O’Lena State Park and the Santa Fe River, River Sink/River Rise, High Springs, Ginnie Springs, Ichetucknee Spring State Park, Crawfordsville
(posted from Leon County Library, Tallahassee, FL)
(this post covers 14-18 February, 2008)
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Monday, 18 February-
I was considering paddling the Ichetucknee River today but I saw heavy clouds upon awakening and it was soon raining heavily. After a shower I hooked up the trailer and drove into High Springs, looking for my first bought breakfast of the trip. I had an excellent sausage-gravy-and-biscuits plate (for $2.50!) and drove out of town in a steady rain. I stopped at the southern entrance to Ichetucknee Spring State Park but it was again closed (I guess because of the rain) so I still couldn’t get info on paddling the river. I decided I’d head west to Wakulla Springs State Park and then decide from there what to do. Perhaps I’d go see Tallahassee, perhaps swing south to the beaches.
As the day wore on I could see blue sky coming and I broke out of the rain by the time I reached Perry. I continued on to Wakulla Springs pausing only for a short break at an Aucilla River launch ramp to put the boat down the ramp to drain off accumulated rain water.
At Wakulla Springs I had a bit of a shock. When I rolled up and asked for a campsite, I learned they don’t HAVE campsites. The Florida Gazetteer map clearly shows the campsite icon but that’s a mistake. But I also knew there was a Wal-mart in the nearby town of Crawfordsville so I dropped in there to be sure I could stay, then went to the local library, hoping for a wi-fi hotspot. They have wi-fi but have it locked down and they’re closed today so no-go there.
I then drove north toward Tallahassee, thinking I’d go to the Publix supermarket supposedly out this way. I never did see the Publix but saw a sign to Leon Sinks Geological park in the Apalachicola National Forest. I pulled in there out of curiosity and met an interesting fellow who’s taking care of the place. He’s a former Leon County Sheriff’s department officer who now works part-time for the National Forest. We chatted for a half-hour or so about the national forest and he pulled out a map and told me where I could camp and fish. The roads are reportedly in bad shape, however, for lack of funding so I may grow weary of pot-holes before I do much camping there.
Back in Crawfordsville I thought I’d like a shrimp cocktail so stopped at a seafood restaurant called ‘The Forgotten Coast’ and had to settle for an okay grilled-shrimp salad.
Then I returned to the Wal-mart and blogged the evening away.
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Sunday, 17 February-
I had stopped at Santa Fe Canoe Outpost yesterday on my way back from town and had talked briefly with the owner. He told me that the river section north from his shop is pristine since it’s all protected in the River Rise State Preserve. And I could paddle right to the Rise. I started there this morning about 0930, paddling upstream from the Outpost on US441. Within minutes I had made my day. Just above the river bridge I saw three otters. They were diving again and again and then eating whatever they were catching—apparently shellfish; it crunched as they ate. With that start, I had it made. Within a few more paddle strokes I saw a wood-stork perched in a tree. Around the next bend, a big great-blue heron waded and I saw another pair of wood-ducks. Turtles were also abundant--- five or more stacked up against one another on every branch or rock sticking out of the water. I then heard an amazing sound. It could only be the mating sound of a very big bull alligator—you know, the one where the water dances on the alligator’s back as it makes this incredible internal bellowing sound. But the sound wasn’t coming from the river… there must be a lake or something on the other side of those trees on the right bank (I thought).
I continued upstream for three miles until finally reaching River-Rise. I have to say it was a bit of a non-event. The place where the river sinks has no apparent flow and is in fact covered with green pond-scum. Here at River-Rise, again there’s no flow or bubbling or apparent current at the Rise. Something seems odd, though. Looking downstream you see ripples and definite signs of current but it’s coming from no-where; just this little lake you are sitting on.
Also at River Rise I saw the biggest tadpoles I’ve ever seen. As I sat there looking around I noticed movement off to my left. And then I saw little oval mouths open up and gulp air, then quickly submerge. It took a few minutes for me to get a good look at one against a light-colored patch of sand but these were giant tadpoles. They were a good six inches long, three inches high, and at least an inch-and-a-half thick at their round tummies. They were scary-looking.
Heading back downstream I slowly met a canoe or two on the way in. One lady said she had seen an otter and exclaimed that she has lived here many years and there were never otters in this part of the river. So I asked her about the gator-sound—the mating bellow. I asked whether it wasn’t awfully early in the season for it. She looked very strangely at me, then started laughing. She said the sounds were from the lions being kept at the camp of the by the Seventh Day Adventists. Some naturalist I am. Can’t tell a gator mating-bellow from a lion’s roar.
After lunch I did a little shopping and then went back to the campground to extend my stay another night. But when I asked, the ranger-lady said there was nothing available. I had seen my neighbors packing up and pulling out this morning so even though this was a long weekend I was very surprised. But I dutifully returned to my campsite, hooked up the boat, took a shower, and took care of the dump-station chore before starting to look for a place to stay. I called Manatee Springs state park but it too was full. I eventually decided I’d have to find a commercial campground. On the way out of the park, I stopped at the ranger station and said ‘I don’t imagine anything has opened up in the last hour, has it?” and she (the very same ranger) said “Well, if you like I can just extend your current site”. HUNH??? But I wasn’t about to argue. I took it. I dropped the boat trailer off again and took off.
I had seen Ginnie Springs on the map and wanted to see it. Ginnie Springs is known as a cave-diver’s paradise. I had read about it years ago when we were diving a lot. At Ginnie Springs I thought I might be in for a hassle as I saw the gate. It looked like an entrance to an exclusive country club. The entry fee was $12 but I asked if I could just go to the dive shop to look around and she said I could get a 20-minute pass there to enter the facility to see the Spring. But once inside, the next girl said they had been very busy all weekend and didn’t want to mess with the visitor’s passes but I was welcome to walk down and see the spring. Perfect!
I spent the next hour wandering about the facility. As it turns out, Ginnie Springs has multiple springs—Ginnie, Devil’s Eye, Devil’s Ear, Turkey, and several other names I can’t remember. In each case the spring is a relatively small clear pool of water with a dock and stairs leading down to the water. Divers go down the stairs, enter the water, and then descend into the water-filled caves beneath. I’ve done a bit of cavern-diving which is going into cave openings but never out of sight of the opening. That was thrilling enough. I can’t imagine going hundreds, thousands, of feet inside these passages, all the while your life depending on the air and mechanical gear you carry to continue operating flawlessly.
The springs all flow into the Santa Fe River in a short distance so I was also able to see people having a good time with tubes, recreational kayaks, and canoes on the river.
After Ginnie Springs I drove to another access point on the River at SR47, a launch ramp called Santa Fe Park. The current here was a good bit stronger (because of the influx of additional springs) than upstream where I had been paddling.
I then drove to Ichetucknee Spring State Park. I was hoping to do this one tomorrow but would need to have either a shuttle or find that I could launch at the lower end and paddle upstream against the current for awhile and then float back down.
But by that time it was after 1600 and the park office was closed. I couldn’t get any information but could see the upstream launch point. I took a short walk to Blue Spring (also in the park) and there met a young couple who had been swimming and taking photos. The guy pointed out a large brown water snake to me (the first I’ve seen this trip) and said he takes nature photos which I can see at www.wildworldphotos.com, his web site. I promised to check it out when I get a chance.
I stopped at a concession outside the park and asked about a shuttle. But they want $16 and you still have to drive your vehicle to the lower end. That seems a bit much for a four-mile float (though the drive is a lot longer).
I drove to the take-out area but found it locked up—it too is in the park. I’ll have to check that out tomorrow if I want to do the Ichetucknee.
I then drove back to High Springs and sat outside the library skyping with Labashi for an hour before going back to the campground. Turning in at my campground road, I saw my first white deer outside of a zoo. It wasn’t 100 per cent white—it had some light brown markings—but it looked very out-of-the-ordinary.
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Saturday, 16 February-
This morning I had neighbors in the next campsite, a nice English couple from Tallahassee—college professors at Florida State. We talked for a bit before I headed to town for some hardware to fix a problem with the kayak. Between the trip and my fooling with the kayak handle fix, it was getting late for my walk today. I had seen River Sink (where the Santa Fe River goes underground) on Thursday evening and I wanted to see River Rise (the place where it re—emerges). The former is only a short walk on the River Trail but the latter is almost a six mile walk one-way from my campsite. I got underway around 1400 and thought I’d probably not make it—I had too far to go before dark. But I had a plan. I had four hours before dark and would walk half of that, then decide. At 1600 I saw that I wasn’t going to quite make it there and back—but then again the moon was better than half full and already up so I’d be ok. I made it to River Rise by about 1620 and started back at 1630 and made it back to the campsite by 1845. I could still make out the trail ahead of me in the twilight but just barely. I had developed blisters on my soles in the last mile but they’d go away in a day or two.
I slept VERY well that night.
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Friday, 15 February-
Last night was another cold one but I didn’t care— all the sites at O’Leno State Park have electricity. All I had to do was dig out the electric heater and run the heavy-duty cord to the outlet and enjoy my evening and then a nice, warm morning.
This morning the outside temp was only showing low-Forties by 1000 but the sun was warming me up very nicely. I dropped the boat trailer and locked it to a picnic table and then went exploring. Today was a kayaking day on the Santa Fe River. I drove to the Route 27 bridge put-in just outside of High Springs. This would be my first real use of the kayak slide and also the first use of the newly-fabricated bracket for the kayak wheels so I took things slowly—just to be sure. Both worked beautifully. Once off the roof, the kayak sat at the lower end of the slide, blocked in place by its skeg. This allowed me to put the wheels on and tighten them down before easing the kayak to the ground. In use, I found the bracket still tends to work loose so it’s better to push the kayak with the wheels on the far end than to pull. I also found that one of the tie-down straps is perfect in length to keep a little pressure on the bracket to keep it in place. This particular ramp is very rough but the wheels handled that fine. Within a few minutes I was on the water, paddling upstream. I only paddled for fifteen minutes, though, before coming to a rock ledge which would have meant a portage. I turned back downstream and paddled past the launch area. After a couple of miles of very pleasant paddling I saw a river-side sign marking Lilly Spring and a smaller sign pointing up the hill to a restroom. I pulled in and made the hike up the hill to find a privy but this one was different. It had a flush toilet but no running water. Instructions on the seat back told you how to work it. Fill the nearby bucket up to the marked line by dipping from the rain barrels outside the privy. After you’ve used the toilet, dump the water into the bowl to flush. It worked like a charm.
Walking back down the hill I now saw a man working at the campsite near my kayak. I asked if he was a caretaker and he said simply, ‘Yeah, I’m Ed’. Oh, yeah…. I had read about Naked Ed in the guide book. He has a place a Lilly Springs and spends most of his time in the buff— or at least wearing a loincloth. But today he was wearing not only shirt, pants, and shoes, but also a jacket. I was in short sleeves but then again I was paddling out in the sunny river while he was in the late-morning shade. Ed and I had a pleasant conversation about his growing up in the area and we made no mention of Naked-Ed business as I said my thanks and good-byes.
On the river I had been seeing lots and lots of turtles, plus herons, ibises, kingfishers, a few red-shouldered hawks, and an osprey. A wood-duck couple stayed out ahead of me, taking off noisily as I approached but then landing just another hundred yards downstream and then we’d do that all over again. I didn’t see any gators or snakes but did see spectacular jumping fish—beautiful silvery fish jumping here and there, particularly in one stretch just downstream of Lilly Spring.
I paddled as far as Rum Island, a very small county park and launch ramp. I had noticed the current picking up as the various springs added to the volume and to the water clarity. The water was heavily tannin-stained at the put-on but down here I could now see the weeds on the bottom and patches of sand here and there.
On the way back upstream I saw two canoes I had passed earlier pulled in at Lilly Spring. I too pulled in and said I had met Naked Ed earlier but he was clothed and wearing a jacket. They told me he had changed his costume, to, as they put it, ‘entertain the girls’ (they were paddling in couples and the girls had walked up to the privy). I saw I could paddle up Lilly Spring’s outflow so did that, paddling about fifty yards of narrow stream until it opened up to a beautiful clear pool. And there above the pool was Ed’s dock and waist-high fenced-in enclosure at the spring’s edge and a pretty little shack trimmed in palmetto leaves nearby. What a little oasis! And there saw balding and fifty-ish Ed, his well-tanned bare chest and shoulders showing above the enclosure as he smoked a cigarette and nodded. I waved and then was gone. On the way back to the river I passed a sign: “I’m wearing the best and cheapest bathing suit I’ve ever had. (Naked Ed)”.
The paddle back upstream was uneventful save for two very close encounters with SOMEthing. As I paddled along there was a sudden whirlpool of activity beside me. I could something very black and muscular forming the outer edge of the whirlpool. At first I thought it had been an otter but now I’m not sure—perhaps a gator.
Once back at the put-in I slipped on the wheels and easily maneuvered the kayak up the ramp and thirty yards or so across the big parking lot to the van. I popped the kayak slide back together and zipped it right up onto it’s roof-top saddles. Just as I finished that, an older couple came by and we chatted quite a while. They currently have a small RV similar to Mocha Joe and would like to take their canoe. They had in fact taken the canoe out one time but when they got back to the van they couldn’t get the canoe onto the roof without additional help.
A bit later a fellow rode up on a Gold Wing motorcycle I had seen parked across the lot. He had training wheels—actually two four-inch wheels mounted on a bracket under the bike which he could raise and lower by pushing a button… very slick! He too was a traveler at heart. He has done a lot of traveling by motorhome and would like to take both his car and his motorcycle.
On the way back through High Springs I stopped at the library and chatted with Labashi for an hour over Skype, then went back to the campground for the evening.
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Thursday, 14 February-
Last night was a cold one… 34 degrees. I should have gotten down Labashi’s zero-degree bag but you know how that goes—I’d have to get colder while getting the over a light blanket and I was mostly okay.
I slept heavily and woke late—around 0830. I soon moved the van from its shady spot under a big live oak (festooned with Spanish moss) out into the sunlight to warm up a bit while I had breakfast. Afterwards I drove five miles or so to Cross Creek and the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings State Park. I had done the self-tour on Tuesday and this morning realized it’s Thursday and house tours are available. I enjoyed seeing the old cracker house… it reminds me so much of staying with my grandmother when I was a young boy, particularly little details like the pattern on the linoleum floor in one room or the hand-pump. The tour was supposed to start at 1100 but apparently they started early for I had to catch up and I missed the introduction. But the point for me was to see the inside of the house. I did enjoy seeing it but of course it’s a very pale imitation of meeting the author herself.
I finished up the tour around lunch time and spent the next hour working on my new, improved kayak-wheeling setup in the county park next door in the rapidly-warming day. Traveling alone, I have to not only get the kayak down from the van but also to get it to and from the launch point—thus the wheels. Today I made a bracket to lock the wheels firmly onto one end of the kayak. I think this is going to work but won’t know for sure until I give it a try in the next couple of days.
I then decided today’s moving day. After looking at several alternatives I called O’Leno State Park. This one is on the Santa Fe River and appears to have opportunities not only for kayaking and hiking but also some nearby bicycling.
With the weekend coming up State Parks can be a problem—it’s their high season. I called O’Leno and was told I could get a site for tonight but they were full for the weekend. But I then called ReserveAmerica and did manage to get a site—the last one available for the weekend.
On the way to O’Leno I passed a Books-a-Million and found a good book about kayak-camping in the Everglades. Nearing the park I hit a Winn-Dixie for ice and a little Southern Comfort for later.
I checked in at the park by 1530 and immediately took off on a walk. I took the Dogwood Trail and the River Trail and ended up walking for about two-and-a-half hours. I thought I had kicked up a doe on the Dogwood Trail but soon saw a white dog was chasing it—that can’t be good. Down on the River Trail I kicked up two doe and a very near-sighted armadillo. I don’t think the armored little fella ever saw me. I had just started across a walking bridge and he was emerging from thick saw-palmettos alongside the bridge. I stopped when I heard the rustling of the saw-palmetto leaves and the armadillo proceeded to root around the area and eventually walk right under the little bridge I was standing on without spotting me. Very cool!
After turning for home I ran into a couple of young photographers and I mentioned the deer and armadillo. They told me of seeing an otter so I kept a sharp eye out for it but no luck on that one--- I’ll have to try again.
In my walk I passed the Santa Fe Sink—a place where the Santa Fe River disappears underground, only to re-emerge some three miles away and then continue on to fee the Suwannee. I’m hoping to see the Rise tomorrow—the spot where it re-emerges.
Back at the van I listened to Bill Moyers on the iPod as I prepared dinner and then spent the rest of the evening blogging and reading. The campground is quiet tonight but I understand it’s supposed to be very crowded this weekend.
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(posted from Leon County Library, Tallahassee, FL)
(this post covers 14-18 February, 2008)
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Monday, 18 February-
I was considering paddling the Ichetucknee River today but I saw heavy clouds upon awakening and it was soon raining heavily. After a shower I hooked up the trailer and drove into High Springs, looking for my first bought breakfast of the trip. I had an excellent sausage-gravy-and-biscuits plate (for $2.50!) and drove out of town in a steady rain. I stopped at the southern entrance to Ichetucknee Spring State Park but it was again closed (I guess because of the rain) so I still couldn’t get info on paddling the river. I decided I’d head west to Wakulla Springs State Park and then decide from there what to do. Perhaps I’d go see Tallahassee, perhaps swing south to the beaches.
As the day wore on I could see blue sky coming and I broke out of the rain by the time I reached Perry. I continued on to Wakulla Springs pausing only for a short break at an Aucilla River launch ramp to put the boat down the ramp to drain off accumulated rain water.
At Wakulla Springs I had a bit of a shock. When I rolled up and asked for a campsite, I learned they don’t HAVE campsites. The Florida Gazetteer map clearly shows the campsite icon but that’s a mistake. But I also knew there was a Wal-mart in the nearby town of Crawfordsville so I dropped in there to be sure I could stay, then went to the local library, hoping for a wi-fi hotspot. They have wi-fi but have it locked down and they’re closed today so no-go there.
I then drove north toward Tallahassee, thinking I’d go to the Publix supermarket supposedly out this way. I never did see the Publix but saw a sign to Leon Sinks Geological park in the Apalachicola National Forest. I pulled in there out of curiosity and met an interesting fellow who’s taking care of the place. He’s a former Leon County Sheriff’s department officer who now works part-time for the National Forest. We chatted for a half-hour or so about the national forest and he pulled out a map and told me where I could camp and fish. The roads are reportedly in bad shape, however, for lack of funding so I may grow weary of pot-holes before I do much camping there.
Back in Crawfordsville I thought I’d like a shrimp cocktail so stopped at a seafood restaurant called ‘The Forgotten Coast’ and had to settle for an okay grilled-shrimp salad.
Then I returned to the Wal-mart and blogged the evening away.
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Sunday, 17 February-
I had stopped at Santa Fe Canoe Outpost yesterday on my way back from town and had talked briefly with the owner. He told me that the river section north from his shop is pristine since it’s all protected in the River Rise State Preserve. And I could paddle right to the Rise. I started there this morning about 0930, paddling upstream from the Outpost on US441. Within minutes I had made my day. Just above the river bridge I saw three otters. They were diving again and again and then eating whatever they were catching—apparently shellfish; it crunched as they ate. With that start, I had it made. Within a few more paddle strokes I saw a wood-stork perched in a tree. Around the next bend, a big great-blue heron waded and I saw another pair of wood-ducks. Turtles were also abundant--- five or more stacked up against one another on every branch or rock sticking out of the water. I then heard an amazing sound. It could only be the mating sound of a very big bull alligator—you know, the one where the water dances on the alligator’s back as it makes this incredible internal bellowing sound. But the sound wasn’t coming from the river… there must be a lake or something on the other side of those trees on the right bank (I thought).
I continued upstream for three miles until finally reaching River-Rise. I have to say it was a bit of a non-event. The place where the river sinks has no apparent flow and is in fact covered with green pond-scum. Here at River-Rise, again there’s no flow or bubbling or apparent current at the Rise. Something seems odd, though. Looking downstream you see ripples and definite signs of current but it’s coming from no-where; just this little lake you are sitting on.
Also at River Rise I saw the biggest tadpoles I’ve ever seen. As I sat there looking around I noticed movement off to my left. And then I saw little oval mouths open up and gulp air, then quickly submerge. It took a few minutes for me to get a good look at one against a light-colored patch of sand but these were giant tadpoles. They were a good six inches long, three inches high, and at least an inch-and-a-half thick at their round tummies. They were scary-looking.
Heading back downstream I slowly met a canoe or two on the way in. One lady said she had seen an otter and exclaimed that she has lived here many years and there were never otters in this part of the river. So I asked her about the gator-sound—the mating bellow. I asked whether it wasn’t awfully early in the season for it. She looked very strangely at me, then started laughing. She said the sounds were from the lions being kept at the camp of the by the Seventh Day Adventists. Some naturalist I am. Can’t tell a gator mating-bellow from a lion’s roar.
After lunch I did a little shopping and then went back to the campground to extend my stay another night. But when I asked, the ranger-lady said there was nothing available. I had seen my neighbors packing up and pulling out this morning so even though this was a long weekend I was very surprised. But I dutifully returned to my campsite, hooked up the boat, took a shower, and took care of the dump-station chore before starting to look for a place to stay. I called Manatee Springs state park but it too was full. I eventually decided I’d have to find a commercial campground. On the way out of the park, I stopped at the ranger station and said ‘I don’t imagine anything has opened up in the last hour, has it?” and she (the very same ranger) said “Well, if you like I can just extend your current site”. HUNH??? But I wasn’t about to argue. I took it. I dropped the boat trailer off again and took off.
I had seen Ginnie Springs on the map and wanted to see it. Ginnie Springs is known as a cave-diver’s paradise. I had read about it years ago when we were diving a lot. At Ginnie Springs I thought I might be in for a hassle as I saw the gate. It looked like an entrance to an exclusive country club. The entry fee was $12 but I asked if I could just go to the dive shop to look around and she said I could get a 20-minute pass there to enter the facility to see the Spring. But once inside, the next girl said they had been very busy all weekend and didn’t want to mess with the visitor’s passes but I was welcome to walk down and see the spring. Perfect!
I spent the next hour wandering about the facility. As it turns out, Ginnie Springs has multiple springs—Ginnie, Devil’s Eye, Devil’s Ear, Turkey, and several other names I can’t remember. In each case the spring is a relatively small clear pool of water with a dock and stairs leading down to the water. Divers go down the stairs, enter the water, and then descend into the water-filled caves beneath. I’ve done a bit of cavern-diving which is going into cave openings but never out of sight of the opening. That was thrilling enough. I can’t imagine going hundreds, thousands, of feet inside these passages, all the while your life depending on the air and mechanical gear you carry to continue operating flawlessly.
The springs all flow into the Santa Fe River in a short distance so I was also able to see people having a good time with tubes, recreational kayaks, and canoes on the river.
After Ginnie Springs I drove to another access point on the River at SR47, a launch ramp called Santa Fe Park. The current here was a good bit stronger (because of the influx of additional springs) than upstream where I had been paddling.
I then drove to Ichetucknee Spring State Park. I was hoping to do this one tomorrow but would need to have either a shuttle or find that I could launch at the lower end and paddle upstream against the current for awhile and then float back down.
But by that time it was after 1600 and the park office was closed. I couldn’t get any information but could see the upstream launch point. I took a short walk to Blue Spring (also in the park) and there met a young couple who had been swimming and taking photos. The guy pointed out a large brown water snake to me (the first I’ve seen this trip) and said he takes nature photos which I can see at www.wildworldphotos.com, his web site. I promised to check it out when I get a chance.
I stopped at a concession outside the park and asked about a shuttle. But they want $16 and you still have to drive your vehicle to the lower end. That seems a bit much for a four-mile float (though the drive is a lot longer).
I drove to the take-out area but found it locked up—it too is in the park. I’ll have to check that out tomorrow if I want to do the Ichetucknee.
I then drove back to High Springs and sat outside the library skyping with Labashi for an hour before going back to the campground. Turning in at my campground road, I saw my first white deer outside of a zoo. It wasn’t 100 per cent white—it had some light brown markings—but it looked very out-of-the-ordinary.
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Saturday, 16 February-
This morning I had neighbors in the next campsite, a nice English couple from Tallahassee—college professors at Florida State. We talked for a bit before I headed to town for some hardware to fix a problem with the kayak. Between the trip and my fooling with the kayak handle fix, it was getting late for my walk today. I had seen River Sink (where the Santa Fe River goes underground) on Thursday evening and I wanted to see River Rise (the place where it re—emerges). The former is only a short walk on the River Trail but the latter is almost a six mile walk one-way from my campsite. I got underway around 1400 and thought I’d probably not make it—I had too far to go before dark. But I had a plan. I had four hours before dark and would walk half of that, then decide. At 1600 I saw that I wasn’t going to quite make it there and back—but then again the moon was better than half full and already up so I’d be ok. I made it to River Rise by about 1620 and started back at 1630 and made it back to the campsite by 1845. I could still make out the trail ahead of me in the twilight but just barely. I had developed blisters on my soles in the last mile but they’d go away in a day or two.
I slept VERY well that night.
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Friday, 15 February-
Last night was another cold one but I didn’t care— all the sites at O’Leno State Park have electricity. All I had to do was dig out the electric heater and run the heavy-duty cord to the outlet and enjoy my evening and then a nice, warm morning.
This morning the outside temp was only showing low-Forties by 1000 but the sun was warming me up very nicely. I dropped the boat trailer and locked it to a picnic table and then went exploring. Today was a kayaking day on the Santa Fe River. I drove to the Route 27 bridge put-in just outside of High Springs. This would be my first real use of the kayak slide and also the first use of the newly-fabricated bracket for the kayak wheels so I took things slowly—just to be sure. Both worked beautifully. Once off the roof, the kayak sat at the lower end of the slide, blocked in place by its skeg. This allowed me to put the wheels on and tighten them down before easing the kayak to the ground. In use, I found the bracket still tends to work loose so it’s better to push the kayak with the wheels on the far end than to pull. I also found that one of the tie-down straps is perfect in length to keep a little pressure on the bracket to keep it in place. This particular ramp is very rough but the wheels handled that fine. Within a few minutes I was on the water, paddling upstream. I only paddled for fifteen minutes, though, before coming to a rock ledge which would have meant a portage. I turned back downstream and paddled past the launch area. After a couple of miles of very pleasant paddling I saw a river-side sign marking Lilly Spring and a smaller sign pointing up the hill to a restroom. I pulled in and made the hike up the hill to find a privy but this one was different. It had a flush toilet but no running water. Instructions on the seat back told you how to work it. Fill the nearby bucket up to the marked line by dipping from the rain barrels outside the privy. After you’ve used the toilet, dump the water into the bowl to flush. It worked like a charm.
Walking back down the hill I now saw a man working at the campsite near my kayak. I asked if he was a caretaker and he said simply, ‘Yeah, I’m Ed’. Oh, yeah…. I had read about Naked Ed in the guide book. He has a place a Lilly Springs and spends most of his time in the buff— or at least wearing a loincloth. But today he was wearing not only shirt, pants, and shoes, but also a jacket. I was in short sleeves but then again I was paddling out in the sunny river while he was in the late-morning shade. Ed and I had a pleasant conversation about his growing up in the area and we made no mention of Naked-Ed business as I said my thanks and good-byes.
On the river I had been seeing lots and lots of turtles, plus herons, ibises, kingfishers, a few red-shouldered hawks, and an osprey. A wood-duck couple stayed out ahead of me, taking off noisily as I approached but then landing just another hundred yards downstream and then we’d do that all over again. I didn’t see any gators or snakes but did see spectacular jumping fish—beautiful silvery fish jumping here and there, particularly in one stretch just downstream of Lilly Spring.
I paddled as far as Rum Island, a very small county park and launch ramp. I had noticed the current picking up as the various springs added to the volume and to the water clarity. The water was heavily tannin-stained at the put-on but down here I could now see the weeds on the bottom and patches of sand here and there.
On the way back upstream I saw two canoes I had passed earlier pulled in at Lilly Spring. I too pulled in and said I had met Naked Ed earlier but he was clothed and wearing a jacket. They told me he had changed his costume, to, as they put it, ‘entertain the girls’ (they were paddling in couples and the girls had walked up to the privy). I saw I could paddle up Lilly Spring’s outflow so did that, paddling about fifty yards of narrow stream until it opened up to a beautiful clear pool. And there above the pool was Ed’s dock and waist-high fenced-in enclosure at the spring’s edge and a pretty little shack trimmed in palmetto leaves nearby. What a little oasis! And there saw balding and fifty-ish Ed, his well-tanned bare chest and shoulders showing above the enclosure as he smoked a cigarette and nodded. I waved and then was gone. On the way back to the river I passed a sign: “I’m wearing the best and cheapest bathing suit I’ve ever had. (Naked Ed)”.
The paddle back upstream was uneventful save for two very close encounters with SOMEthing. As I paddled along there was a sudden whirlpool of activity beside me. I could something very black and muscular forming the outer edge of the whirlpool. At first I thought it had been an otter but now I’m not sure—perhaps a gator.
Once back at the put-in I slipped on the wheels and easily maneuvered the kayak up the ramp and thirty yards or so across the big parking lot to the van. I popped the kayak slide back together and zipped it right up onto it’s roof-top saddles. Just as I finished that, an older couple came by and we chatted quite a while. They currently have a small RV similar to Mocha Joe and would like to take their canoe. They had in fact taken the canoe out one time but when they got back to the van they couldn’t get the canoe onto the roof without additional help.
A bit later a fellow rode up on a Gold Wing motorcycle I had seen parked across the lot. He had training wheels—actually two four-inch wheels mounted on a bracket under the bike which he could raise and lower by pushing a button… very slick! He too was a traveler at heart. He has done a lot of traveling by motorhome and would like to take both his car and his motorcycle.
On the way back through High Springs I stopped at the library and chatted with Labashi for an hour over Skype, then went back to the campground for the evening.
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Thursday, 14 February-
Last night was a cold one… 34 degrees. I should have gotten down Labashi’s zero-degree bag but you know how that goes—I’d have to get colder while getting the over a light blanket and I was mostly okay.
I slept heavily and woke late—around 0830. I soon moved the van from its shady spot under a big live oak (festooned with Spanish moss) out into the sunlight to warm up a bit while I had breakfast. Afterwards I drove five miles or so to Cross Creek and the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings State Park. I had done the self-tour on Tuesday and this morning realized it’s Thursday and house tours are available. I enjoyed seeing the old cracker house… it reminds me so much of staying with my grandmother when I was a young boy, particularly little details like the pattern on the linoleum floor in one room or the hand-pump. The tour was supposed to start at 1100 but apparently they started early for I had to catch up and I missed the introduction. But the point for me was to see the inside of the house. I did enjoy seeing it but of course it’s a very pale imitation of meeting the author herself.
I finished up the tour around lunch time and spent the next hour working on my new, improved kayak-wheeling setup in the county park next door in the rapidly-warming day. Traveling alone, I have to not only get the kayak down from the van but also to get it to and from the launch point—thus the wheels. Today I made a bracket to lock the wheels firmly onto one end of the kayak. I think this is going to work but won’t know for sure until I give it a try in the next couple of days.
I then decided today’s moving day. After looking at several alternatives I called O’Leno State Park. This one is on the Santa Fe River and appears to have opportunities not only for kayaking and hiking but also some nearby bicycling.
With the weekend coming up State Parks can be a problem—it’s their high season. I called O’Leno and was told I could get a site for tonight but they were full for the weekend. But I then called ReserveAmerica and did manage to get a site—the last one available for the weekend.
On the way to O’Leno I passed a Books-a-Million and found a good book about kayak-camping in the Everglades. Nearing the park I hit a Winn-Dixie for ice and a little Southern Comfort for later.
I checked in at the park by 1530 and immediately took off on a walk. I took the Dogwood Trail and the River Trail and ended up walking for about two-and-a-half hours. I thought I had kicked up a doe on the Dogwood Trail but soon saw a white dog was chasing it—that can’t be good. Down on the River Trail I kicked up two doe and a very near-sighted armadillo. I don’t think the armored little fella ever saw me. I had just started across a walking bridge and he was emerging from thick saw-palmettos alongside the bridge. I stopped when I heard the rustling of the saw-palmetto leaves and the armadillo proceeded to root around the area and eventually walk right under the little bridge I was standing on without spotting me. Very cool!
After turning for home I ran into a couple of young photographers and I mentioned the deer and armadillo. They told me of seeing an otter so I kept a sharp eye out for it but no luck on that one--- I’ll have to try again.
In my walk I passed the Santa Fe Sink—a place where the Santa Fe River disappears underground, only to re-emerge some three miles away and then continue on to fee the Suwannee. I’m hoping to see the Rise tomorrow—the spot where it re-emerges.
Back at the van I listened to Bill Moyers on the iPod as I prepared dinner and then spent the rest of the evening blogging and reading. The campground is quiet tonight but I understand it’s supposed to be very crowded this weekend.
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posted by Bezabor&Labashi | 23:59
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