Day 55 - (Friday 1/29/10) 01/29/2010
It was a late night for me last night so it was very hard to get up this morning. It didn’t matter because with the intricate shallow water channels outside of Carrabelle I needed daylight to see where I was going anyway. Before I could do any paddling at all I had to drag my boat over a couple hundred yards of tidal mud flats due to the fact that the tide was out and I pulled out of very shallow water last night. The drag went well and thankfully the mud was firm enough that I didn’t sink in past the top of my boots.  Taking boat for a walk From camp it was a short mile and a half paddle into town where I pulled out at a boat ramp and walked a block up to the IGA grocery store to replenish my supplies. By now I know when my food reserves are getting low when I start to notice surplus room in the Ikkuma‘s hatches. As long as I was at the store I indulged in a few donuts and a pint of milk. The donuts only came in packs of a half dozen which I feared would be too much but somehow they all disappeared in minutes. It’s remarkable to see just how much food I can eat and still be hungry. Once I was re-packed and ready to go I pointed my boat inland and continued on my way. Anybody that was following along with the SPOT hits that didn’t know about the river route I took must have been baffled as to why my location was showing up five miles inland. Taking a cue from the Florida Circumnavigation Guide I used this route to get a day away from the winds which lately have been a constant hindrance to my progress. The irony is that I ended up working harder in a full day of paddling verses what I would have achieved in a few hours on the open coast even with the wind. However, if I had stayed on the open coast I would have missed one of the most beautiful paddling routes I’ve ever seen. If you ever end up in northwest corner of Florida, I strongly recommend paddling this section of water. It is amazing.  View on the river. I spent the day on the Crooked River which I picked up in Carrabelle and followed roughly NE toward Ochlocknee Bay. True to it’s name the Crooked River is very crooked. Starting out near Carrabelle the river is mostly a salt water tidal stream surrounded by salt water tolerant grasses. As you move inland and upstream the water becomes less salty and the grasses give way to pines and cypress. At the same time the river narrows drawing the tree lined banks even closer. I was on a constant look out on all the sun warmed banks for a potential sighting of an alligator but all I saw was a few camera shy turtles. The river passes through state forest land and the state has set up a series of very nice camp sites for paddlers to use. With storms in the forecast tomorrow I don’t expect do much paddling on the open coast so I took my time on the river and decided to camp back here tonight. It is a very different experience camping amongst pines and cypress rather than sand dunes and grasses. The frogs are singing a constant chorus and the sound of the wind blowing through the pines is one of the most soothing sounds I’ve ever heard.  View from camp. Storms are supposed to blow in tonight so I made sure everything was staked down tight and am now enjoying the calm before the storm. CommentsNeil B 01/29/2010 9:15:47 pm Wow. Jeff P 01/29/2010 9:50:52 pm Let's hope that alligator doesn't decide he's hungry in the middle of the night and crawl up that back for some grub... I noticed on the SPOT map you had taken a detour, was like hmmm where be he going now and then zoomed in to see the river wind around the other other side. Hope the storm passes over. Jenni Loging 01/29/2010 10:01:04 pm Very Cool! Al-Benton 01/29/2010 10:01:10 pm Jake, I have been following your progress for the last few weeks. I'm from the St. Louis area and saw your story on RiverBills website. I must admit I was a bit concerned today when your progress on the Crooked River suddenly ended before noon. Thought you may have tried wrestling a big gator. So I was relieved to see your post and the great photos. Aaron Stachovak 01/29/2010 11:04:45 pm Jake, you are not supposed to say gator in your blogs - now I will have to listen to your mother worry about you all day on Sunday when we celebrate Micah's 2nd birthday... :) Alicia 01/30/2010 12:24:02 pm Hi Jake: Tootie 01/30/2010 2:38:34 pm Tootie 01/30/2010 2:41:16 pm Hi Jake Alicia 01/30/2010 2:51:31 pm Opps just read your reply to the granola.. thanks honey you made my day. :-) Andy is going to Costco to pick up an oversized jug of Honey for me. Plan on making 3 batches of granola Sunday and a few other yummy's. I could send you some when yuo reach Russell's ?? let me know. Neil F (San Diego) 01/30/2010 7:34:35 pm Neil F (San Diego) 01/30/2010 7:43:24 pm Sorry for the double posting -- senior moment. Portage Dug 02/04/2010 5:02:36 pm Jake, Leave a Reply | Best of the Blog
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