalagmites coming down from the roof and stalagmites are from the ground but when they join together they form columns and pillars, as you can see right there. - That's cool. - [Selah] They're basically hollow mineral tubes that really do look like straws. They look so cool and you're like how did these even get here? - So what do you guys think so far? - That's cool. - Wow. - [Selah] Then they take you to different rooms, each with their own names based on their formations. My favorite was the wedding room. - Welcome to the wedding room. - With an amazing stalagmite that I guess kind of looks like a big cake with a crazy icing job. Whoa. The tour lasts about 45 minutes and is full of great info. Lets just say, if your teacher ever gives you a pop quiz on underground caverns, you'll totally pass. - Selah, this is so cool. Sorry.

(upbeat music) Wow. Okay, that was cool. - Yeah it was, but did you hear something in there? - Oh yeah, those were the bats. - Bats? Nobody said anything about bats. Brandon? - Check this out. The fact that we can walk through these caverns instead of having to crawl is all thanks to the Civilian Conservation Corps, or the CCC, as they're better known. They're a group of hardworking Americans that worked on public works projects all around the country, from 1932 to 1942. So yeah, thanks CCC for all the hard work you've done so we can enjoy these caverns today. Good info. - [Narrator] When we come back, Sabrina is still on the lookout for her wild cracker horses and our outsiders go looking for a sink. - What's a sink? I see a lot of wildlife here but I'm still not seeing any sink. Maybe over near the bathrooms? - What we put on the ground ends up in our drinking water. You can help keep our water clean by putting trash in its place and recycling whenever possible. At home and in the park, pick up after your pet and be sure to not throw chemicals on the ground. You can learn more by visiting floriadep.gov/waste.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] I think I see why Sabrina is so all about these cracker horses. - So we're walking through the woods and all of a sudden, they there are. Finally, there's the wild horses. - [Narrator] The horses here in Paynes Prairie are completely wild. They aren't fed or groomed by humans in any way. These horses are known for their agility and speed. Which is why the Spanish used them for herding cattle. But why are they called cracker horses you may ask? Early american cowboys were referred to as Florida crackers due to the cracking sound their whips would make when trying to tame their animals. The name transferred to the cowboys, to the horses, which is how this particular horse got its name. Pretty cool. - They were so amazing. Their hair was shiny, they're so big, wild. They're just beautiful animals.

(upbeat music) - Wait, look at the baby birds. - [Sabrina] So cute. - I want one. Selfie? - Yeah. - Sabrina and Jalen wanted to see more wildlife so I sent them over to Sweetwater Wetlands Park. This park is a cool place to check out wildlife and they can see the water as it flows into the sea. Sweetwater Wetlands Park plays a big role in filtering the water coming from the nearby natural areas. - Wait, you see the alligator? - That's a big alligator. - Whoa.

(upbeat music) - I see a lot of wildlife here but I'm still not seeing any sink. Maybe over near the bathrooms? - No, Oscar wasn't talking about a bathroom sink, he meant a sink that drains rain water down into the aquifer. - Hi, I'm Cali. - Hi, nice to meet you, I'm Sabrina. - I'm Jalen. - Oscar asked me to meet you guys here and show you around. - Sounds good. - Cali helps out in the park and knows a lot about the local wildlife. - How do you guys like the park? - We saw a huge alligator. - Yeah you can see pretty big alligators around here. I love coming to the Sweetwater Wetlands Park because I can go bird watching whenever I want to. My favorite thing about bird watching is trying to identify what they are. - [Sabrina] Cali showed us around this amazing park. We saw alligators and all kinds of wildlife and she explained how the park filters water. Oh and heres something cool. If you look at it from high above, it's shaped as an Alligators head. This park is so wide open, you could see for miles. But I still wasn't getting how the park filters water. - Would you explain to her what a sink is and how it works? - Of course. The water comes in from the water shed then flows into the wetlands before draining into the aquifer. So its kind of like a sink. - Whoa, I still don't see how all this works. - You know what, follow me. I'll show you.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Cali is going to use a teaching tool called a watershed model to show Jalen and Sabrina how Sweetwater Wetlands Park filters water before it goes into the aquifer. So put on your thinking caps and pay attention. The model represents a typical community, like the nearby city of Gainesville which has a mix of agriculture, factories, and neighborhoods. Unfortunately, in order to maintain these parts of our communities, pollutants are used which make their way into our water system, not good. Cali has brought three items to represent some of these pollutants. - Jalen, some can you sprinkle some pesticide at the farm? - [Narrator] Red powder, which represents pesticides used by farmers. - Sabrina, can you sprinkle some fertilizer on the house? - [Narrator] Green powder, which represents fertilizer used by homes. - And now I'm gonna add some motor oil in the rodent on the factory. - [Narrator] And soy sauce. Which represents motor oil that comes from cars and gets on the roads. - Cali really explained how the Sweetwater Wetlands acts as a sink. - Having Cali demonstrate the hydro model really made me think about the environment. - [Narrator] Now its time to make it rain. - Jalen, can you do the honors? - [Narrator] Jalen and Sabrina use a spray bottle with water in it to act as rain. This forces the pollutants to drain down into the lakes and rivers, which as you can see, is not a pretty sight. - When it was time to make it rain, It was crazy. Seeing all that run off go into the lake. - That model really helped me understand how pollution gets into our water. That was gross. - [Narrator] Yuck, I don't want to drink that water. - Now the hydro model was cool. The green was the fertilizer, the red was the pesticides, the soy sauce was the oil. When it all mixed together at the end, nasty. - [Narrator] But wait, there's a solution. Cali brings out a second watershed model. They repeat the experiment, but this time they place aquatic plants, or sponges in this case, all over the community to filter the contaminated water, this time when they put all the pollutant on the model and spray it down with the rain water again, the plants soak up a lot of the pollutants. - When the sponge cleaned it up, life saver. - So this time, the lake water should be much cleaner. - That's a lot better. - [Narrator] I'm beat. That's enough science for me today. What about you, Jalen and Sabrina? - It's crazy that we can use our land to clean our drinking water. Who knew? - So now I get it. - I'd drink that. I already did. - [Narrator] Jalen, don't eat the model supplies. When we come back, Jalen and Sabrina get their gaze on. - Wait, gazing at what? Now that's a huge gator. You're watching The Outsiders Club. - And we'll be right back. - Did you know Florida has more than 30,000 lakes that cover a little more than three million acres of land? The lakes from very small to huge. We even have Americas fourth largest natural lake, Lake Okeechobee. Now you know.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Okay, so our outsiders Jalen and Sabrina, have had a big day tracking down wild bison, horses, and gators. - Wow, that's a big alligator. - Finally there's the wild horses. - [Narrator] Then, Cali took them to watershed school. - It's crazy that we can use our land to clean our drinking water. Who knew? - [Narrator] As the sun sets, the adventure is coming to a close. - Man, we saw so many different animals. Alligators, bison, wild horses, deers. - Thank you so much for showing us around the park, Cali. - I had so much fun. - Well I guess its getting late. So we better be heading out. - Heading out? The days not over yet. You want to go gazing? - I'll go gazing. - I'll gaze. - Wait, gazing at what? - Hello. - Hi. - [Woman] Would you like to look through my telescope? - [Sabrina] Yeah. - [Narrator] Another activity Paynes Prairie is known for is their star gazing. Because this park is so big, like 21,000 acres big, there's barely any light pollution, which makes it the perfect place to gaze. There's just so many stars to look at. I don't know where to gaze first. Jalen and Sabrina met up with a local astronomy club and got to see stars and planets up close and personal. They were able to see the big dipper and don't forget the little dipper. That word dipper is a funny word. I'm so jealous. I want to star gaze, too. You guys better have wished upon a shooting star for me. - What a show. We hope you enjoyed watching it as much as we enjoyed making it. - And we hope you're inspired to spend more time outside. - Check out our Instagram and watch full episodes on our YouTube channel, but most importantly remember. - [Both] Keep it outside. - Want to keep gazing? - Lets gaze.

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