More Ocala National Forest ; ATV ride ; Juniper Prairie Wilderness ; Everglades National Park ; Key West ; Dry Tortugas float plane trip ; Mitchell Landing with the python-slayer ; Bear Island with the glacier-pilot ; flight over the Wilderness Waterway (!!!!!!!!!)
(posted from Caxambas Park boat launch, Marco Island, FL)
(This post covers 13 – 28 February, 2011)
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Monday, 28 February-
This morning I dropped by the glacier-pilot-Tom's camp. He's living in a mid-Eighties Toyota mini-motorhome which has made seven trips to Alaska and back. Tom is single and, besides being a pilot, is a competitive shooter and a firearms instructor for The Appleseed Project. He has a home in the Adirondacks which he built and is 'off the grid', i.e., self-sufficient on solar power. He said he had checked on having power run back his road but it would be $125,000 and he's the only resident so he decided he could buy a heck of a lot of batteries for $125K.
Tom knows some local pilots and when I said I'd like to get a ride over the Wilderness Waterway, he recommended Chuck Gretzky at Everglades City airport. He also knows a local pilot named Jim who air-drops him a pizza here to the Bear Island campground every week or so from his 172.
After my longish chat with the ever-interesting Tom, I headed out. I actually had left earlier and turned back to get more info from Tom. That turn-back was very fortuitous in that it enabled me to see a bobcat. It crossed the Turner River Road only a quarter-mile or so above the Alligator Alley bridge. I saw it very clearly given it was only 30 yards or so in front of me. It bounded across the dirt road in a very short time and I could clearly see its tufted ears and bobbed tail. It appeared much larger and was darker in color than I thought a bobcat would be.
Seeing this bobcat cleared up a mystery for me. Labashi and I had seen one about twenty miles west of here at the Fakahatchee – Picayune boundary line back in 2006. At the time I at first thought I was seeing a panther because of the size of the cat. But it was too darkly colored and, in retrospect, I couldn't remember seeing a panther's long tail flowing behind it. Having seen this bobcat I now know that had also been a bobcat in 2006.
Driving out this morning I saw an ultra-cute garter snake pause in the road for me to check out. And further down I saw a two-foot black racer; it was an ultra shiny jet black and moved very quickly off the road as I approached. I also saw a more or less dormant water snake in the road. I stopped alongside it and it didn't react.
I made Everglades City in about an hour (given my poke-along speed) and went directly to the airport. I met Chuck, arranged for a tour at 1300, and went off to Chokoloskee for lunch.
I lunched at the Havana Cafe and then returned to Everglades City to prepare my gear for the trip. I took my 60CSx GPS which has both road maps and Florida marine charts and I took along the SPOT satellite messenger.
Chuck is another Alaska pilot. He flies out of Anchorage most of the year but spends four months here at Everglades City, taking tourists out over the Ten Thousand Islands and the Everglades.
I had arranged for my trip to follow the Wilderness Waterway route I had taken from Chokoloskee to Hearny River and back--- all at 500 feet!
We followed the Waterway to Broad River and I recognized the various chickees along the way. I recognized the winding passages between the larger lakes and even picked out my anchorage for the night in Broad River. We then turned upriver to fly over the sawgrass prairies to the north and east. Upon hitting the upper reaches of the Shark River, we followed it downstream to the Gulf. I could see Whitewater Bay and Oyster Bay to the southeast (and before we made the turn we had seen the high-rises in Miami!).
We then flew up the coast, just offshore, giving us the view of the Waterway from the other side. Too soon Chokoloskee and Everglades City came into view and I could see the high-rises of Marco Island in the distance. Chuck executed a nice cross-wind landing in the gusty breeze and we were done. Fantastic!
The tour was an hour-long tour and was pretty expensive-- $324. But then again I was chartering the plane for just me and took exactly the trip I wanted to take and saw it all at 500 feet.
My GPS showed the trip was 126 miles and I hit the SPOT's 'OK' button at least three times enroute.
After the ride, I went looking for a wi-fi connection in the area but came up short. I had previously used wi-fi at a small coffee shop in Chokoloskee but it has since changed hands and is now an Eco-tourism business (with no wi-fi).
At around 1600 I headed up 29 to the Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve. At the office I met Mike Owen, the ranger who had led the slough-slog I had taken in 2008. I then drove the length of Jane's Scenic Highway, an 11-mile dirt road through the Preserve. I saw a deer but that was about it. At the far end I entered the Picayune State Forest and after a mile or so came to a road-closed sign. Some construction project closed the road in early February and it won't re-open until the end of April.
I drove back through the Fakahatchee and then took nearby Wagonwheel Road to head back to Bear Island for the night. I had perfect evening light for the drive and saw three kingfishers, a half-dozen deer (but no horns), a turkey, a small cottonmouth, and four red-shouldered hawks. Nice!
Once in the Bear Island campground I looked up Tom-the-pilot and thanked him for directing me to Chuck. I had noticed earlier that I could pick up a cell signal several places along the entrance road so went back and called Labashi to check in. We only chatted briefly but I promised to find a wi-fi connection for a longer catch-up session tomorrow.
I then found my spot for the night, made supper, and caught up the blog. Good day!
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Sunday, 27 February -
This morning I walked over to say good morning to my Ontario friends and another camper was there. He was an air-boater from Penn-Yan, New York. Of course I mentioned the fact that I'm familiar with the Finger Lakes, specifically the Canandaigua area. To which the guy says, 'Yeah-- I know that area-- I helped build a big house there at the Canandaigua airport.' As it happens, I know that house because I know the guy who lives there-- he's a friend of my brother. Small world, eh?
The Penn-Yan guy grew up in Florida and comes down every winter with his air-boat. He's very familiar with the area and has many air-boating friends and acquaintances. And one of his claims to fame is having killed a very large python nearby last year. He had launched from the launch ramp just steps away from where we were talking. And out in the Glades he came upon a large python, just curled up and lying there. He pulled up to the snake and jumped off his air-boar wielding a machete. He killed the python and hauled the carcass back to the Landing, where he skinned it and counted its 51 eggs. I believe he said it was eighteen feet long (or was it 16 feet?) and weighed 160-some pounds. He said he had several air-boating friends at the landing and when they saw the snake they all called their buddies and before long there was a small crowd and several rangers who took video of it.
You know, the more I think about that story, the more I'm unsure it's completely true. I have a few more details (such as the guy's name) which may help me find out more if I can find the right person to ask. He also mentioned a web-site he frequents so I might be able to find out more in its archives.
By late morning I was ready to move so headed out the Loop Road-- a 20-some mile dirt road circling back to Route 41. I had heard the Loop Road was closed but my Ontario friends said another camper had gone out it quite a ways yesterday and might know. I spoke with him and he said there had been a Road Closed barricade a few days ago but it had been set off to the side.
For the next few hours I rocked-and-rolled around the Loop. It was reported quite rough but I've been on MUCH worse. The rough part was merely massive dried-up concavities which had once been huge mud-puddles. Some were a bit steep-sided but I don't think I even came close to dragging my hitch-receiver. And the road would have these road-wide concavities for a half-mile or so, then the surface would be fine-- not even wash-boarded-- for miles before the next set of concavities.
By early afternoon I reached the hard road and drove to the nearby visitor's center for Big Cypress National Preserve. I watched their very good film and spoke to someone about the Picayune Strand. She said it has been closed and the bridges removed but when I pressed for any details she backed that off. And if memory serves there never have been any bridges there. She probably heard about canals being filled in. My Ontario buddies did tell me the lower campground is now closed but the horse-campground on the north side is still open.
I drove to the gallery of Clyde Butcher, the wonderful photographer of the Everglades and environs. We had been past his gallery many times but it was either closed or we didn't have time for it. Today I visited and loved it. Clyde had done incredible black-and-white photos, some of them printed on four-by-six-FOOT stock and they are magnificent.
I then headed back west on the Tamiami Trail. As I approached the turnoff to Burns Lake I realized I had never seen it. In winter it's a day-use-only area so that's probably why. I circled the lake and drove the associated road back into private holdings, thinking this could be a place to see a panther come through as close as it is to Route 29.
I then moved on to the Turner River Road and drove the 21 miles of washboard and thick dust to Bear Island. I picked a campsite and walked over to a neighbor to chat. There I met Tom and Tom, one escaping Minnesota winters in a Born Free motorhome, the other a life-long pilot who spends each year in Talkeetna, Alaska flying tourists up onto the Mount Denali glaciers. He said this is his fiftieth year as a pilot. He once owned five planes but now just has his little Aeronca-- the same model he learned to fly in during the Fifties.
As darkness came on I returned to the van and spent the evening catching up the blog.
What a day!! Between snake-slayer and glacier pilot, it was a good one!
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Saturday, 26 February -
This morning I got up at 0630 to be ready for my float-plane check-in at 0730. The airport is only ten minutes away (if that) so I was first to check in but was glad to have time to double-check I had everything I wanted.
As we boarded, the three others in front of me took seats toward the back of the plane. I was working my way toward the front when the captain said the co-pilot's seat was available if anyone wanted to sit up front. What luck! I took the co-pilot's seat and buckled in with the biggest grin ever. I'm in the right seat of a Turbo-Otter seaplane about to fly to the Dry Tortugas!!!!!
Our 35-minute flight was ultra-smooth. I was like an over-excited kid between looking at instrumentation, watching for sea turtles, sharks, and dolphins (I saw three sea turtles and two dolphins, but no sharks) and seeing Boca Grande, the Marquesas, the Quicksands (where Mel Fisher found the 'Atocha') and the small keys just off Garden Key (where Fort Jefferson stands).
Our pilot set the Otter down in the channel leading into the harbor and taxied past the six or seven private yachts to the north-east corner of the fort. There he reversed the prop and backed up to the beach-- we didn't even have to get our feet wet getting off the pontoon.
We were met by employee 'Julie' who gave us instructions and then offered a tour of the fort. Incredibly only three of the ten of us took the tour. Others just wanted to look around on their own and one young couple just wanted to snorkel and didn't go in the fort (perhaps they had been here before).
Julie gave us a very competent forty-five minute tour of the fort. It's pretty much a shell of a fort and repetitive in design so one wing of the fort looks a good bit like another. So a forty-five minute tour and another hour of time on my own worked out fine.
Along our tour, Julie suddenly exclaimed and kicked something away-- it was the dried-up carcass of a rat. Later, I asked whether rats were a problem for the staff (who live here in housing built into the walls of the fort). She said they weren't for the residents but sometimes were for the campers.
Also, when talking about the diesel generators that run 24 hours a day to supply the fort's power needs (for the admin areas and residences), she mentioned that campers often complained of the noise. The generators were located in the walls but their exhaust pipes exited the walls on the camp-ground side of the building.
I had originally wanted to camp at the site but that had had it's own battles with scheduling, red-tape, extra cost, and preparation. I had been feeling a bit guilty about not making the effort but once I heard about the rats and the noise, I was glad things had worked out as they did.
While we were touring, the float-plane went back to Key West for another ten passengers. At 1100 we boarded and, incredibly, I got the co-pilot's seat again (apparently we were operating under the sit-where-you-sat rule for everyone took their same seats).
The trip back was too quick. I enjoyed listening to comms between the pilot and the various controllers and listening to the automated weather and altimeter readings (ATIS). We were given a straight-in approach and I loved the view of Key West and the runway on final and touchdown on the numbers. (Oh yeah, I should explain: The floatplane takes off and lands at Key West with landing gear that swings into place under the pontoons and of course lands and takes off onto/from the harbor at the Fort).
Back in Key West I stopped at the campground to do my laundry and then headed up US 1. I took my time (probably frustrating a few drivers) but just loved the various shades of the blue and green ultra-clear waters shimmering in the sun.
I made it to Florida City by 1700 or so and picked up some supplies and ice at the Wal-mart (yeah— the one I said I wouldn't shop at). I then headed up 997, thinking I'd stay the night at the Miccosukee casino at the Tamiami Trail intersection. But I'm not a fan of casinos so I turned down the Tamiami Trail curious to see who's camped at the freebie campsites along the Loop Road.
The Pinecrest campsite was fairly crowded and the road-side campsites as I drove in to Mitchell Landing were taken so I thought I might have a problem. But there were plenty of sites at the Landing and I had a very nice, isolated one all to myself.
Once situated, I walked over to a campfire and spoke with four people from the Niagara peninsula (the area in Ontario above Niagara Falls) for an hour or so before retiring for the night.
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Friday, 25 February-
This morning I wanted to find the boat for the trip to the Dry Tortugas. I asked one of the many information-kiosk guys about it and he also pulled out the info for the float-plane trip out. When I learned the boat trip costs $160 but you can take the float plane for $249, I didn't hesitate-- I booked the float-plane trip.
I had talked with a guy last evening about his snorkeling trip and learned the afternoons are windy enough to kick up some waves and make the boat trip a bit uncomfortable. So why float when flying doesn't cost much more? And when I learned the floatplane is a Dehaviland Turbo-Otter, that had settled it.
With that settled early in the day, I had the rest of the day to play. I rode the little folding bike all over the city. I had thought I'd ride for maybe an hour and then rent a scooter but riding the bike was ideal-- it was so easy to drift along and stop to look at something for a few minutes and parking was of course effortless.
I rode around until about 1330 and then went back to El Meson de Pepe for a late lunch. I had another caiprinha, gazpacho, and fried sweet-plantains. (Why don't we have Cuban restaurants like this back home?)
After lunch I felt lazy. I rode back to the van at Fort Taylor and opened it up to the wonderful breeze. I spent the next several hours finishing 'Scat' and starting 'The Swamp'.
About an hour before sunset I rode down to Mallory Square for the traditional Key West sunset celebration. I then looked up an oyster bar (Alonzo's) and had conch fritters and a cup of conch chowder.
I rode around through the city streets for another hour and then to the van for the drive back to Boyd's.
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Thursday, 24 February -
The bugs weren't a problem overnight but started in immediately this morning. The saltwater mosquitoes were on me within a few minutes but the deer flies were relentless- trying to fly into an ear, up my nose, and bumping into my glasses as they tried for my eyes. Everything was fine in the van so I took a slow drive along the Buttonwood Canal road and then just began working my way very slowly north, just enjoying the views across the 'Glades.
I dropped in to Long Pine Key campground and by that time I had escaped the mosquitoes and flies. I thought I might take a bike ride but then decided to move on to the Keys. I had only been in the Everglades for a couple of days but didn't want to deal with Flamingo's bugs and was ready to move on.
On the way out I stopped at 'Robert Is Here' and bought a gallon of fresh-squeezed orange juice and tried one of their 'famous' fresh-fruit milkshakes. The strawberry-key lime was an excellent choice. I also met owner Robert who started at the fruit stand at the age of six (he's now 57) and is quite the local celebrity. And a very nice guy.
In Homestead I dropped in to the Starbucks for a wi-fi connection to Skype with Labashi and tell her of my plans. I then slowly worked my way down through the keys, stopping a several dive shops and at Pennekamp and Long Key State Parks (both of which were full).
I thought I had a good plan to spend the late afternoon and evening on my drive through the Keys but the low sun in the West made driving a bit of a pain. But it had been a wonderful day for a drive up to the last half-hour or so.
In Key West I went to familiar Boyd's Campground and booked a site for two nights ($132!) and then drove down town. I parked at Fort Taylor and walked into Mallory Square. I had supper at El Meson de Pepe, the Cuban open-air restaurant and had a perfect caiprinha and a mojito with my plantains, spicy beef, and quacamole.
I walked a bit but it been a long day so I headed back to the van and drove to Boyd's for the night.
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Wednesday, 23 February-
This morning I drove the back roads near the Missile Site once again. Near the lower-site gate I saw a guy working with white plastic pipe for some reason so I stopped and struck up a conversation. He's a sub-contractor working on an Everglades-restoration project for 'the hole in the doughnut'. The area around (but outside) the missile base had been farmed and then abandoned. Brazilian Pepper-bush, an invasive plant, took over and grew very thick here. Ultimately, researchers decided the only way to rid the area of it was to scrape back the very thin soil and let nature take its course. The plot being cataloged today had been scraped in 1998 (or was it 1997?). The plastic pipe was used to make a meter-square outline. The researcher would place the grid and then catalog everything growing inside the border. Over time, repeated use of this technique reveals how the restoration is going.
I then decided to slowly work my way down to the campground at Flamingo-- the far end of the road, some 35 miles away. But I visited each pulloff and visitor site along the way.
I found two new roads I had missed on previous visits. These were unmarked dirt roads leading off to the east from the main road. Both led to very nice ponds.
At the first (Pine Glades Pond), I spoke to an older mountain-biker who looked very much like Jimmy Carter. He had that same light-pink-to-white skin, a small frame, white hair, and his name, coincidentally, is also 'Jimmy'. He was dressed for protection from the sun, wearing a flats-fisherman's beaked cap with neck curtain, long-sleeved, blousy, high-SPF shirt, and long gym-pants in a high-SPF material. (I later learned he has to cover up well because he has had melanomas).
Jimmy and I talked for at least an hour. He had lived in the area during the Cuban Missile Crisis and had seen the base I had toured earlier today. And he vowed and declared there's no way the main building was painted flamingo-pink as the park's historical-restoration experts have recently painted it. Jimmy was a kid at the time but frequently fished a pond (Hidden Pond) very near the building. Perhaps it represents another time in the building's history (says Jimmy) but he doesn't think it ever would have been pink. He remembers it as a gray-brown color more typical of a military facility.
Jimmy also may have been one of the sources for reports of a mother panther and a kit in the area. He had seen tracks and reported them to Mark Perry, one of the park's rangers. He was also a wealth of information about the hiking and biking trails in the area.
Jimmy also talked at quite some length about a work situation affecting his wife and him. I won't go into more details here but the situation is so stressful that Jimmy was out riding his mountain bike just to escape it for a few hours. Suffice it to say the situation involves lawyers. He said he felt better having a chance to talk about it, even with a complete stranger. I certainly wish him and his wife well.
As the afternoon progressed I worked my way down to the Pay-Ho-Oh-Ki and Mahagony Hammock boardwalks. At the latter I saw two uber-cute barred owls and their very impressive mother. The little ones were perched right above the boardwalk on a tree-limb about 15 feet high, their eyes like black coals and very inquisitive. A couple from South Dakota saw them with me and said they had seen the same owls two years ago here and at the time they were little white fur-balls.
At Paurotis Pond I saw roseate spoonbills and wood storks in their traditional nesting areas.
At Flamingo I went to the visitor's center and then the very familiar marina store before going to the campground. The new news at Flamingo campground is the hot showers-- and the bugs. I heard bugs were bad this year at Flamingo and that was quite a surprise. On past visits there might be one or two about in the evening but that was it. But this time I was nailed multiple times as I walked to the shower-house and back-- and that was around 1600.
I retreated to the van and started reading 'Scat'. I started getting no-see-um bites and thought 'Uh-oh. It's going to be a long night if I'm getting bites every few minutes already'. But within an hour the bites stopped. I noticed massive clouds to the west and a different feel to the air-- a light wind and less humidity.
I had talked with my neighbors a bit and they were planning to leave in the morning because the bugs had been quite bad and it was very hot the night before. But we soon realized the bugs were gone and I had supper with them. They turned out to be a very nice couple from the Binghamton, NY area, Elaine and Klaus. Elaine had been a nurse and Klaus an engineer of power-generation equipment for General Electric. He had grown up and gotten his degree in Engineering in Germany but emigrated to the US for a job in the late Sixties. We had a nice evening meal and then wine and cheese as we sat around chatting like old friends. Very nice!
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Tuesday, 22 February-
This morning I drove the short distance up to the main visitor's center for a better look (and to visit the gift shop which had been closed last evening). I bought 'The Swamp', an Evergades history which appears to have gotten very good reviews. I saw a film compilation of footage from the CCC days and a well-done Discovery-Channel special on the Everglades.
I then took a walk on the Anhingha Trail at Royal Palm, mostly just waiting for 1400 to roll around for a tour. I also bought Carl Hiaasen's new(ish) book, 'Scat'. The tour was a tour of the Nike Missile base I had first learned about last night. My guide was a young volunteer who had a bit too much of a flair for the dramatic. I nearly walked out on the tour when he said something disrespectful (something like “guess we showed THEM”) when talking about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II. But overall, he did a pretty thorough job and I was very glad to have been on the site.
I returned to the van by 1630 and after supper went back to the Anhingha Trail for the ranger-led 'Starlight Tour'. This turned out to be a great idea. I had just been here last night but tonight was very different. When I turned on my tac lights, I saw at least 50 pairs of gator eyes reflected back at me. They were EVERYwhere. The ranger later said it was one of the best nights he has had--- which seems all the more mysterious when I had seen so little the previous night.
One of the new things I learned from the ranger was that the hottest panther area in the National Park is nearby-- on the road back to the Missile Site. So I drove it once again that evening and drove down to the Environmental Center but didn't see anything.
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Monday, 21 February-
This morning I took a short walk around the Fisheating Creek camp area. Though the creek looks like it might make for interesting canoeing, there's not much for the walker here.
I had seen a camping symbol on the map for Belle Haven at the lock and assumed it's an Army Corps of Engineers site. That turned out to be the case but instead of the normal primitive campsites, they had put in RV hookups and were charging $38 a night! That for a parking lot and a view of the side of the next RV. An attendant lady said they'd be very happy to have me stay and tried to sell me a Passport America discount-camping membership. No thanks!
Continuing south around the south end of Lake Okeechobee, I passed through sugar cane fields, many of them burning for showing evidence of recent burns-- a common thing this time of year.
In Homestead I cruised up and down Route 1, a place I was familiar with from previous visits. I stopped at one of the few Starbucks remaining on my route south and had a video-chat with Labashi.
I also recognized the library I had used a couple of times previously for my wi-fi connection but it was closed on this holiday and I had already taken care of business. A bit further south lies Florida City and a Walmart which used to always be packed with RVs and campers. But now they are strictly enforcing the city's Anti-RV-parking ban. I'm not sure how it makes sense to turn away customers and indeed I didn't shop there though I needed a few items for the next couple of days. On the one hand I support Walmart but I can't support a town that passes an ordinance regulating whether someone can stay overnight in the parking lot of a 24-hour business.
On my way to the Everglades I picked up a half-gallon of fresh-squeezed orange juice at a roadside stand called 'Robert Is Here' and ice from a roadside gator-tail-basket (fried gator tail and french-fries) shop called The Gator Grill.
I took a campsite at Long Pine Key campground ($16) and took a bicycle ride through the campground. I met another German couple on a year-long trip. I learned the trips are a year long because there's a limit of a year on having their RV's (which they had shipped over) in the US.
That evening I attended a campground program on the Nike missile launch site in the Everglades. We didn't know anything about the missle site on our previous trips so this was great-- something new. The ranger's hour-long program was very good. The site was established immediately after the Cuban missile crisis of October, 1962 and lasted until 1979. The missiles were Nike-Ajax and Nike-Hercules ground-to-air defense missiles capable of intercepting airplanes or missles. Some were equipped with nuclear warheads.
After the presentation I drove over to the Anhinga Trail and walked the boardwalk looking for gators. Unlike my last visit, I saw only a few and the night was much quieter than last time. I must be too early for mating season.
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Sunday, 20 February -
This morning I did a bit of shopping at the Wal-mart, then continued south on 27. I was thinking I might go the whole way to the Everglades but then came upon Highland Hammock State Park. I remembered hearing this was a nice little park and I had passed it up before when timing wasn't right but here was a perfect day to give it a shot.
I paid a day-use fee figuring I might or might not stay (and might not have a choice to stay given it's a holiday weekend). I took a tour through the campground and saw it was indeed quite crowded but it seemed a pleasant crowd-- lots of kids and their parents on bikes.
I dropped in to the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) Museum on a whim, thinking I might learn something new. What a nice museum! The displays were well thought out and I saw a good film with footage from various 30's camps around the nation.
I then drove through 'the loop', a one-way 15 mph drive with many trailheads of trails looping through the swamp. I parked under a beautiful hugely-spreading live oak at the amphitheater and dug out the folding bicycle. I biked to each trailhead and walked each trail, normally about a twenty-minute walk each.
At the Cypress Swamp trail I heard someone say they had seen otters and I did indeed get lucky. As I approached a bridge, I saw bubbles on the right side of the bridge. An otter surfaced and turned back toward the bridge, submerging again. I watched the trail of bubbles go under the bridge and then four otters surface only a short distance away. They then continued on out of sight into the swamp. Very cool!
On the Fern Hammock Trail I saw a picture-perfect alligator hidden in plain sight just a few feet off the boardwalk. It's skin was black-- it almost looked like cast iron-- but was very real. It was about an eight-footer.
On the Young Hammock Trail I saw an armadillo right beside the trail. I actually passed within a few feet of it hidden away but heard a rustle after I passed and I turned back. It dug around through the leaves and eventually crossed the path, giving me an excellent full view of it only 15 feet away. What a cutie.... in a prehistoric kinda way.
I then rode the bike trail which led me back to the campground and then circled back to the van via the hard road. I had been walking or biking for about four hours and was ready to call it a day.
I decided it was too early to stop for the day (it was 1600) so went back out to 27 South and down through Sebring and Lake Placid. I was thinking I might try camping at Belle Haven since I saw camping symbols on the map there but then saw the turnoff for Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area. I had just seen a brochure on it and since it was nearing 1800, thought I'd give it a try.
My campsite for the night was reportedly in a remote area but I soon realized the winding road had brought me back close to 27 and I could hear truck traffic close by. But given my riding and walking today, it wasn't going to be a problem. I spent the evening catching up the blog.
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Saturday, 19 February-
This morning I spoke with a young guy from Williamsport, PA who was planning to day-hike the Florida Trail-- the same hike I had done yesterday. He moved down to Daytona with his father who had had a stroke and was caring for him. He said it looks like they'll have to move back to Pennsylvania, though, because the Medicare benefits for the elderly are better in PA than in Florida.
I then headed south, finally heading out of the Ocala National Forest. At the south end I stopped at the visitor's center but it was closed. While I had lunch two guys from south Louisiana pulled in. I asked if they were looking for anything specific about the Forest and there met 'Jay' and 'Bob'. I ended up giving them my map of the Forest and the camping price list and brochure and giving them recommendations.
Jay turned out to be a very interesting person-- he's looking for Bigfoot. He first asked me very casually whether I had heard any strange sounds at night in the back country. Then he slowly let me know he and Bob came to the Ocala to search for Sasquatch. He said he had gotten interested in Sasquatch after he and his son were camping far out in the backwoods one night and heard strange sounds. He said they were hearing regular woods sounds-- peepers etc--- when they noticed everything had gone completely silent. After a bit they heard 'knocking' sounds-- like someone hitting a hollow log with something like a baseball bat. Jay added: “You know-- that's a well-known communication technique they use. We could hear it from two different places”. Then, something let out a blood-curdling scream... “something with some real powerful lungs” (said Jay). “Then all Hell broke loose--- coyotes and dogs yipping and barking, etc.”
I continued south on 19 and looked up the local Blockbuster and Starbucks at Leesburg. I returned my DVDs and spent an hour at Starbucks talking to Labashi on Skype Video.
I then headed south, not sure where I'd spend the night but I knew there were three or four Wal-marts along the way.
I ended up at the Walmart at Avon Park-- a very nice new one that wasn't on the GPS-- but it was in my OvernightRVparking.com listing-- nice find.
I shopped a bit and rented 'Winter's Bone' from the Redbox. Good movie!
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Friday, 18 February-
This morning I left the freebie ('undeveloped') campground at Little Lake Bryant. This is a good one in that it's fairly close to Ocala and to the Forest Library but otherwise the campground itself is unremarkable. I continued south to another undeveloped campground at Trout Pond. This one may have been nice but the entrance was very closed in and I didn't want to scratch up the van entering. I continued on to Lake Mary and found what looked like a great, open camping area. If dispersed camping is indeed okay here, it would be a great spot, here on the edge of a pretty lake.
I then continued via forest roads to Big Bass Lake campground. That one is currently closed for reconstruction but it looks like a very nice campground-- maybe a bit too fancy for me.
I turned back into the main part of the Ocala National Forest and made my way toward Farle's Prairie. That was one of our favorite campgrounds when we first camp down here but has since been turned into a Day-Use area only. But just east of Farle's Prairie I found part of The Gathering of the Rainbow People. There were thirty or so cars, trucks, and hippie buses parked along the road and apparently camped there. I imagine it's a bit of a task to take care of water and sanitation for a group like that but there were no apparent problems-- just a few stacks of trash along the road waiting for pickup.
I then wanted to see the North Farles boat ramp but found the area once again crowded with Rainbow People. It appears they had some type of event going on near the ramp so I didn't intrude.
I then drove on to Juniper Springs State Park. At the entrance station the 'campground full' sighs were up but I managed to snag an overflow spot-- apparently the only one to do so. The boss lady must have taken pity on me. I asked whether overflow spots were available and at first the answer was no. But then the lady said she only allowed large Rvs to use overflow because they were self-contained. I said I also was completely self-contained and she said, 'Well, in that case, I can put you in an overflow spot'.
My goal for the afternoon was to walk as far as I could into the south end of the Juniper Prairie Wilderness. I was a bit surprised to find it even more open than the north end. Where the new growth was head-high or better on the north end, here it was only waist-high to chest-high. And given the 80-degree temperatures and bright sun, it didn't take long for me to get overheated.
Fortunately, clouds would occasionally cover the sun and give me some relief. I made it four and a half miles in before deciding I was running out of water, energy, and daylight and still needed to get back to the van.
I was surprised to see I had come within a mile and a half of my waypoint at Hidden Pond, i.e., the place I had turned around when I hiked in from the north end. So for all intents and purposes I've seen almost all of the Florida Trail in the Juniper Springs Wilderness.
The highlight of the hike was seeing three deer around the four-mile mark. I first saw a doe bound from my left to right, followed by a very nice six-point buck. But then Grand-Dad followed. He was at least an eight-pointer and his rack looked massive. What a beauty...
Back at the park, I decided I had better drive on down to Umatilla to Old Crow Bar-Be-Que because I probably wouldn't want to hang around the area just for the BBQ. I loved Old Crow's 'yellow sauce' last time I was in the area-- it's a very spicy mustard sauce.
The drive down only took twenty minutes and was well worth it. I had a combination sliced- beef and sliced-pork plate and lots of yellow sauce. And when I left I bought a pint of yellow sauce to take along for the rest of the week!
Back at Juniper Springs I spoke with night-clerk Jen. She said I was the only person she knows of to have been given an overflow spot. If I had come in later when she was on, she would have had no choice but to turn me away. But Pat was the boss and could make that kind of call. Lucky me!
Jen congratulated me on getting the overflow spot and said it would be a lot quieter than the campground-- it was bound to be rowdy night on this holiday weekend. She also told me a secret. She said I could take a night-hike down to the canoe launch and I might see eels. She said the eels come out at night and if the canoeists knew there were so many eels there, they'd be afraid to canoe the Run.
I did walk down to the canoe launch well after dark (around 2100) but didn't see any eels in either the Spring or the canoe launch. Jen had told me that at one time the rangers would put chem-lights (chemical light-sticks) in the spring pool to see the eels.
Back in the van I finished disk 2 of both 'In Treatment' and 'The Mentalist' series.
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Thursday, 17 February -
I woke around 0130 and couldn't get back to sleep for an hour or so. The night is a beauty-- with a full moon and mid-Sixties temperatures.
I woke around 0800 but could see a thick layer of fog over the lake and cloudy skies. I dozed a bit and then got up at a very leisurely 0900. Much of the fog had disipated but we still had the clouds hanging around.
I went through my morning routine and rolled out of the campground by mid-morning. I drove the dirt forest roads toward Shanty Pond. I surprised five Osceola turkeys in the road as I turned at an intersection and sat there a bit watching them but was unable to get a decent photo.
Shanty Pond had three big Rvs but was mostly empty. This is the campground closed to tents and soft-sided camping vehicles because of bears. I saw no sign of bears (or anything else). I remember being at this campground previously and it's a bit depressing.
I then drove to Salt Springs and shopped a bit at the grocery store. I then took a turnoff to the Fort Gates Ferry and drove through miles of recently burned-over area---- controlled burns I believe.
I stopped at a nice little pond for a break, then went on to the Ferry. Several cars were in the area so I didn't stick around.
I worked my way back across SR 19 and took FR74 to the undeveloped campground at Davenport Landing. This was just a clearing but it lay only a short distance from the Ocklawaha River. I walked down to the water and there saw a river otter just a bit upstream, just being an otter. He (or she) submerged upon seeing me but after a few minutes I noticed the water hyacinths moving further upstream and a bit later I saw the otter surface and then continue foraging among the hyacinths.
The forest around Davenport Landing was being control-burned so I the air was thick with smoke and I didn't stay.
I then headed down FR21 and across 66 to Lake Delancey West. I just drove through to see if anyone was there and met a couple from western Pennsylvania (Elk County). They're just down to get out of the snow and to visit some friends in the Leesburg area for a few weeks.
I then continued down through the forest to the 88 Store, where I had a pulled pork sandwich. The counter lady said she had a squash casserole just coming out of the oven and would I like a taste? It was surprisingly spicy and the lady looked a bit shocked when I told her. She said her friends accuse her of making spicy dishes but it's not true. Then as she looked around at the ingredients she had used for the casserole, she held up a red-pepper container and laughed. “Maybe they're right!” she laughed.
I continued on to Silver Spring and hit the Blockbuster to exchange DVDs and then buzzed back out of town.
I turned down 314A to check out two other undeveloped campsites I could see on the map. But I came upon a library called the Forest Library. Good find! There I had a good strong wi-fi signal in the parking lot and I saw that Labashi was online at home. We had a nice, long video call. We took care of a car maintenance issue and she gave me the latest on her projects. Now that the grouting is complete on the granite floor in the foyer she's happier with it. Tomorrow her floor installers come to put the vinyl-plank floor in the bathroom and she has finalized the deal for bath fixtures and a new sink with the plumber. What a busy bee....
That evening I watched the second disk of 'In Treatment'.
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Wednesday, 16 February-
The six-miles-a-day walks for the last several days are kicking my butt! I slept heavily and didn't wake until after 0900 this morning.
I decided to stay put today. I normally move from day to day but I need to recover and have a great campsite at Hopkins Prairie.
This morning I had thought I'd take a morning walk and then spend the day driving about but it didn't work out that way at all. I hiked south on the Florida Trail to the Pats' Island trailhead where I had parked for yesterday's walk. That gave me a 4.5 mile walk and I was back by noon.
After lunch I hung out watching the sandhill cranes and the small birds frequenting my campsite. I have flickers, two extra-red cardinals, and some tiny little warblers.
I sat in the sun a bit and then caught up the blog at the picnic table. I probably shouldn't have had a beer with lunch for suddenly I was very sleepy. I napped for a bit and then realized I'd better get underway.
This time I hiked the Florida Trail northbound from Hopkins Prairie. This morning's section was all in shade but this afternoons skirted a series of lakes and ponds, mostly in the open.
I saw my first snake of the season on this walk. It was a juvenile Southern Water Snake (I think), about ten inches long and about as big around as a drum-stick. I hovered over it for a half-minute or so and it never moved even the tiniest bit. It was clearly visible on the white sand of the trail but its mottled markings would have enabled it to disappear in the grass, reminding me, of course, that Momma's probably close by.
I chose to walk three miles out this afternoon and that happened to bring me to a group of six campers setting up their tents for the night. I was commandeered by their unofficial spokes-person-- Katerina. They were college-age and started the trail at it's southern end in the Everglades. They plan to finish the Florida trail by April, then bus to the southern end of the Appalachian Trail and spend the summer walking to Maine.
For my part, I turned back to my comfortable van. That evening I watched the first disk of The Mentalist on the laptop. I don't know about this one-- a little too slick, I think.
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Tuesday, 15 February-
This morning I arose early to prepare to shuttle Pokey-Man to his next trail section. As we stood talking at the site, Doug and Gloria idled through, wanting a little more info on the many places we had talked about in passing last evening. We probably spent the better part of an hour poring over maps and (them) making notes.
Pokey-Man led me over to the '88 Store', a gas station/bar just below Route 316 on FR11 (previously 88) to drop off his mini-van. I then took him to the Florida Trail crossing at the group camp near Lake Eaton, giving him about an 11 mile walk for the day.
I then headed into Ocala for ice and supplies. I had lunch at the Five Guys near the 27th Street Starbucks and cleaned out the latter's supply of Doubleshot Lights and caught up with email.
Later in the day I drove back out to the National Forest and took dirt roads to the Pat's Island Trailhead at the Juniper Springs Wilderness boundary line. I hiked in to the Hidden Pond campsite, three miles in. It was here that some crazy from Ohio shot two hikers with an assault rifle back in 2005 or so. We had heard about it when we were down in 2006 and I was just curious to see what the area looked like.
My other interest in this hike was to see how the area is recovering from the big fire of 2009. I had planned to hike into the south end of the Juniper Springs Wilderness and saw smoke closeby when I entered the State Park to park the van. Though the ticket girl said I could go ahead and hike if I wanted but should watch for fire, I decided I'd rather risk having my return trail be cut off by a fast-moving fire. That afternoon the park was closed and all the campers forced to leave. The fire came into the park and in fact damaged the famous (and almost new) boardwalk leading to the canoe launch.
I went home a few days later and watched for news of that fire. It had been over a thousand acres in size when I left and in the next few weeks grew to over 10,000 acres.
Today the north end of the Wilderness is grown in quite a bit. It is quite remarkable to drive the Wilderness Boundary roads and surmise that the fire was left to burn in the Wilderness but was prevented from crossing the boundary road into the rest of the National Forest. I'd guess this has something to do with the rules or practices for fighting fires in areas specifically designated as Wilderness. Walking the Trail southbound into the Wilderness led me through brushy (and very green) growth well over head-high but most of the trees were dead, burned-over snags. A mile or so in I started seeing some beautiful live-oaks that only had minor damage but it was clear this had been a major event. The thickness of the new growth was close enough in many areas to make me a little antsy about happening upon a bear. I had seen a very fresh pile of bear scat on the road very near the trailhead but saw only an occasional old scat-pile on the trail and no tracks. I figured the fresh sample had come from a bear frequenting the more heavily wooded area north of the boundary road.
Hidden Pond was a pretty little rise overlooking ponds in multiple directions. The ponds are very low but the area looked like a savannah.
My walk today totaled 6.15 miles and finished about a half-hour before sunset. Since there had been no trees I had gotten quite a lot of sun but around 1600 the light wind died completely, making for a very pleasant evening walk.
I then drove the forest roads north and west to Hopkins Prairie, arriving at sunset. There were only a few campers and for some reason the section with the best views was empty. I chose a picture-perfect site with a great view of the setting sun. And as I sat sipping my after-hike beer several of the other campers came over to see the watch the fire-red sunset. I met a another couple from Ottawa, these American-born folks who had moved to Ottawa for jobs back in the Sixties. Next to stroll by was a German guy who I knew about. He had been camped at Delancey yesterday and Pokey-Man had told me he and his wife were traveling in a Fiat RV which they had had shipped over from Germany last March. They are due to fly back to Germany in a few weeks and will have their RV once again shipped across the Atlantic.
I also met 'Wild Hare' and 'Raincheck', a couple from Indiana who have done a lot of hiking on the Appalachian Trail.
That evening I watched the first disk of 'In Treatment' with Gabriel Byrne. I don't know about this one. I'm not too keen on all the 'And how does that make you feel?' talk. But in the last episode we learn that it's the therapist who's the one 'In Treatment'. This might be going somewhere but it's too early to tell.
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Monday, 14 February-
This morning I woke to a 38 degrees reading on the thermometer. That's not right! It's supposed to be in the Fifties overnight here (and will be once the cold snap passes).
I set the alarm for 0730 this morning so I could make my 0900 ATV tour appointment. I arrived at the OHV (Off-Highway Vehicle) trailhead at 0830 and my host pulled in just behind me.
I met Peter as he set up and he took me through the forms-signing and initial instruction. We then mounted up, Peter on a Can-Am 400 and me on a Yamaha 350 Grizzly. I enjoyed the tour right from the start. Peter was a very thorough guide. He pointed out a set of bear tracks--- a sow and two cubs-- which I would probably have missed entirely. We took a break after a half-hour of riding, then another at the Lake Delancey campground (where I had stayed last night). Shortly after the Delancey break he spotted a fox squirrel and stopped for me to see it but I couldn't pick it out. A fox squirrel is an extra-large squirrel and it has a very bushy tail-- a fox-like tail.
The tour lasted about two and a half hours and was twenty-one mile ride. That was perfect as far as my right thumb (the throttle control) was concerned. Good job, Peter!
After the tour I headed across 316 to Salt Springs. I talked with the volunteer at the Forest Service visitor center and gave her some positive feedback on my tour.
I then called Labashi on the pay phone to wish her a happy Valentine's day. I let her know a little present would arrive soon.
I then drove back to the campground at Lake Delancey West. There I met a Canadian couple-- Doug and Gloria-- and we hit it off right away. They live in the Ottawa area and are, like me, just seeking a little warmth.
I then walked six miles on the FNST (Florida National Scenic Trail), northbound out of the campground and back.
Afterwards I sat talking to Doug and Gloria for another hour or so-- a very pleasant chat with like-minded souls. I also met 'John'-- a/k/a “Pokey-Man”, who is from Williamsport, PA and is section-hiking the Florida Trail. I agreed to shuttle John south to his next section tomorrow.
On the way back to the van I met 'Mark', the male half of the campground-host volunteers at Lake Delancey West. Mark is from northern Wisconsin and we had an interesting conversation about their travels and about the Delancey campground. He says the campground was busy up through New Year's but since has been dead-quiet through the week, then fairly busy on the weekends with ATV riders-- but then they're cleared out by Sunday evening.
I walked back to the van and prepared supper, then caught up the blog and read. What a wonderfully-relaxing day!
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Sunday, 13 February-
This morning I made sure I left the Walmart's RV parking area before the 0800 deadline. I shopped a bit for ice and a few supplies, then drove to the nearby Panera for breakfast. I tried one of their four-cheese souffles but was a bit disappointed. I caught up the blog and posted it, which took up most of the morning.
I then drove across Ocala to my goal for the day-- a longer walk at Marshall Swamp. This turned out to be a great idea. The Marshall Swamp is part of the Florida National Scenic Trail system and lived up to its name. This section was a spectacular walk through 15-foot-high palmettos and swamp. This time of year there are no bugs and it's just a wonderful walk.
I need to build up my tolerance for miles so decided I'd walk an hour and a half and then turn back. That worked out well in that it took me to the next trailhead where I found there's a very nice paved multi-use trail. Note to self: come back to the 64th-Street trailhead again and take a bike ride on the multi-use trail.
My three hours of walking netted me six and a half miles through very pleasant surroundings.
Once back at the trailhead, I plotted out my drive through the Ocala National Forest to position myself for tomorrow. I booked an ATV tour and wanted to be within striking distance. To get there I took Forest Road 50 which ran near the Lake Eaton trailheads. Juat a half-mile past the turnoff I saw a strange sight-- a river otter in the middle of the dirt road. The otter wasted no time in getting off the road as I approached and it appeared to be in good health. What it's doing so far from water is a mystery. And shortly after seeing the otter I began seeing bear scat-- six or seven instances.
I drove across FR50 to FR11 and then north to the turnoff for the Lake Delancy campgrounds, arriving about a half-hour before dark. I took a walk through Delancey West and East then returned to the van for the night.
That evening I watched two episodes of 'The Pacific'. I'm not sure I can recommend this one-- I found it tough to keep up with the plot line.
******* END OF POST ************
(posted from Caxambas Park boat launch, Marco Island, FL)
(This post covers 13 – 28 February, 2011)
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Monday, 28 February-
This morning I dropped by the glacier-pilot-Tom's camp. He's living in a mid-Eighties Toyota mini-motorhome which has made seven trips to Alaska and back. Tom is single and, besides being a pilot, is a competitive shooter and a firearms instructor for The Appleseed Project. He has a home in the Adirondacks which he built and is 'off the grid', i.e., self-sufficient on solar power. He said he had checked on having power run back his road but it would be $125,000 and he's the only resident so he decided he could buy a heck of a lot of batteries for $125K.
Tom knows some local pilots and when I said I'd like to get a ride over the Wilderness Waterway, he recommended Chuck Gretzky at Everglades City airport. He also knows a local pilot named Jim who air-drops him a pizza here to the Bear Island campground every week or so from his 172.
After my longish chat with the ever-interesting Tom, I headed out. I actually had left earlier and turned back to get more info from Tom. That turn-back was very fortuitous in that it enabled me to see a bobcat. It crossed the Turner River Road only a quarter-mile or so above the Alligator Alley bridge. I saw it very clearly given it was only 30 yards or so in front of me. It bounded across the dirt road in a very short time and I could clearly see its tufted ears and bobbed tail. It appeared much larger and was darker in color than I thought a bobcat would be.
Seeing this bobcat cleared up a mystery for me. Labashi and I had seen one about twenty miles west of here at the Fakahatchee – Picayune boundary line back in 2006. At the time I at first thought I was seeing a panther because of the size of the cat. But it was too darkly colored and, in retrospect, I couldn't remember seeing a panther's long tail flowing behind it. Having seen this bobcat I now know that had also been a bobcat in 2006.
Driving out this morning I saw an ultra-cute garter snake pause in the road for me to check out. And further down I saw a two-foot black racer; it was an ultra shiny jet black and moved very quickly off the road as I approached. I also saw a more or less dormant water snake in the road. I stopped alongside it and it didn't react.
I made Everglades City in about an hour (given my poke-along speed) and went directly to the airport. I met Chuck, arranged for a tour at 1300, and went off to Chokoloskee for lunch.
I lunched at the Havana Cafe and then returned to Everglades City to prepare my gear for the trip. I took my 60CSx GPS which has both road maps and Florida marine charts and I took along the SPOT satellite messenger.
Chuck is another Alaska pilot. He flies out of Anchorage most of the year but spends four months here at Everglades City, taking tourists out over the Ten Thousand Islands and the Everglades.
I had arranged for my trip to follow the Wilderness Waterway route I had taken from Chokoloskee to Hearny River and back--- all at 500 feet!
We followed the Waterway to Broad River and I recognized the various chickees along the way. I recognized the winding passages between the larger lakes and even picked out my anchorage for the night in Broad River. We then turned upriver to fly over the sawgrass prairies to the north and east. Upon hitting the upper reaches of the Shark River, we followed it downstream to the Gulf. I could see Whitewater Bay and Oyster Bay to the southeast (and before we made the turn we had seen the high-rises in Miami!).
We then flew up the coast, just offshore, giving us the view of the Waterway from the other side. Too soon Chokoloskee and Everglades City came into view and I could see the high-rises of Marco Island in the distance. Chuck executed a nice cross-wind landing in the gusty breeze and we were done. Fantastic!
The tour was an hour-long tour and was pretty expensive-- $324. But then again I was chartering the plane for just me and took exactly the trip I wanted to take and saw it all at 500 feet.
My GPS showed the trip was 126 miles and I hit the SPOT's 'OK' button at least three times enroute.
After the ride, I went looking for a wi-fi connection in the area but came up short. I had previously used wi-fi at a small coffee shop in Chokoloskee but it has since changed hands and is now an Eco-tourism business (with no wi-fi).
At around 1600 I headed up 29 to the Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve. At the office I met Mike Owen, the ranger who had led the slough-slog I had taken in 2008. I then drove the length of Jane's Scenic Highway, an 11-mile dirt road through the Preserve. I saw a deer but that was about it. At the far end I entered the Picayune State Forest and after a mile or so came to a road-closed sign. Some construction project closed the road in early February and it won't re-open until the end of April.
I drove back through the Fakahatchee and then took nearby Wagonwheel Road to head back to Bear Island for the night. I had perfect evening light for the drive and saw three kingfishers, a half-dozen deer (but no horns), a turkey, a small cottonmouth, and four red-shouldered hawks. Nice!
Once in the Bear Island campground I looked up Tom-the-pilot and thanked him for directing me to Chuck. I had noticed earlier that I could pick up a cell signal several places along the entrance road so went back and called Labashi to check in. We only chatted briefly but I promised to find a wi-fi connection for a longer catch-up session tomorrow.
I then found my spot for the night, made supper, and caught up the blog. Good day!
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Sunday, 27 February -
This morning I walked over to say good morning to my Ontario friends and another camper was there. He was an air-boater from Penn-Yan, New York. Of course I mentioned the fact that I'm familiar with the Finger Lakes, specifically the Canandaigua area. To which the guy says, 'Yeah-- I know that area-- I helped build a big house there at the Canandaigua airport.' As it happens, I know that house because I know the guy who lives there-- he's a friend of my brother. Small world, eh?
The Penn-Yan guy grew up in Florida and comes down every winter with his air-boat. He's very familiar with the area and has many air-boating friends and acquaintances. And one of his claims to fame is having killed a very large python nearby last year. He had launched from the launch ramp just steps away from where we were talking. And out in the Glades he came upon a large python, just curled up and lying there. He pulled up to the snake and jumped off his air-boar wielding a machete. He killed the python and hauled the carcass back to the Landing, where he skinned it and counted its 51 eggs. I believe he said it was eighteen feet long (or was it 16 feet?) and weighed 160-some pounds. He said he had several air-boating friends at the landing and when they saw the snake they all called their buddies and before long there was a small crowd and several rangers who took video of it.
You know, the more I think about that story, the more I'm unsure it's completely true. I have a few more details (such as the guy's name) which may help me find out more if I can find the right person to ask. He also mentioned a web-site he frequents so I might be able to find out more in its archives.
By late morning I was ready to move so headed out the Loop Road-- a 20-some mile dirt road circling back to Route 41. I had heard the Loop Road was closed but my Ontario friends said another camper had gone out it quite a ways yesterday and might know. I spoke with him and he said there had been a Road Closed barricade a few days ago but it had been set off to the side.
For the next few hours I rocked-and-rolled around the Loop. It was reported quite rough but I've been on MUCH worse. The rough part was merely massive dried-up concavities which had once been huge mud-puddles. Some were a bit steep-sided but I don't think I even came close to dragging my hitch-receiver. And the road would have these road-wide concavities for a half-mile or so, then the surface would be fine-- not even wash-boarded-- for miles before the next set of concavities.
By early afternoon I reached the hard road and drove to the nearby visitor's center for Big Cypress National Preserve. I watched their very good film and spoke to someone about the Picayune Strand. She said it has been closed and the bridges removed but when I pressed for any details she backed that off. And if memory serves there never have been any bridges there. She probably heard about canals being filled in. My Ontario buddies did tell me the lower campground is now closed but the horse-campground on the north side is still open.
I drove to the gallery of Clyde Butcher, the wonderful photographer of the Everglades and environs. We had been past his gallery many times but it was either closed or we didn't have time for it. Today I visited and loved it. Clyde had done incredible black-and-white photos, some of them printed on four-by-six-FOOT stock and they are magnificent.
I then headed back west on the Tamiami Trail. As I approached the turnoff to Burns Lake I realized I had never seen it. In winter it's a day-use-only area so that's probably why. I circled the lake and drove the associated road back into private holdings, thinking this could be a place to see a panther come through as close as it is to Route 29.
I then moved on to the Turner River Road and drove the 21 miles of washboard and thick dust to Bear Island. I picked a campsite and walked over to a neighbor to chat. There I met Tom and Tom, one escaping Minnesota winters in a Born Free motorhome, the other a life-long pilot who spends each year in Talkeetna, Alaska flying tourists up onto the Mount Denali glaciers. He said this is his fiftieth year as a pilot. He once owned five planes but now just has his little Aeronca-- the same model he learned to fly in during the Fifties.
As darkness came on I returned to the van and spent the evening catching up the blog.
What a day!! Between snake-slayer and glacier pilot, it was a good one!
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Saturday, 26 February -
This morning I got up at 0630 to be ready for my float-plane check-in at 0730. The airport is only ten minutes away (if that) so I was first to check in but was glad to have time to double-check I had everything I wanted.
As we boarded, the three others in front of me took seats toward the back of the plane. I was working my way toward the front when the captain said the co-pilot's seat was available if anyone wanted to sit up front. What luck! I took the co-pilot's seat and buckled in with the biggest grin ever. I'm in the right seat of a Turbo-Otter seaplane about to fly to the Dry Tortugas!!!!!
Our 35-minute flight was ultra-smooth. I was like an over-excited kid between looking at instrumentation, watching for sea turtles, sharks, and dolphins (I saw three sea turtles and two dolphins, but no sharks) and seeing Boca Grande, the Marquesas, the Quicksands (where Mel Fisher found the 'Atocha') and the small keys just off Garden Key (where Fort Jefferson stands).
Our pilot set the Otter down in the channel leading into the harbor and taxied past the six or seven private yachts to the north-east corner of the fort. There he reversed the prop and backed up to the beach-- we didn't even have to get our feet wet getting off the pontoon.
We were met by employee 'Julie' who gave us instructions and then offered a tour of the fort. Incredibly only three of the ten of us took the tour. Others just wanted to look around on their own and one young couple just wanted to snorkel and didn't go in the fort (perhaps they had been here before).
Julie gave us a very competent forty-five minute tour of the fort. It's pretty much a shell of a fort and repetitive in design so one wing of the fort looks a good bit like another. So a forty-five minute tour and another hour of time on my own worked out fine.
Along our tour, Julie suddenly exclaimed and kicked something away-- it was the dried-up carcass of a rat. Later, I asked whether rats were a problem for the staff (who live here in housing built into the walls of the fort). She said they weren't for the residents but sometimes were for the campers.
Also, when talking about the diesel generators that run 24 hours a day to supply the fort's power needs (for the admin areas and residences), she mentioned that campers often complained of the noise. The generators were located in the walls but their exhaust pipes exited the walls on the camp-ground side of the building.
I had originally wanted to camp at the site but that had had it's own battles with scheduling, red-tape, extra cost, and preparation. I had been feeling a bit guilty about not making the effort but once I heard about the rats and the noise, I was glad things had worked out as they did.
While we were touring, the float-plane went back to Key West for another ten passengers. At 1100 we boarded and, incredibly, I got the co-pilot's seat again (apparently we were operating under the sit-where-you-sat rule for everyone took their same seats).
The trip back was too quick. I enjoyed listening to comms between the pilot and the various controllers and listening to the automated weather and altimeter readings (ATIS). We were given a straight-in approach and I loved the view of Key West and the runway on final and touchdown on the numbers. (Oh yeah, I should explain: The floatplane takes off and lands at Key West with landing gear that swings into place under the pontoons and of course lands and takes off onto/from the harbor at the Fort).
Back in Key West I stopped at the campground to do my laundry and then headed up US 1. I took my time (probably frustrating a few drivers) but just loved the various shades of the blue and green ultra-clear waters shimmering in the sun.
I made it to Florida City by 1700 or so and picked up some supplies and ice at the Wal-mart (yeah— the one I said I wouldn't shop at). I then headed up 997, thinking I'd stay the night at the Miccosukee casino at the Tamiami Trail intersection. But I'm not a fan of casinos so I turned down the Tamiami Trail curious to see who's camped at the freebie campsites along the Loop Road.
The Pinecrest campsite was fairly crowded and the road-side campsites as I drove in to Mitchell Landing were taken so I thought I might have a problem. But there were plenty of sites at the Landing and I had a very nice, isolated one all to myself.
Once situated, I walked over to a campfire and spoke with four people from the Niagara peninsula (the area in Ontario above Niagara Falls) for an hour or so before retiring for the night.
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Friday, 25 February-
This morning I wanted to find the boat for the trip to the Dry Tortugas. I asked one of the many information-kiosk guys about it and he also pulled out the info for the float-plane trip out. When I learned the boat trip costs $160 but you can take the float plane for $249, I didn't hesitate-- I booked the float-plane trip.
I had talked with a guy last evening about his snorkeling trip and learned the afternoons are windy enough to kick up some waves and make the boat trip a bit uncomfortable. So why float when flying doesn't cost much more? And when I learned the floatplane is a Dehaviland Turbo-Otter, that had settled it.
With that settled early in the day, I had the rest of the day to play. I rode the little folding bike all over the city. I had thought I'd ride for maybe an hour and then rent a scooter but riding the bike was ideal-- it was so easy to drift along and stop to look at something for a few minutes and parking was of course effortless.
I rode around until about 1330 and then went back to El Meson de Pepe for a late lunch. I had another caiprinha, gazpacho, and fried sweet-plantains. (Why don't we have Cuban restaurants like this back home?)
After lunch I felt lazy. I rode back to the van at Fort Taylor and opened it up to the wonderful breeze. I spent the next several hours finishing 'Scat' and starting 'The Swamp'.
About an hour before sunset I rode down to Mallory Square for the traditional Key West sunset celebration. I then looked up an oyster bar (Alonzo's) and had conch fritters and a cup of conch chowder.
I rode around through the city streets for another hour and then to the van for the drive back to Boyd's.
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Thursday, 24 February -
The bugs weren't a problem overnight but started in immediately this morning. The saltwater mosquitoes were on me within a few minutes but the deer flies were relentless- trying to fly into an ear, up my nose, and bumping into my glasses as they tried for my eyes. Everything was fine in the van so I took a slow drive along the Buttonwood Canal road and then just began working my way very slowly north, just enjoying the views across the 'Glades.
I dropped in to Long Pine Key campground and by that time I had escaped the mosquitoes and flies. I thought I might take a bike ride but then decided to move on to the Keys. I had only been in the Everglades for a couple of days but didn't want to deal with Flamingo's bugs and was ready to move on.
On the way out I stopped at 'Robert Is Here' and bought a gallon of fresh-squeezed orange juice and tried one of their 'famous' fresh-fruit milkshakes. The strawberry-key lime was an excellent choice. I also met owner Robert who started at the fruit stand at the age of six (he's now 57) and is quite the local celebrity. And a very nice guy.
In Homestead I dropped in to the Starbucks for a wi-fi connection to Skype with Labashi and tell her of my plans. I then slowly worked my way down through the keys, stopping a several dive shops and at Pennekamp and Long Key State Parks (both of which were full).
I thought I had a good plan to spend the late afternoon and evening on my drive through the Keys but the low sun in the West made driving a bit of a pain. But it had been a wonderful day for a drive up to the last half-hour or so.
In Key West I went to familiar Boyd's Campground and booked a site for two nights ($132!) and then drove down town. I parked at Fort Taylor and walked into Mallory Square. I had supper at El Meson de Pepe, the Cuban open-air restaurant and had a perfect caiprinha and a mojito with my plantains, spicy beef, and quacamole.
I walked a bit but it been a long day so I headed back to the van and drove to Boyd's for the night.
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Wednesday, 23 February-
This morning I drove the back roads near the Missile Site once again. Near the lower-site gate I saw a guy working with white plastic pipe for some reason so I stopped and struck up a conversation. He's a sub-contractor working on an Everglades-restoration project for 'the hole in the doughnut'. The area around (but outside) the missile base had been farmed and then abandoned. Brazilian Pepper-bush, an invasive plant, took over and grew very thick here. Ultimately, researchers decided the only way to rid the area of it was to scrape back the very thin soil and let nature take its course. The plot being cataloged today had been scraped in 1998 (or was it 1997?). The plastic pipe was used to make a meter-square outline. The researcher would place the grid and then catalog everything growing inside the border. Over time, repeated use of this technique reveals how the restoration is going.
I then decided to slowly work my way down to the campground at Flamingo-- the far end of the road, some 35 miles away. But I visited each pulloff and visitor site along the way.
I found two new roads I had missed on previous visits. These were unmarked dirt roads leading off to the east from the main road. Both led to very nice ponds.
At the first (Pine Glades Pond), I spoke to an older mountain-biker who looked very much like Jimmy Carter. He had that same light-pink-to-white skin, a small frame, white hair, and his name, coincidentally, is also 'Jimmy'. He was dressed for protection from the sun, wearing a flats-fisherman's beaked cap with neck curtain, long-sleeved, blousy, high-SPF shirt, and long gym-pants in a high-SPF material. (I later learned he has to cover up well because he has had melanomas).
Jimmy and I talked for at least an hour. He had lived in the area during the Cuban Missile Crisis and had seen the base I had toured earlier today. And he vowed and declared there's no way the main building was painted flamingo-pink as the park's historical-restoration experts have recently painted it. Jimmy was a kid at the time but frequently fished a pond (Hidden Pond) very near the building. Perhaps it represents another time in the building's history (says Jimmy) but he doesn't think it ever would have been pink. He remembers it as a gray-brown color more typical of a military facility.
Jimmy also may have been one of the sources for reports of a mother panther and a kit in the area. He had seen tracks and reported them to Mark Perry, one of the park's rangers. He was also a wealth of information about the hiking and biking trails in the area.
Jimmy also talked at quite some length about a work situation affecting his wife and him. I won't go into more details here but the situation is so stressful that Jimmy was out riding his mountain bike just to escape it for a few hours. Suffice it to say the situation involves lawyers. He said he felt better having a chance to talk about it, even with a complete stranger. I certainly wish him and his wife well.
As the afternoon progressed I worked my way down to the Pay-Ho-Oh-Ki and Mahagony Hammock boardwalks. At the latter I saw two uber-cute barred owls and their very impressive mother. The little ones were perched right above the boardwalk on a tree-limb about 15 feet high, their eyes like black coals and very inquisitive. A couple from South Dakota saw them with me and said they had seen the same owls two years ago here and at the time they were little white fur-balls.
At Paurotis Pond I saw roseate spoonbills and wood storks in their traditional nesting areas.
At Flamingo I went to the visitor's center and then the very familiar marina store before going to the campground. The new news at Flamingo campground is the hot showers-- and the bugs. I heard bugs were bad this year at Flamingo and that was quite a surprise. On past visits there might be one or two about in the evening but that was it. But this time I was nailed multiple times as I walked to the shower-house and back-- and that was around 1600.
I retreated to the van and started reading 'Scat'. I started getting no-see-um bites and thought 'Uh-oh. It's going to be a long night if I'm getting bites every few minutes already'. But within an hour the bites stopped. I noticed massive clouds to the west and a different feel to the air-- a light wind and less humidity.
I had talked with my neighbors a bit and they were planning to leave in the morning because the bugs had been quite bad and it was very hot the night before. But we soon realized the bugs were gone and I had supper with them. They turned out to be a very nice couple from the Binghamton, NY area, Elaine and Klaus. Elaine had been a nurse and Klaus an engineer of power-generation equipment for General Electric. He had grown up and gotten his degree in Engineering in Germany but emigrated to the US for a job in the late Sixties. We had a nice evening meal and then wine and cheese as we sat around chatting like old friends. Very nice!
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Tuesday, 22 February-
This morning I drove the short distance up to the main visitor's center for a better look (and to visit the gift shop which had been closed last evening). I bought 'The Swamp', an Evergades history which appears to have gotten very good reviews. I saw a film compilation of footage from the CCC days and a well-done Discovery-Channel special on the Everglades.
I then took a walk on the Anhingha Trail at Royal Palm, mostly just waiting for 1400 to roll around for a tour. I also bought Carl Hiaasen's new(ish) book, 'Scat'. The tour was a tour of the Nike Missile base I had first learned about last night. My guide was a young volunteer who had a bit too much of a flair for the dramatic. I nearly walked out on the tour when he said something disrespectful (something like “guess we showed THEM”) when talking about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II. But overall, he did a pretty thorough job and I was very glad to have been on the site.
I returned to the van by 1630 and after supper went back to the Anhingha Trail for the ranger-led 'Starlight Tour'. This turned out to be a great idea. I had just been here last night but tonight was very different. When I turned on my tac lights, I saw at least 50 pairs of gator eyes reflected back at me. They were EVERYwhere. The ranger later said it was one of the best nights he has had--- which seems all the more mysterious when I had seen so little the previous night.
One of the new things I learned from the ranger was that the hottest panther area in the National Park is nearby-- on the road back to the Missile Site. So I drove it once again that evening and drove down to the Environmental Center but didn't see anything.
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Monday, 21 February-
This morning I took a short walk around the Fisheating Creek camp area. Though the creek looks like it might make for interesting canoeing, there's not much for the walker here.
I had seen a camping symbol on the map for Belle Haven at the lock and assumed it's an Army Corps of Engineers site. That turned out to be the case but instead of the normal primitive campsites, they had put in RV hookups and were charging $38 a night! That for a parking lot and a view of the side of the next RV. An attendant lady said they'd be very happy to have me stay and tried to sell me a Passport America discount-camping membership. No thanks!
Continuing south around the south end of Lake Okeechobee, I passed through sugar cane fields, many of them burning for showing evidence of recent burns-- a common thing this time of year.
In Homestead I cruised up and down Route 1, a place I was familiar with from previous visits. I stopped at one of the few Starbucks remaining on my route south and had a video-chat with Labashi.
I also recognized the library I had used a couple of times previously for my wi-fi connection but it was closed on this holiday and I had already taken care of business. A bit further south lies Florida City and a Walmart which used to always be packed with RVs and campers. But now they are strictly enforcing the city's Anti-RV-parking ban. I'm not sure how it makes sense to turn away customers and indeed I didn't shop there though I needed a few items for the next couple of days. On the one hand I support Walmart but I can't support a town that passes an ordinance regulating whether someone can stay overnight in the parking lot of a 24-hour business.
On my way to the Everglades I picked up a half-gallon of fresh-squeezed orange juice at a roadside stand called 'Robert Is Here' and ice from a roadside gator-tail-basket (fried gator tail and french-fries) shop called The Gator Grill.
I took a campsite at Long Pine Key campground ($16) and took a bicycle ride through the campground. I met another German couple on a year-long trip. I learned the trips are a year long because there's a limit of a year on having their RV's (which they had shipped over) in the US.
That evening I attended a campground program on the Nike missile launch site in the Everglades. We didn't know anything about the missle site on our previous trips so this was great-- something new. The ranger's hour-long program was very good. The site was established immediately after the Cuban missile crisis of October, 1962 and lasted until 1979. The missiles were Nike-Ajax and Nike-Hercules ground-to-air defense missiles capable of intercepting airplanes or missles. Some were equipped with nuclear warheads.
After the presentation I drove over to the Anhinga Trail and walked the boardwalk looking for gators. Unlike my last visit, I saw only a few and the night was much quieter than last time. I must be too early for mating season.
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Sunday, 20 February -
This morning I did a bit of shopping at the Wal-mart, then continued south on 27. I was thinking I might go the whole way to the Everglades but then came upon Highland Hammock State Park. I remembered hearing this was a nice little park and I had passed it up before when timing wasn't right but here was a perfect day to give it a shot.
I paid a day-use fee figuring I might or might not stay (and might not have a choice to stay given it's a holiday weekend). I took a tour through the campground and saw it was indeed quite crowded but it seemed a pleasant crowd-- lots of kids and their parents on bikes.
I dropped in to the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) Museum on a whim, thinking I might learn something new. What a nice museum! The displays were well thought out and I saw a good film with footage from various 30's camps around the nation.
I then drove through 'the loop', a one-way 15 mph drive with many trailheads of trails looping through the swamp. I parked under a beautiful hugely-spreading live oak at the amphitheater and dug out the folding bicycle. I biked to each trailhead and walked each trail, normally about a twenty-minute walk each.
At the Cypress Swamp trail I heard someone say they had seen otters and I did indeed get lucky. As I approached a bridge, I saw bubbles on the right side of the bridge. An otter surfaced and turned back toward the bridge, submerging again. I watched the trail of bubbles go under the bridge and then four otters surface only a short distance away. They then continued on out of sight into the swamp. Very cool!
On the Fern Hammock Trail I saw a picture-perfect alligator hidden in plain sight just a few feet off the boardwalk. It's skin was black-- it almost looked like cast iron-- but was very real. It was about an eight-footer.
On the Young Hammock Trail I saw an armadillo right beside the trail. I actually passed within a few feet of it hidden away but heard a rustle after I passed and I turned back. It dug around through the leaves and eventually crossed the path, giving me an excellent full view of it only 15 feet away. What a cutie.... in a prehistoric kinda way.
I then rode the bike trail which led me back to the campground and then circled back to the van via the hard road. I had been walking or biking for about four hours and was ready to call it a day.
I decided it was too early to stop for the day (it was 1600) so went back out to 27 South and down through Sebring and Lake Placid. I was thinking I might try camping at Belle Haven since I saw camping symbols on the map there but then saw the turnoff for Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area. I had just seen a brochure on it and since it was nearing 1800, thought I'd give it a try.
My campsite for the night was reportedly in a remote area but I soon realized the winding road had brought me back close to 27 and I could hear truck traffic close by. But given my riding and walking today, it wasn't going to be a problem. I spent the evening catching up the blog.
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Saturday, 19 February-
This morning I spoke with a young guy from Williamsport, PA who was planning to day-hike the Florida Trail-- the same hike I had done yesterday. He moved down to Daytona with his father who had had a stroke and was caring for him. He said it looks like they'll have to move back to Pennsylvania, though, because the Medicare benefits for the elderly are better in PA than in Florida.
I then headed south, finally heading out of the Ocala National Forest. At the south end I stopped at the visitor's center but it was closed. While I had lunch two guys from south Louisiana pulled in. I asked if they were looking for anything specific about the Forest and there met 'Jay' and 'Bob'. I ended up giving them my map of the Forest and the camping price list and brochure and giving them recommendations.
Jay turned out to be a very interesting person-- he's looking for Bigfoot. He first asked me very casually whether I had heard any strange sounds at night in the back country. Then he slowly let me know he and Bob came to the Ocala to search for Sasquatch. He said he had gotten interested in Sasquatch after he and his son were camping far out in the backwoods one night and heard strange sounds. He said they were hearing regular woods sounds-- peepers etc--- when they noticed everything had gone completely silent. After a bit they heard 'knocking' sounds-- like someone hitting a hollow log with something like a baseball bat. Jay added: “You know-- that's a well-known communication technique they use. We could hear it from two different places”. Then, something let out a blood-curdling scream... “something with some real powerful lungs” (said Jay). “Then all Hell broke loose--- coyotes and dogs yipping and barking, etc.”
I continued south on 19 and looked up the local Blockbuster and Starbucks at Leesburg. I returned my DVDs and spent an hour at Starbucks talking to Labashi on Skype Video.
I then headed south, not sure where I'd spend the night but I knew there were three or four Wal-marts along the way.
I ended up at the Walmart at Avon Park-- a very nice new one that wasn't on the GPS-- but it was in my OvernightRVparking.com listing-- nice find.
I shopped a bit and rented 'Winter's Bone' from the Redbox. Good movie!
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Friday, 18 February-
This morning I left the freebie ('undeveloped') campground at Little Lake Bryant. This is a good one in that it's fairly close to Ocala and to the Forest Library but otherwise the campground itself is unremarkable. I continued south to another undeveloped campground at Trout Pond. This one may have been nice but the entrance was very closed in and I didn't want to scratch up the van entering. I continued on to Lake Mary and found what looked like a great, open camping area. If dispersed camping is indeed okay here, it would be a great spot, here on the edge of a pretty lake.
I then continued via forest roads to Big Bass Lake campground. That one is currently closed for reconstruction but it looks like a very nice campground-- maybe a bit too fancy for me.
I turned back into the main part of the Ocala National Forest and made my way toward Farle's Prairie. That was one of our favorite campgrounds when we first camp down here but has since been turned into a Day-Use area only. But just east of Farle's Prairie I found part of The Gathering of the Rainbow People. There were thirty or so cars, trucks, and hippie buses parked along the road and apparently camped there. I imagine it's a bit of a task to take care of water and sanitation for a group like that but there were no apparent problems-- just a few stacks of trash along the road waiting for pickup.
I then wanted to see the North Farles boat ramp but found the area once again crowded with Rainbow People. It appears they had some type of event going on near the ramp so I didn't intrude.
I then drove on to Juniper Springs State Park. At the entrance station the 'campground full' sighs were up but I managed to snag an overflow spot-- apparently the only one to do so. The boss lady must have taken pity on me. I asked whether overflow spots were available and at first the answer was no. But then the lady said she only allowed large Rvs to use overflow because they were self-contained. I said I also was completely self-contained and she said, 'Well, in that case, I can put you in an overflow spot'.
My goal for the afternoon was to walk as far as I could into the south end of the Juniper Prairie Wilderness. I was a bit surprised to find it even more open than the north end. Where the new growth was head-high or better on the north end, here it was only waist-high to chest-high. And given the 80-degree temperatures and bright sun, it didn't take long for me to get overheated.
Fortunately, clouds would occasionally cover the sun and give me some relief. I made it four and a half miles in before deciding I was running out of water, energy, and daylight and still needed to get back to the van.
I was surprised to see I had come within a mile and a half of my waypoint at Hidden Pond, i.e., the place I had turned around when I hiked in from the north end. So for all intents and purposes I've seen almost all of the Florida Trail in the Juniper Springs Wilderness.
The highlight of the hike was seeing three deer around the four-mile mark. I first saw a doe bound from my left to right, followed by a very nice six-point buck. But then Grand-Dad followed. He was at least an eight-pointer and his rack looked massive. What a beauty...
Back at the park, I decided I had better drive on down to Umatilla to Old Crow Bar-Be-Que because I probably wouldn't want to hang around the area just for the BBQ. I loved Old Crow's 'yellow sauce' last time I was in the area-- it's a very spicy mustard sauce.
The drive down only took twenty minutes and was well worth it. I had a combination sliced- beef and sliced-pork plate and lots of yellow sauce. And when I left I bought a pint of yellow sauce to take along for the rest of the week!
Back at Juniper Springs I spoke with night-clerk Jen. She said I was the only person she knows of to have been given an overflow spot. If I had come in later when she was on, she would have had no choice but to turn me away. But Pat was the boss and could make that kind of call. Lucky me!
Jen congratulated me on getting the overflow spot and said it would be a lot quieter than the campground-- it was bound to be rowdy night on this holiday weekend. She also told me a secret. She said I could take a night-hike down to the canoe launch and I might see eels. She said the eels come out at night and if the canoeists knew there were so many eels there, they'd be afraid to canoe the Run.
I did walk down to the canoe launch well after dark (around 2100) but didn't see any eels in either the Spring or the canoe launch. Jen had told me that at one time the rangers would put chem-lights (chemical light-sticks) in the spring pool to see the eels.
Back in the van I finished disk 2 of both 'In Treatment' and 'The Mentalist' series.
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Thursday, 17 February -
I woke around 0130 and couldn't get back to sleep for an hour or so. The night is a beauty-- with a full moon and mid-Sixties temperatures.
I woke around 0800 but could see a thick layer of fog over the lake and cloudy skies. I dozed a bit and then got up at a very leisurely 0900. Much of the fog had disipated but we still had the clouds hanging around.
I went through my morning routine and rolled out of the campground by mid-morning. I drove the dirt forest roads toward Shanty Pond. I surprised five Osceola turkeys in the road as I turned at an intersection and sat there a bit watching them but was unable to get a decent photo.
Shanty Pond had three big Rvs but was mostly empty. This is the campground closed to tents and soft-sided camping vehicles because of bears. I saw no sign of bears (or anything else). I remember being at this campground previously and it's a bit depressing.
I then drove to Salt Springs and shopped a bit at the grocery store. I then took a turnoff to the Fort Gates Ferry and drove through miles of recently burned-over area---- controlled burns I believe.
I stopped at a nice little pond for a break, then went on to the Ferry. Several cars were in the area so I didn't stick around.
I worked my way back across SR 19 and took FR74 to the undeveloped campground at Davenport Landing. This was just a clearing but it lay only a short distance from the Ocklawaha River. I walked down to the water and there saw a river otter just a bit upstream, just being an otter. He (or she) submerged upon seeing me but after a few minutes I noticed the water hyacinths moving further upstream and a bit later I saw the otter surface and then continue foraging among the hyacinths.
The forest around Davenport Landing was being control-burned so I the air was thick with smoke and I didn't stay.
I then headed down FR21 and across 66 to Lake Delancey West. I just drove through to see if anyone was there and met a couple from western Pennsylvania (Elk County). They're just down to get out of the snow and to visit some friends in the Leesburg area for a few weeks.
I then continued down through the forest to the 88 Store, where I had a pulled pork sandwich. The counter lady said she had a squash casserole just coming out of the oven and would I like a taste? It was surprisingly spicy and the lady looked a bit shocked when I told her. She said her friends accuse her of making spicy dishes but it's not true. Then as she looked around at the ingredients she had used for the casserole, she held up a red-pepper container and laughed. “Maybe they're right!” she laughed.
I continued on to Silver Spring and hit the Blockbuster to exchange DVDs and then buzzed back out of town.
I turned down 314A to check out two other undeveloped campsites I could see on the map. But I came upon a library called the Forest Library. Good find! There I had a good strong wi-fi signal in the parking lot and I saw that Labashi was online at home. We had a nice, long video call. We took care of a car maintenance issue and she gave me the latest on her projects. Now that the grouting is complete on the granite floor in the foyer she's happier with it. Tomorrow her floor installers come to put the vinyl-plank floor in the bathroom and she has finalized the deal for bath fixtures and a new sink with the plumber. What a busy bee....
That evening I watched the second disk of 'In Treatment'.
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Wednesday, 16 February-
The six-miles-a-day walks for the last several days are kicking my butt! I slept heavily and didn't wake until after 0900 this morning.
I decided to stay put today. I normally move from day to day but I need to recover and have a great campsite at Hopkins Prairie.
This morning I had thought I'd take a morning walk and then spend the day driving about but it didn't work out that way at all. I hiked south on the Florida Trail to the Pats' Island trailhead where I had parked for yesterday's walk. That gave me a 4.5 mile walk and I was back by noon.
After lunch I hung out watching the sandhill cranes and the small birds frequenting my campsite. I have flickers, two extra-red cardinals, and some tiny little warblers.
I sat in the sun a bit and then caught up the blog at the picnic table. I probably shouldn't have had a beer with lunch for suddenly I was very sleepy. I napped for a bit and then realized I'd better get underway.
This time I hiked the Florida Trail northbound from Hopkins Prairie. This morning's section was all in shade but this afternoons skirted a series of lakes and ponds, mostly in the open.
I saw my first snake of the season on this walk. It was a juvenile Southern Water Snake (I think), about ten inches long and about as big around as a drum-stick. I hovered over it for a half-minute or so and it never moved even the tiniest bit. It was clearly visible on the white sand of the trail but its mottled markings would have enabled it to disappear in the grass, reminding me, of course, that Momma's probably close by.
I chose to walk three miles out this afternoon and that happened to bring me to a group of six campers setting up their tents for the night. I was commandeered by their unofficial spokes-person-- Katerina. They were college-age and started the trail at it's southern end in the Everglades. They plan to finish the Florida trail by April, then bus to the southern end of the Appalachian Trail and spend the summer walking to Maine.
For my part, I turned back to my comfortable van. That evening I watched the first disk of The Mentalist on the laptop. I don't know about this one-- a little too slick, I think.
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Tuesday, 15 February-
This morning I arose early to prepare to shuttle Pokey-Man to his next trail section. As we stood talking at the site, Doug and Gloria idled through, wanting a little more info on the many places we had talked about in passing last evening. We probably spent the better part of an hour poring over maps and (them) making notes.
Pokey-Man led me over to the '88 Store', a gas station/bar just below Route 316 on FR11 (previously 88) to drop off his mini-van. I then took him to the Florida Trail crossing at the group camp near Lake Eaton, giving him about an 11 mile walk for the day.
I then headed into Ocala for ice and supplies. I had lunch at the Five Guys near the 27th Street Starbucks and cleaned out the latter's supply of Doubleshot Lights and caught up with email.
Later in the day I drove back out to the National Forest and took dirt roads to the Pat's Island Trailhead at the Juniper Springs Wilderness boundary line. I hiked in to the Hidden Pond campsite, three miles in. It was here that some crazy from Ohio shot two hikers with an assault rifle back in 2005 or so. We had heard about it when we were down in 2006 and I was just curious to see what the area looked like.
My other interest in this hike was to see how the area is recovering from the big fire of 2009. I had planned to hike into the south end of the Juniper Springs Wilderness and saw smoke closeby when I entered the State Park to park the van. Though the ticket girl said I could go ahead and hike if I wanted but should watch for fire, I decided I'd rather risk having my return trail be cut off by a fast-moving fire. That afternoon the park was closed and all the campers forced to leave. The fire came into the park and in fact damaged the famous (and almost new) boardwalk leading to the canoe launch.
I went home a few days later and watched for news of that fire. It had been over a thousand acres in size when I left and in the next few weeks grew to over 10,000 acres.
Today the north end of the Wilderness is grown in quite a bit. It is quite remarkable to drive the Wilderness Boundary roads and surmise that the fire was left to burn in the Wilderness but was prevented from crossing the boundary road into the rest of the National Forest. I'd guess this has something to do with the rules or practices for fighting fires in areas specifically designated as Wilderness. Walking the Trail southbound into the Wilderness led me through brushy (and very green) growth well over head-high but most of the trees were dead, burned-over snags. A mile or so in I started seeing some beautiful live-oaks that only had minor damage but it was clear this had been a major event. The thickness of the new growth was close enough in many areas to make me a little antsy about happening upon a bear. I had seen a very fresh pile of bear scat on the road very near the trailhead but saw only an occasional old scat-pile on the trail and no tracks. I figured the fresh sample had come from a bear frequenting the more heavily wooded area north of the boundary road.
Hidden Pond was a pretty little rise overlooking ponds in multiple directions. The ponds are very low but the area looked like a savannah.
My walk today totaled 6.15 miles and finished about a half-hour before sunset. Since there had been no trees I had gotten quite a lot of sun but around 1600 the light wind died completely, making for a very pleasant evening walk.
I then drove the forest roads north and west to Hopkins Prairie, arriving at sunset. There were only a few campers and for some reason the section with the best views was empty. I chose a picture-perfect site with a great view of the setting sun. And as I sat sipping my after-hike beer several of the other campers came over to see the watch the fire-red sunset. I met a another couple from Ottawa, these American-born folks who had moved to Ottawa for jobs back in the Sixties. Next to stroll by was a German guy who I knew about. He had been camped at Delancey yesterday and Pokey-Man had told me he and his wife were traveling in a Fiat RV which they had had shipped over from Germany last March. They are due to fly back to Germany in a few weeks and will have their RV once again shipped across the Atlantic.
I also met 'Wild Hare' and 'Raincheck', a couple from Indiana who have done a lot of hiking on the Appalachian Trail.
That evening I watched the first disk of 'In Treatment' with Gabriel Byrne. I don't know about this one. I'm not too keen on all the 'And how does that make you feel?' talk. But in the last episode we learn that it's the therapist who's the one 'In Treatment'. This might be going somewhere but it's too early to tell.
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Monday, 14 February-
This morning I woke to a 38 degrees reading on the thermometer. That's not right! It's supposed to be in the Fifties overnight here (and will be once the cold snap passes).
I set the alarm for 0730 this morning so I could make my 0900 ATV tour appointment. I arrived at the OHV (Off-Highway Vehicle) trailhead at 0830 and my host pulled in just behind me.
I met Peter as he set up and he took me through the forms-signing and initial instruction. We then mounted up, Peter on a Can-Am 400 and me on a Yamaha 350 Grizzly. I enjoyed the tour right from the start. Peter was a very thorough guide. He pointed out a set of bear tracks--- a sow and two cubs-- which I would probably have missed entirely. We took a break after a half-hour of riding, then another at the Lake Delancey campground (where I had stayed last night). Shortly after the Delancey break he spotted a fox squirrel and stopped for me to see it but I couldn't pick it out. A fox squirrel is an extra-large squirrel and it has a very bushy tail-- a fox-like tail.
The tour lasted about two and a half hours and was twenty-one mile ride. That was perfect as far as my right thumb (the throttle control) was concerned. Good job, Peter!
After the tour I headed across 316 to Salt Springs. I talked with the volunteer at the Forest Service visitor center and gave her some positive feedback on my tour.
I then called Labashi on the pay phone to wish her a happy Valentine's day. I let her know a little present would arrive soon.
I then drove back to the campground at Lake Delancey West. There I met a Canadian couple-- Doug and Gloria-- and we hit it off right away. They live in the Ottawa area and are, like me, just seeking a little warmth.
I then walked six miles on the FNST (Florida National Scenic Trail), northbound out of the campground and back.
Afterwards I sat talking to Doug and Gloria for another hour or so-- a very pleasant chat with like-minded souls. I also met 'John'-- a/k/a “Pokey-Man”, who is from Williamsport, PA and is section-hiking the Florida Trail. I agreed to shuttle John south to his next section tomorrow.
On the way back to the van I met 'Mark', the male half of the campground-host volunteers at Lake Delancey West. Mark is from northern Wisconsin and we had an interesting conversation about their travels and about the Delancey campground. He says the campground was busy up through New Year's but since has been dead-quiet through the week, then fairly busy on the weekends with ATV riders-- but then they're cleared out by Sunday evening.
I walked back to the van and prepared supper, then caught up the blog and read. What a wonderfully-relaxing day!
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Sunday, 13 February-
This morning I made sure I left the Walmart's RV parking area before the 0800 deadline. I shopped a bit for ice and a few supplies, then drove to the nearby Panera for breakfast. I tried one of their four-cheese souffles but was a bit disappointed. I caught up the blog and posted it, which took up most of the morning.
I then drove across Ocala to my goal for the day-- a longer walk at Marshall Swamp. This turned out to be a great idea. The Marshall Swamp is part of the Florida National Scenic Trail system and lived up to its name. This section was a spectacular walk through 15-foot-high palmettos and swamp. This time of year there are no bugs and it's just a wonderful walk.
I need to build up my tolerance for miles so decided I'd walk an hour and a half and then turn back. That worked out well in that it took me to the next trailhead where I found there's a very nice paved multi-use trail. Note to self: come back to the 64th-Street trailhead again and take a bike ride on the multi-use trail.
My three hours of walking netted me six and a half miles through very pleasant surroundings.
Once back at the trailhead, I plotted out my drive through the Ocala National Forest to position myself for tomorrow. I booked an ATV tour and wanted to be within striking distance. To get there I took Forest Road 50 which ran near the Lake Eaton trailheads. Juat a half-mile past the turnoff I saw a strange sight-- a river otter in the middle of the dirt road. The otter wasted no time in getting off the road as I approached and it appeared to be in good health. What it's doing so far from water is a mystery. And shortly after seeing the otter I began seeing bear scat-- six or seven instances.
I drove across FR50 to FR11 and then north to the turnoff for the Lake Delancy campgrounds, arriving about a half-hour before dark. I took a walk through Delancey West and East then returned to the van for the night.
That evening I watched two episodes of 'The Pacific'. I'm not sure I can recommend this one-- I found it tough to keep up with the plot line.
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posted by Bezabor&Labashi | 23:59
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