Winter is not what it used to be, seems colder as you get older. Heating oil price up, house temperature down. The snow is piling up. What to do?
Too much snow!
FLORIDA! EVERGADES! Now that sounded like a great idea, never having been to Florida, let alone the Everglades National Park. So several members of the Narragansett Chapter of the AMC decided to head south as soon as possible. As the weather continued to dump snow in Cumberland and other parts of the State, schedules were arranged and rearranged. Finally after the last large snow storm, planning was done and three of us were ready to go. Food was purchased for quick preparation. Kayak gear was sorted and weather conditions were monitored via the Internet for southern Florida. They were having a cold spell with lows in the 40's but it seemed to be warming up by the time we got our act together. We also wanted to avoid any pending snow storms on the way down that might be sneaking in from the west.
Saturday night snow fall.
We decided to leave on a Sunday morning to get through the New York, Washington, DC area on a less busy day. I stayed over at Ray's house on Saturday night and from there drove to Gary's house early Sunday morning to join with him and head south. Gary and Ray went in Gary's van and I in my VW. Kayaks were lashed front and back to prevent any problem if we encountered storms going down. As it was, it snowed on Saturday night and we had a 2 inch dusting of snow for the exit of Rhode Island. We took the direct route south using Rt 95 most of the way, only diverting to use the Merritt Parkway in CT and the Tappan Zee bridge to get to the Garden State Parkway. We used a few belt-line routes around the big cities and the Florida Turnpike to avoid Miami.
The driving distance was about 1600 miles and since we stopped at a reasonable time to get an economical (that is relative to the location) motel and supper, the trip took 4 days. We may have left in the snow, but by the second day in North Carolina the temperature was up to 80 degrees and I went to shorts and tee shirt.
Why didn't I think of this sooner?
We arrived at the Everglades Park entrance Wednesday afternoon. So far the Everglades were not looking like I had expected. Looked like grassland with palm trees scattered around. Certainly was not jungle like, and when we pitched our tents in the walk-in campground at Flamingo, there were no flocks of birds or swarms of insects. The grass was mowed and we had tons of room. Best of all was with the Golden Age Passport, the entrance fee was reduced to a fee for my kayak, and my campsite was only 1/2 price at $8/day. And sites on waterfront property no less.
Walk-in campsites at Flamingo campground.
The weather was absolutely perfect. Daytime temperature was about 80 degrees and nighttime about 60 degrees. The air was relatively dry and not sticky hot, and the breeze during the day kept bugs away.
Ranger Sara with python skin.
We checked out the Visitors Center for paddling options and got some ranger talk about the local animals from Ranger Sara. The wind was picking up pretty strong in the bay the next day and we decided to stay in the campground and explore the inland options, before we went wilderness camping in the kayaks. We decided that the canal next to Flamingo would be an easy paddle. None of us had paddled since last November. We launched from next to the campground area at the only place that was not soft clay-like mud. When we reached the Flamingo marina we found out that the only way into the canal was over a dam that regulated the water levels in the lower Everglades.
Local crocodiles at canal dam.
So it was a quick portage up and over the dam to the other side. The dam on the upside has two resident crocodiles which were basking on the other bank.
The canal was long and straight, and quite bland with mangrove trees along the sides and only a few ducks along the banks. Certainly not jungle like. The only resting place was a dock at the end of an access road, and that is where we had lunch. Farther up the canal was Coot Bay, a large shallow in land lake.
Paddling up the Buttonwood Canal.
The wind that day was coming directly from the East and we did not feel any effect while in the canal, but as soon as we entered Coot Bay the wind was ripping across the water.
Heading into 20 mph wind on Coot Bay.
We took a left along the side, thinking that we might find one of the outlets to another lake but decided to head back. So we headed out into 20 mph wind for awhile to get back to the canal where there was no wind to speak of.
Sunrise over Florida Bay.
The next day the sunrise was spectacular but later in the morning the wind was still gusting to 20 and more on the Florida Bay, so we decided to do another inland paddle. This time Hell's Creek sounded like a great adventure. The launch site is a dock back up the park access road. It starts out very narrow and shallow because the access road blocks its historical path to the ocean and there is no flushing of the dock area.
Mangrove trees in the Hell's Creek trail.
But it did widen out nicely farther up and was again completely out of the wind. The breeze we did get kept insects away (if there were any) and some cumulus clouds kept us from getting sun baked. The route winds around, and if not for the numbered PVC pipes placed on the route, it would have been impossible to find our way.
It was slow going up the channel and by the time we reached the a campsite, it was noon. The next campsite that we might be able to get out of the kayaks was a chickee to far up to allow us to get back at a reasonable time. Daylight is only for 12 hours and sunset was at 6:30 this time of year. We had lunch with a couple paddling with a Hobie flipper kayak on the dock at the Lard Can campsite. It seemed to be the only campsite not named after a place.
Lunch at Lard Can.
The next day we still had wind on the Bay and decided to take a short hike along the Coastal Trail which gives you a nice feeling for the local ecosystems. But before we went on the hike, I took a short walk from the campground over to Eco Pond where I had heard there was good bird viewing. I was not disappointed and was amazed at the beautiful Roseate Spoonbills. They would wade along swinging their bills back and forth feeling for small fish to feed on.
Roseate Spoonbills in Eco Pond.
Finally the next day the wind had died down to an acceptable level for paddling in Florida Bay. But while the day seemed perfect, the night before was not. At about 2:30 am in the night, helicopters came flying over the campgrounds low with search lights swinging around and back and forth. I think they were only a couple hundred feet over the ground and they created a tremendous noise preventing any sleep for at least an hour. I had no idea was was going on... drug bust by the Feds? Was there an ICE raid on Cuban boat people? Finally things quieted down and I got some sleep.
We got our wilderness camping permits at the Visitors Center for a planned 4 day paddle along Cape Sable on the southern end of the Everglades. We drove over to the marina to load our kayaks and went through the "how to fit all this in the kayak" routine. Across the parking lot were 12 college students on an Outdoors Program during their Spring Break period. Their trip was for 6 days, many of them being beginners. This was a college sanctioned trip and they had qualified leaders, all from Appalachian State University.
Heading out into Florida Bay.
Finally we got everything packed in the kayaks, including bladders of fresh water, which we laid on the bottom of our cockpits. There is no freshwater in this part of the Everglades. We paddled down the southern coast towards the East Cape about 12 miles.
The wind had died down on this day and it was a leisure trip along the coastal beach. We passed the college students as they were resting on one of the beaches. After coming around the cape we found better landing conditions and a completely open beach for miles and miles. For all the waterfront congestion Florida has, the Everglades are a national treasure.
Our campsite on Cape Sable.
Because of a light breeze, we had not experienced any bug problems. But that changed quickly when during the night, leaving the tent to relieve myself, I was attacked by no-see-ums as I never have been attacked before. And that includes bugs in Alaska. They were small, they stung like pin pricks and the stinging did not go away. The moral of the story is don't leave your tent at night...period.
Morning on Cape Sable.
We decided to keep our camp site and not repack and move up the coast, but do a paddle into the East Cape canal and check out the passage to Lake Ingram, which was one of the loop circuits that could be paddled. Up the canal we investigated on of the flood control dams being repaired.
Dam restoration project.
The two in this area had been destroyed by the 2005 hurricanes. They had so called canoe ramps which were really too steep for practical purposes. The upper dam area was being planted with little trees and was also full of no-see-ums. We did not linger on the dam. On the way back, toward the entrance to the canal, we got good views of a large Blue Heron and a Brown Pelican in a tree.
Brown Pelican in tree.
That night we did not leave our tents, having learned our lesson the previous night. Next morning we overturned our kayaks to get ready for loading gear. The local raccoons are a problem with camping on the beach. They will explore everything and chew anything if there a reward of food or water. So we had overturned our kayaks on the sand and put the water bags back in the forward part of the cockpit. On both mornings there were raccoon prints everywhere, including prints around our tents. Ray had one that was pushing against his tent, forcing him to swat the tent wall to drive him away, several times.
Packing the tents wearing a bug net.
The paddle back was easy with a light warm headwind that seemed to be in the 80's. The water was warmer than out on the end of the cape and seemed to be 80 degrees at least. Because of all the clay like silt, the water looked like light chocolate milk. We stopped for a lazy lunch on a nice warm beach knowing it would be our last until later in the summer in Narragansett Bay.
A lazy lunch and siesta on a warm beach.
The highlight of our paddle back to Flamingo was the shark sighting. Not really an sighting, because the water was so milky from the clay bottom we only saw the fins of the shark. The shark did not see us and I had previously almost run over him earlier in the day. The water along the coast was very shallow, usually only a foot or two, so the shark could not go deeper when I encountered him. We also saw a dolphin in the distance, but to far to photograph.
Heading back in gray water.
Wednesday was to be a decision day on traveling back to Rhode Island. I went (a 50 mile commute each way) into Homestead to find the local library to work on the AMC Gazette. But unfortunately my brand new laptop was not working very well and nothing got done. So I decided to head back with Gary and Ray ,and forgo a longer stay in the Everglades. We left Thursday and arrived back on Sunday. From my estimates that was more driving time than paddling time, but now we know the area and next year will be better.