Day 63 02/06/2010
When I came in off the gulf on Thursday I paid for a camp site for just two nights not knowing when I’d be able to get back on the water. When the weather reports showed 20-30 mph winds for today I knew it’d be another day off. As luck would have it when I checked my e-mails yesterday I found a note from a paddler the locals between Crystal River and Pensacola know as “The Kayak Queen”. Charlotte was tipped off about this trip in early January by a friend and has been following with great interest ever since. When she saw that the weather was going to have me stuck for a couple days she put out the offer of a nice home cooked meal and a place to stay. After almost two straight weeks sleeping in the tent I was happy to take her up on that offer, so after work today she stopped by the camp ground and picked me up. At her friends insistence Charlotte took me straight to a little seafood restaurant to have “the best fried shrimp in town.” They were some of the best I’ve ever had. Of course as hungry as I’ve been lately I’ve had the “best” of almost every food I’ve ever had. From there we drove just twenty minutes up the coast to Crystal Springs (a route that took me an entire day to paddle) to try to see more manatees near Three Sisters springs. The wind however, was blowing so hard that the choppy water in even that protected water was too rough to see anything. So from there we stopped by to see Matt’s store at Ardvark’s Florida Kayak Company and then went on to Charlotte’s house.  Me with Charlotte 'The Kayak Queen' Charlotte is about as gung ho a paddler as I’ve ever seen. Talking with her reminds me of the spirit of the sport that got me hooked so long ago. She’s paddled locations from all over Florida all the way up to Canada, the San Juan Islands, and Maine. Her favorite places to paddle are the blue water rivers of north central Florida and a large part of why she moved to this region is for the paddling. While I organized gear and filled my water bags for a return to the water tomorrow, Charlotte prepared dinner for the two of us and her sister with her friend. Around three heaping plates full of pasta and chicken with cream sauce, I filled my hostess and her guests in on some of the highlights of the trip so far. Their eyes filled with wonder when I told about being robbed and pepper sprayed and about the enormity of the Mississippi River itself. It was a great day in the company of great people. Once again it felt great to be able to meet local people and share this adventure with them. After carefully studying the weather predictions tonight it looks like I might actually have a good day on the water tomorrow with a nice tail wind to help me on my way south toward Tampa. 4 Comments Day 62 (The weather brings rest) 02/06/2010
After eleven consecutive days of paddling I was finally shut down completely by the weather. Where I am four miles off the Gulf under a thick canopy of trees it was calm and I felt a little ridiculous to not be on the water. However, the swaying tree tops and NOAA weather reports suggested that I made the right choice. My grateful resting body agreed as well. After sleeping in I visited the little campground store to see if I could find something for breakfast OTHER than oatmeal. From there I took my Frosted Flakes, milk, and Pop Tarts to the laundry room to finally freshen up my rather stinky clothes. Later in the day, after getting a ride to lunch and the grocery store with Matt (more on that below) the rains did come, so I did what all resting expedition paddlers should do… I took a nap. Afterward I visited the local bar/restaurant and ordered the fried fish dinner with onion rings and a house salad. When the waitress came around to see if I needed another soda I said no, but could I have a cheeseburger. I slowed a bit for the last few bights, but two hours later I was ready for a late night snack. There is no bottom to my stomach lately.  Matt from Ardvark's Florida Kayak Company For the last few days I’d been playing e-mail tennis with a gentleman named Matt who owns Aardvark’s Florida Kayak Company. Based in Crystal River Florida, the operation is run by Matt and his wife which includes a retail store, rentals, and tours of the local waters, which of course includes Manatees. Matt was supposed to have a tour going out right from the boat launch here at the campground so the plan was for me to stop down there and say hello before he launched his group. With rain and lightning predicted to be mixed in with the building winds, Matt decided that it was a good idea to scrub their trip and stay off the water as well. Rather than pass up the chance to meet at all, Matt made the drive all the way down here so we could finally cross paths. He generously offered to drive me up to the grocery store to pick up whatever provisions I might need and also treated me to lunch.  Matt is a very knowledgeable guy who has been working in the Florida natural resources world since the 70’s. Not too long ago he retired from his job as a state biologist and opened Aardvark’s. With his training as a biologist he is especially attuned to the effects we humans have on the animals and environment around us. His tours are run with a strong effort to disturb the animals they’re observing as little as possible. As it’s written on his flyer “All our programs are conducted with a Leave No Trace ethic and a hands off approach. We believe that wild animals need to stay wild.” We had a long conversation discussing the laws, rules, and logic around the way Manatees are being interacted with in the local waters. Not only by kayakers but divers and swimmers as well. Matt’s “hands off” approach to the Manatees and reasons for it gave me a different perspective to how the animals should be viewed and my own actions when I was with the Manatees yesterday. Despite what the differing laws that federal and state agencies have come up with regarding how people should deal with manatees, we need to consider the long term effects close human contact (touching) the manatees may have. The real reason the manatees yesterday approached our boats was not so much curiosity (they’ve seen PLENTY of kayaks) nor was it to get their forehead rubbed. They were looking for handouts. Feeding manatees is, most definitely, illegal but people still sneak cabbage and other leafy foods out to where the animals are found. While we were not breaking the law by “harassing” the manatees outright, what we are doing by interacting with them when they approach our kayaks (or other boats) is reinforce that behavior. Through that reinforcement the manatees start to associate all boats and people with food (or any other positive reinforcement for that matter). This association and propensity of manatees to now approach boats (and boat lanes) is being attributed to more of them being hit by boats. So our simple action of petting a manatee, while they do seem to like it, can actually harm them in the long run. The simple fact is they are wild animals and as such need to stay wild in order to survive. Just because we legally can touch them doesn’t mean we should. My experience with them yesterday would have been no less magical if I had refrained from touching them and kept a polite distance. I’ve observed several whales and countless seals and sea lions from hundreds of yards away and those experiences have been just as amazing. So please, if you do get a chance to visit this area and paddle with the manatees, consider the long term health of the animals and look but don’t touch. “Those who wish to pet and baby wild animals “love” them, but those who respect their natures and wish to let them live normal lives, love them more.” A deceptively calm moment four miles inland Start: 7:30 AM - Entrance to Crystal River FL Finish: 3:30 PM - Chassahowitzka Springs FL Time: 8:00 Daily dist: 28 miles Total dist: 1783 miles Companions: None Weather: SE wind 10-15 mph Notes: Saw manatees and the first kayakers in Florida  me at the springs Hey Joe from Kansas, you can relax man… I saw some manatees! Poor Joe, who I met up in Pensacola, has been e-mailing repeatedly urging me to stop and check out Crystal River to see the manatees. I can only imagine his disappointment when my spot marks touched at the end of Crystal River but never went up to where the manatees would be. He had no need to worry though, once I realized that the weather was going to throw a system my way that would stop me in my tracks for a couple days, I made plans to be some place that would be comfortable and fun. The Florida Circumnavigation guide showed only a couple camp sites along this section of coast and one happened to be right at the end of the Chassahowitzka river at the like named springs. The guide not only said the campground there not only has showers but that the area is popular with manatees. The perfect place to wait out the wind. Today was the eleventh consecutive day of paddling for me and my body and psyche were nearing their limit of effective use. I was grateful to have a sheltered water route, mostly out of the wind, to run the twenty odd miles south from Crystal River to Chasahowitzka. I was doubly glad when I started on the route and discovered that the trail is well marked and I wouldn’t have to think too hard to make sure I stayed on track through the labyrinth of channels and bays that links the two rivers. Quite frankly my tired body and mind were not up to the task. The route from Crystal River down to Homosassa River is very well marked and absolutely gorgeous. The route winds around Indian shell middens and coral rock islands covered with palms and cedars. With the first mangroves I’ve seen on the trip, the area offers an amazing mix of several coastal plant environments. It was a great morning of paddling through an area I can’t recommend enough. Things changed drastically however, when I passed south of the Homosassa river. The trail markers I’d been able to mindlessly follow suddenly disappeared along with the water. After taking two turns south of the Homosassa (convinced I was on the right route) I suddenly found myself temporally misplaced (I won’t say lost) in a broad maze of low featureless salt marsh islands. To make matters more interesting the already shallow water was rapidly receding with the outgoing tide turning the always shallow channels into mud flats. The upper half of the trail had been so well marked I was convinced that I must have wondered off the course. So I backtracked a bit and fired up my GPS to verify my location. Sure enough I was still on track but, right when I could have used them most, the red and green trail markers were gone. I’m not sure why the top half of the route would be so well marked and not the bottom. Judging by the night and day difference between the two halves of the route I’m guessing the trail keepers might not want to admit to the lower half. In place of the beautiful palm covered islands were just featureless grass islands, oyster banks, and mud. With the tide out I found myself on foot dragging my loaded boat over oysters and mud.  I think it’s the Indian word for “where did the trail markers go?” There is no feeling like walking through an area like that with a rope over your shoulder, only -thinking- that you’re on the right path. I dragged through impossibly narrow channels that the route on my map indicated as the correct path but with no other indicator than faith that it indeed was.  running out of water For a mile I continued on like this, sometimes dragging sometimes paddling, until the route finally widened and got deep enough to commit completely to paddling again. All along the way I watched my map and GPS closely until I finally came upon a rotten shell covered wooden stake stuck in the mud, then another, and another. Were these the channel markers or just long forgotten sign posts for lord knows what? I didn’t know. At any rate it was something, and I was convinced I was on the right path, so I was again able to relax and focus on the task of avoiding exposed oyster beds and crab traps in the still receding water. At last I came into the entrance of the Chassahowitzka river and turned inland for the last four mile run upstream to the river’s source. Along the way the river got increasingly clearer and warmer and the plant life changed from salt marsh to freshwater palm and oak forest. As I came to within a mile of the rivers source I saw a sight more rare than any other on the water, not a dolphin doing back flips, not a shark leaping out of the water, not an osprey grabbing a fish off the surface of the water, not a cormorant swallowing a fish bigger than it’s head (which I did see today), not a flock of several hundred waterfowl (which I have also seen), even more rare than a manatee. After 15 days and over 300 miles of paddling the Florida coast, the very rare sight I saw when I rounded that bend was… OTHER KAYAKERS!  John and Maryann, the first kayakers I saw in 300 miles of FL coast With an un-concealable feeling of excitement I paddled right up to the startled couple and asked them if I could take their picture. I didn’t want to miss the chance to preserve an image of such a rare occurrence. After taking their picture and getting their names, John and Maryann. I learned that they are…get this…from Kansas. HEY FLORIDA PADDLERS ARE YOU OUT THERE!? I know I’ve been paddling some of the most remote coast line in the state in during a streak of outright unpleasant paddling weather, which has to explain why I had yet to see one other kayak on the water since I left Alabama. I know that when the weather conditions improve and I get to more populated areas, Florida’s paddlers will come out of the woodwork to show me just what this state‘s paddling and paddlers are all about…right?  They actually pushed our boats with their shouts John and Maryann were about to turn and head back upstream to the campground where they are also staying so they joined me on the paddle back to the boat landing. Along the way they took me into the small side bay where they know manatees like to hang out. Sure enough in a cove not much more than 50 yards across, and as much deep, a half dozen of the gentle beasts were hanging out. John and I approached gently and hovered next to one of the largest of the animals it‘s back (as is so often the case) scarred from numerous encounters with boats. It paid us not attention but before long the younger and smaller manatees came right up to us and started to gently nudge our boats.  I tickled the water with my fingers and one curious youngster came to the sound and stuck it’s snout out of the water and let me caress its head. It was incredible. We stayed in the cove for a half hour with one and sometimes two manatees at a time coming up to our boats to check us out and seemingly looking for a pet. After a while even the big scared back giant we first saw rose to the surface and came over to check us out. I can’t say if the weather had been better, if I would have made the time to take the inside route today or paddle all the way up this river. The big winds that put me here today are a true blessing. Sometimes it does pay to slow down and smell the roses. Day 60 02/03/2010
Start: 7:00 AM- Shell Mound Campground (5 miles north of Cedar Key FL) Finish: 4:40 PM - Shell Island (At the mouth of Crystal River FL) Time: 9:40 Daily dist: 37 miles Total dist: 1755 miles Companions: None Weather: NE wind about 10 mph clear and nice. Wind was only an issue for a few hours Notes: Very happy to be at the start of an interior route to get out of the wind for a day.   Finally what I call a day with normal winds. By normal I mean blowing but not so hard that it’s blowing up white capped waves and laying streaks of foam across the surface of the water. It was just enough wind to make it interesting but not so much as to make it a force to be reckoned with. Besides the wind, there is another issue that one needs to deal with around here and that is low tide over shallow water. There was another very beautiful sunrise this morning but I didn’t dare pause long enough to take a picture. The tide was going out fast and I was a mile inside of a twisty backwater that turns into a mud flat at low tide. I needed every second to paddle myself out of there before it dried up. Luck was with me and I made it out without even rubbing bottom. If I’d slept another half hour it would have been a very different story. After escaping the shallows my next navigational chore was to pick up on the channel markers that would take me to and past Cedar Key. The channel is marked with the same red and green navigational beacons/signs that I described on the Mississippi river. Red is on your right on the way back in to a port and green is on your left. Around here, because it’s so shallow (even miles from shore) finding and staying within the marked channels can save a kayaker a lot of aggravation. You wouldn’t think it for a boat that drafts only a few inches, but I need about six feet of water under my kayak to get top performance. When it’s too shallow (even though I’m not touching bottom) there is bottom turbulence from the boat passing above that causes the boat to slow. I don’t know the finite details of how or why it works. I just know that when I’m in water that’s too shallow my kayak doesn’t behave like it should. It doesn’t seem to glide and often feels like I’m dragging something behind me. In addition, when I try to turn it’s a slow lumbering process. All due to the drag caused by the bottom. Because shallow water slows me down I often find myself running miles from shore to be sure that I’m in deep water. When I see a point of land or island ahead of me I turn and head off shore very early to avoid running into the shallow water around those features. Part of what has made dealing with the wind such an adventure is that in order to run close enough to get out of the roughest water I’ve had to run across shallow water that slows me in its own way. It’s become a trade off between cruising in calmer (but shallow) water with a constant feeling like I’ve got an extra forty pounds in my rear hatch verses running further out in deeper water but where the waves are big enough to give me a constant beating. That’s why finding and following a marked channel can be such a pleasure. It takes all the guess work out of finding your way around the shallows and keeps the kayak moving efficiently. Following the marked channels around Cedar Key today was exceptionally important because much of the surrounding area is not only shallow but shallow with oyster beds. There is no sound worse than the screeeeeeeccch of a fiberglass hull coming to a stop against a clump of razor sharp oyster shells. I’ve had a couple run ins already but thankfully the Ikkuma came out not too much worse for wear. It’s always tempting to try to cut corners when I’m following a channel but I know the risks to my hull are not worth the few minutes of time I might save.  my own little island My goal for today was to try to get as close to the entrance to Crystal River as I could. There was one camp site on a dredge spoil island at about 30 miles from where I started which would be a normal day of paddling. Then there was this spot at 36 miles out which meant a long day if I was going to make it here. Thank goodness the weather cooperated and I was able to make it. What’s important about this spot is that it sits at the north end of over 20 miles of “interior” interlinked bays and rivers which means protection from the wind. The winds that are predicted for tomorrow aren’t bad but it’s Friday and Saturday I’m concerned about. I’m already planning Friday as a rest day, of which I’m over due, and Saturday looks like it may be a no go day as well. Getting to this spot puts another campground within a day’s paddle tomorrow which I hope will be a good place to stay for a couple days. After 11 consecutive days of hard paddling my body and mind need a rest.  civilization returns Today also brought with it a sort of return to civilization. By the nature of the inaccessible coast line up here it has remained mostly undeveloped. Towns are small and far between and the shore line is mostly unbroken trees and marsh grass. It is quiet and remote with loads of waterfowl and other wildlife almost everywhere you look. When I rounded the point past Cedar Key my eyes detected the faint white shape on the horizon of the twin stacks of a nuclear power plant. While it was somewhat disappointing to be re-entering civilization again having a prominent feature on the horizon did make finding my location on the map much easier. Day 59 02/02/2010
Start: 7:00 AM- Sink Creek Camp Finish: 2:40 PM - Shell Mound Campground (5 miles north of Cedar Key FL) Time: 7:40 Daily dist: 33 miles Total dist: x miles Companions: None Weather: Calm for first two hours then 15 mph NW tail wind…ye ha! Notes: Made incredible time with nice tail wind for a change. It was plenty rough by the time I reached the camp ground.  A calm morning for a change When I woke up to the sound of a steady rain pattering against the roof of my tent I never would have dreamed that I’d finish the day swapping stories with a group of hunters while dining on a variety of local favorites. But that’s exactly where I ended up.
I don’t really have a process for choosing one camp site over another. I simply plot out where 25 or 30 miles of paddling will put me and make plans to spend the night at which ever site works the best. Sometimes there are no sites within that distance range so I have to do a shorter day or hunker down and put in a few more miles. Shell Mound happened to land right on the 32 mile mark which is perfect for my average eight hour day at four miles per hour. The math may work out but it’s still up to me to make it happen. Today began with a steady rain but dead calm which is how it remained for the first two hours. There was a cold front on the way so I knew it wouldn’t last but it sure was nice. Once the front did reach me the winds did build but for the first time in ten days I had a tail wind. It was with that 15 mph NW wind that I made incredible time and reached the Shell Mound Campground (32 miles from where I started) in less than eight hours.  Named after an Indian midden (pile of shells laid down by people over the centuries) the Shell Mound Campground is a county run affair and for just five dollars you gain access to excellent campsites and….HOT SHOWERS! Immediately after landing I took advantage of every minute of sunshine and wind to try to dry my gear after two days of hard use and rain. Once everything was hung up I checked in and then found my way to the shower house. I hadn’t had a shower since I stayed at the RV park in Destin and this shower was probably the best I’ve ever had. To say it felt good would be a gross understatement. It was heaven. There is no laundry facility at the campground so I once again used the dry bag trick and took advantage of the hot water to get my clothes freshened up. They’re far from totally clean but at least the smell is tolerable. After I finished getting cleaned up and dried out I walked over to a camp site that was populated by huge pickup trucks and men wearing camouflage. I guessed deer hunters and was close…hogs and squirrels…my kind of people. I had asked the group where to go to register when I came in so they had seen me straight off the water in all my paddling clothes which is quite a sight to the unaccustomed eye. They had a few questions as to what exactly I was up to and when I told them about my trip they offered up a beer and food if I was interested. At this point in the trip I absolutely never pass up on the offer of food so as soon as the guys returned from this evening’s hunt I walked over to visit and see what was cooking…hey, they offered. The hunt had been successful and they brought back a couple squirrels and an Armadillo. One of the group had eaten one before and said it was great so the others were curious enough to give it a try. It was an ordeal watching them try to skin the armored beast but once they were finished it yielded quite a bit of meat. They seasoned the carcass, triple wrapped it in tin foil, and put it on the grill to roast.  The guys were curious enough to give Armadillo a try for dinner
In the mean time they offered me a steady flow of all manner of food, potato salad, smoked mullet, steak, and oyster stew. I ate until my stomach could take no more and while country music blared from one of the truck stereos, I listened to the guys talk. Oddly enough the main topic of conversation revolved around cooking. Judging by the amount and variety of food in that camp it shouldn’t have been a surprise. I tried to hang on long enough to get a taste of the Armadillo but it was already late. When an electric space heater in one of their huge tents tripped a breaker and put the lights out I called it a sign that it was time to go. So I bid the gentlemen farewell and floated back to my tent clean, warm, dry, and with a very swollen belly. It felt good. Day 58 02/01/2010
Start: 7:00 AM- Rock Island Finish: 5:40 PM - Sink Creek Time: 10:40 Daily dist: 41 miles Total dist: 1,685 miles Companions: None Weather: NE wind 15 mph dropping to 10 mph (quartering head wind) Notes: Took advantage of decreased wind to make miles If there is anybody reading this blog who has worked on or is still working to maintain a part of the Big Bend water trail I owe you a huge thank you for all your efforts. Due to the weather, the paddling up here has been a bit on the dull and difficult side. However, the campsites that have been established as part of the trail are amazing. I only wish I had more time and better weather to enjoy them more  view from Sink Creek Camp The wind was already blowing hard (again) when I got up this morning. It was once again a NE wind which was not quite a full on head wind but enough to make me work for most of the miles I made. The wind has become my constant companion almost since I entered Florida. I’ve gotten used to planning my routes and mileage around the wind but what I have not gotten used to is the constant (wind in my ears) noise that comes along with it. If you want to see what I’m talking about go for a ride with a friend an stick your head out the window. One thing I’ve discovered is that singing or talking out loud can provide some relief from the constant wind noise. I’m not sure if it’s a distraction or that my ears are being filled with some other noise than the wind. All I know is that it helps… a lot. Unfortunately I only know a couple songs so I spent the better part of the day talking out loud to myself like some sort of lunatic.  A well marked camp site on the Big Bend paddling trail The wind did drop off for a few hours in the early afternoon so I took advantage of this rare moment and set my sights on a campsite that was an extra 12 miles down the coast. The lull in the wind even made me confident enough to stray away from the coast a bit into more open and deeper water. It was a relief to not have to steer around and worry about oyster bars for a few hours. I didn’t know what to expect as far as what the camp site would be. But once again, it turned out to be a fantastic spot. Tomorrow a NW tail wind is being predicted, if it stays at or below 15 mph I should be able to make good time with much less effort than the last couple days. I hope the predictions are correct, if so it should be a good day of paddling. | Best of the Blog
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