Nov. 30, 2017
I thought I was going to have to take a zero day today. Both of my heels are sporting huge blisters from those newer running shoes of mine that don't work well with my orthotics. At least not when it comes to walking in them 20 miles at a time. A little slipping in the heels is one thing when you're casually walking around the house or walking the dog, but quite another when you're hiking an NST.
My hiking boots, which worked well yesterday, were killing me this morning. I considered hiking barefoot for about one second. Then I tried wearing my running shoes without my orthotics. That felt pretty great. The only thing was that I had left the shoes' normal removable bottoms back home. After all, I always had my orthotics in them instead of those little foam bottoms. I knew it was risky to try hiking 20 miles in them. Without those little foam bottoms, there is exposed stitching that is also likely to cause blisters. But I had little choice.
So I headed out and hiked on the connecting road route today. I did end up getting one big blister on the bottom of one foot, but I think it will be okay bandaged up tomorrow. And I went to Walmart and picked up some cushy inserts that I'm hoping will be thinner than my orthotics and be just what I need going forward.
One bright spot of the day was meeting Eric Lewis, chapter chair of the next trail chapter I'm entering (the Econfina area). What a nice guy! I also enjoyed hiking across the +2-mile bridge over the Apalachicola River and along the bike path through Blountstown.
Tonight my good friend Judy, aka Ten-Miler, drove up from Punta Gorda to be my shuttler and hiker pal for the next few days.
Snowshoe
Thursday, November 30, 2017
Day 39 / 6: FR 107 to 3 Miles Up SR 65
Nov. 29, 2017
Today I bandaged up my poor, blistered heels and put on my hiking boots. That felt much better!
The day was pretty awesome. The first few miles were a bit scruffy, but then the trail became just lovely -- wonderful footing and beautiful scenery. The best part of the day was having lunch lakeside at beautiful Bonnet Lake. There was even a bench there.
The temperature neared 80, but it wasn't too humid. And just as it was getting too hot, it cooled off. That's the perk of hiking at this time of year.
Near the end of the day I had 2.4 miles left of trail, then three miles on SR 65. Things devolved from here. The trail was actually recently trimmed, which was great. Except it was some kind of prairie land. If you've hiked on prairie before, it's very lumpy and bumpy. The path was all that, plus roots. What this meant was that your feet slipped and slid from side to side, which for me equated to more hot spots and blisters. I was happy to reach SR 65 and hike on the highway!
Tonight I drove to new lodgings in Marianna. En route I passed through Blountstown, which is on the FT and has very pretty Christmas decorations. I loved their lighted Polar Express!
Snowshoe
Today I bandaged up my poor, blistered heels and put on my hiking boots. That felt much better!
The day was pretty awesome. The first few miles were a bit scruffy, but then the trail became just lovely -- wonderful footing and beautiful scenery. The best part of the day was having lunch lakeside at beautiful Bonnet Lake. There was even a bench there.
The temperature neared 80, but it wasn't too humid. And just as it was getting too hot, it cooled off. That's the perk of hiking at this time of year.
Near the end of the day I had 2.4 miles left of trail, then three miles on SR 65. Things devolved from here. The trail was actually recently trimmed, which was great. Except it was some kind of prairie land. If you've hiked on prairie before, it's very lumpy and bumpy. The path was all that, plus roots. What this meant was that your feet slipped and slid from side to side, which for me equated to more hot spots and blisters. I was happy to reach SR 65 and hike on the highway!
Tonight I drove to new lodgings in Marianna. En route I passed through Blountstown, which is on the FT and has very pretty Christmas decorations. I loved their lighted Polar Express!
Snowshoe
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Day 38 / 5: West End of Bradwell Bay to FR 107
Nov. 28, 2017
Wow, this was a day for the record books! I had one of my longer hikes planned, a 23.5-miler. But due to various circumstances, I didn't get started on the trail until almost 9:30 a.m. With sunset around 6 p.m., I figured I'd have to hike a little in the dark. I had a headlamp with me and wasn't too concerned.
That changed quickly, as one stretch of the Apalachicola Forest was filled with downed trees. Not the trunks that you can easily climb over, but the branches. I probably wasted 20 minutes in one spot, just to move ahead 50 feet. The rest, while not nearly as bad, still involved much bushwhacking. I rejoiced when I came upon a prescribed burn -- yes! All of those thick bushes were burned away.
To add to the stress, my orthotics caused my new shoes to slip a little as I walked. I knew about this slight slippage before I came down, but at the gym it was insignificant. On the trail, it equated to huge blisters. I stopped numerous times to bandage the sore areas, then duct tape them, etc. I'll probably switch to my hiking boots tomorrow to give my poor feet a break.
I actually made up some time when the trail piggybacked on fire roads, and by the end of the day had only about 1.5 miles to hike in the dark. A piece of cake! Except the minute the sky darkened, the trail led me into a small, dark swamp. Normally not a big deal, but this one was very wet and dark and I couldn't find the trail with my headlamp. I dropped my phone twice in the muck, got my shoes submerged and had to bushwhack my way back out. Thank goodness for the trail app, which shows where you are via GPS. If not for that, I'd still be out there.
As I was nearing my car, I heard this weird whistle. It was the kind of whistle you hear in murder mysteries. I grabbed my mace, thinking some weird guy was out in the woods. Turned out to be Taz, a thru-hiker. He saw my headlamp and was trying to warn me he was there so I wouldn't be scared. Ha! As I neared him (and didn't see him) he called out hello and I screamed, despite having heard his creepy whistling. Which, I guess, was from some spaghetti Western.
Taz and I chatted a good long while. But I had to break for the motel. I needed a shower! I was filthy and had dried blood everywhere from all of the bushwhacking.
Tomorrow I just have 18 miles of the Apalachicola forest left. I'll be happy to leave it behind!
Snowshoe
Wow, this was a day for the record books! I had one of my longer hikes planned, a 23.5-miler. But due to various circumstances, I didn't get started on the trail until almost 9:30 a.m. With sunset around 6 p.m., I figured I'd have to hike a little in the dark. I had a headlamp with me and wasn't too concerned.
That changed quickly, as one stretch of the Apalachicola Forest was filled with downed trees. Not the trunks that you can easily climb over, but the branches. I probably wasted 20 minutes in one spot, just to move ahead 50 feet. The rest, while not nearly as bad, still involved much bushwhacking. I rejoiced when I came upon a prescribed burn -- yes! All of those thick bushes were burned away.
To add to the stress, my orthotics caused my new shoes to slip a little as I walked. I knew about this slight slippage before I came down, but at the gym it was insignificant. On the trail, it equated to huge blisters. I stopped numerous times to bandage the sore areas, then duct tape them, etc. I'll probably switch to my hiking boots tomorrow to give my poor feet a break.
I actually made up some time when the trail piggybacked on fire roads, and by the end of the day had only about 1.5 miles to hike in the dark. A piece of cake! Except the minute the sky darkened, the trail led me into a small, dark swamp. Normally not a big deal, but this one was very wet and dark and I couldn't find the trail with my headlamp. I dropped my phone twice in the muck, got my shoes submerged and had to bushwhack my way back out. Thank goodness for the trail app, which shows where you are via GPS. If not for that, I'd still be out there.
As I was nearing my car, I heard this weird whistle. It was the kind of whistle you hear in murder mysteries. I grabbed my mace, thinking some weird guy was out in the woods. Turned out to be Taz, a thru-hiker. He saw my headlamp and was trying to warn me he was there so I wouldn't be scared. Ha! As I neared him (and didn't see him) he called out hello and I screamed, despite having heard his creepy whistling. Which, I guess, was from some spaghetti Western.
Taz and I chatted a good long while. But I had to break for the motel. I needed a shower! I was filthy and had dried blood everywhere from all of the bushwhacking.
Tomorrow I just have 18 miles of the Apalachicola forest left. I'll be happy to leave it behind!
Snowshoe
Day 37 / 4: FR 348 Trailhead to the West End of Bradwell Bay
Nov. 27, 2017
Today was a short one -- just 12 miles. That's because five of those 12 were in Bradwell Bay, a swamp hike where you typically average one mile per hour. I wanted to give myself plenty of time.
After conquering Big Cypress Swamp in January, I was kind of excited to tackle Bradwell Bay solo. Linda Patton told me the east end was dry, but the west was wet. I had about seven miles of hiking to start with before entering the east end of Bradwell Bay. These seven miles were pretty overgrown, so I had to do a lot of what I call "bushwhacking light." It wasn't terrible, but annoying. This is the start of hiking season, though, so the volunteer crews are just getting out to maintain the trails. I knew this going in, so no big deal.
At one point while I was hiking in an area akin to a garden/hedge maze -- tight walls of bushes on either side -- I heard this chuffing for several minutes. I realized it was a bear. I couldn't see where it was, but could tell it wasn't agitated. It appeared to be calling to another bear, or maybe to warn that a human was near. I grabbed my bear spray and held it in my hand for about 10 minutes until I was convinced it wasn't coming after me. There wouldn't have been any place to run in that narrow, tight maze.
Bradwell Bay turned out to be a disappointment. It was 99% dry, something that is very rare. But we live in a time when the climate is never predictable anymore.
The only slight challenge I had was in one soggy part where the mud sucked your feet down to the ankles, and I feared I'd lose my shoes. Once I even sunk down to one knee. Being alone, it was concerning. But I always got my feet/leg out and carried on.
Snowshoe
Today was a short one -- just 12 miles. That's because five of those 12 were in Bradwell Bay, a swamp hike where you typically average one mile per hour. I wanted to give myself plenty of time.
After conquering Big Cypress Swamp in January, I was kind of excited to tackle Bradwell Bay solo. Linda Patton told me the east end was dry, but the west was wet. I had about seven miles of hiking to start with before entering the east end of Bradwell Bay. These seven miles were pretty overgrown, so I had to do a lot of what I call "bushwhacking light." It wasn't terrible, but annoying. This is the start of hiking season, though, so the volunteer crews are just getting out to maintain the trails. I knew this going in, so no big deal.
At one point while I was hiking in an area akin to a garden/hedge maze -- tight walls of bushes on either side -- I heard this chuffing for several minutes. I realized it was a bear. I couldn't see where it was, but could tell it wasn't agitated. It appeared to be calling to another bear, or maybe to warn that a human was near. I grabbed my bear spray and held it in my hand for about 10 minutes until I was convinced it wasn't coming after me. There wouldn't have been any place to run in that narrow, tight maze.
Bradwell Bay turned out to be a disappointment. It was 99% dry, something that is very rare. But we live in a time when the climate is never predictable anymore.
The only slight challenge I had was in one soggy part where the mud sucked your feet down to the ankles, and I feared I'd lose my shoes. Once I even sunk down to one knee. Being alone, it was concerning. But I always got my feet/leg out and carried on.
Snowshoe
Day 36 / 3: Jack Crum Road to FR 348 Trailhead
Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017
Today I entered the Bradwell Bay Wilderness area in the Apalachicola National Forest. The weather was great, with the highs around 70.
I came upon a trail journal early on -- I love those! -- and it was fun to see the names and messages from my peeps back from my start in Big Cypress last January.
The best part of the hike came in the last half of the day. I was able to take my lunch break in one of the campsites, which are really nice here. A retired gentleman has made nice signage for the camps, plus a fire ring, wood protected in plastic bags and a spacious bench.
I ate lunch at the Bent Sapling Camp, but was intrigued by the following Martian Camp (the sign included a UFO picture). Trail angel Linda Patton told me at one point someone etched an elaborate story about a UFO encounter onto the guardrail over the Sopchoppy River. The elements eventually erased the story, but it was remembered by many. So that's why they decided to create a Martian Camp.
The final few miles along the Sopchoppy River were beautiful. Once I get the photos figured out, I'll add them in.
Snowshoe
Today I entered the Bradwell Bay Wilderness area in the Apalachicola National Forest. The weather was great, with the highs around 70.
I came upon a trail journal early on -- I love those! -- and it was fun to see the names and messages from my peeps back from my start in Big Cypress last January.
The best part of the hike came in the last half of the day. I was able to take my lunch break in one of the campsites, which are really nice here. A retired gentleman has made nice signage for the camps, plus a fire ring, wood protected in plastic bags and a spacious bench.
I ate lunch at the Bent Sapling Camp, but was intrigued by the following Martian Camp (the sign included a UFO picture). Trail angel Linda Patton told me at one point someone etched an elaborate story about a UFO encounter onto the guardrail over the Sopchoppy River. The elements eventually erased the story, but it was remembered by many. So that's why they decided to create a Martian Camp.
The final few miles along the Sopchoppy River were beautiful. Once I get the photos figured out, I'll add them in.
Snowshoe
Saturday, November 25, 2017
Day 35 / 2: St. Marks to Jack Crum Road
Nov. 25, 2017
Today was an 18-miler through much of St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge. I started in tiny St. Marks on a recreational path created from an old railroad that once ran from St. Marks to Tallahassee. Temps were in the upper 40s, so it was a tad chilly. But in an hour I had perfect hiking weather.
The trail left the recreational path at Hwy. 98, and the next few miles weren't so great. The trail is supposed to run parallel to Hwy. 98 on the north side of the road. I found it, but it wasn't maintained well. In addition, the blazes kept pointing me onto 98 but not showing me how to get back into the woods. Long story short, I kept hiking on and off the trail/Hwy. 98.
After that, it was back into the National Wildlife Refuge. I'd hiked a little in its eastern portion in March, and it was magnificent. A lot of the trails in the east were on levees, and it was easy to see much wildlife. The western portion is much more wooded. It was very pretty, but the trail here was quite overgrown. I learned later that this section of the Florida Trail is maintained by the St. Marks NWR employees, and they typically don't start maintaining things until much later into the hiking season -- like January and February.
No matter. Part of hiking is the unexpected, and facing challenges. There was only one area with several downed trees that was difficult. I had to cross by walking across some of the downed trees, which were thin, moss-covered and slippery. But I prevailed!
I ended up finishing about 45 minutes ahead of schedule. While waiting for my shuttle by trail angel/volunteer Linda Patton, I was attacked by no-see-ums. Ack! I'd totally forgotten there would still be bugs here. After all, I'd been hiking in snow and 20-degree temps back home just two weeks ago.
Back at my motel, I couldn't find my cell phone. After searching for 30 minutes I recalled setting it on top of my car in St. Marks, something I never do. But my backpack had leaked into Linda's car and I was flustered. I flew back to St. Marks but the phone wasn't in the parking lot. Before heading to the police, I decided to stop in at this restaurant that was one block from the parking spot. I had made a left-hand turn here, and thought maybe the phone fell off here.
Bingo! It had, one of the employees had seen it fly off the roof, and she had been calling all over to find me. I was so happy. Despite all of the craziness in the world, most people are good people.
Bonus: I met Cameron, Karl and Collins at the restaurant; they gave me a booklet that had also flown off the roof. I think it was one of Linda's. We had a lovely conversation. Come visit me in Wisconsin!
Snowshoe
P.S. Still working on the photos. There is a glitch with this blogging platform, which is out of date.
Today was an 18-miler through much of St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge. I started in tiny St. Marks on a recreational path created from an old railroad that once ran from St. Marks to Tallahassee. Temps were in the upper 40s, so it was a tad chilly. But in an hour I had perfect hiking weather.
The trail left the recreational path at Hwy. 98, and the next few miles weren't so great. The trail is supposed to run parallel to Hwy. 98 on the north side of the road. I found it, but it wasn't maintained well. In addition, the blazes kept pointing me onto 98 but not showing me how to get back into the woods. Long story short, I kept hiking on and off the trail/Hwy. 98.
After that, it was back into the National Wildlife Refuge. I'd hiked a little in its eastern portion in March, and it was magnificent. A lot of the trails in the east were on levees, and it was easy to see much wildlife. The western portion is much more wooded. It was very pretty, but the trail here was quite overgrown. I learned later that this section of the Florida Trail is maintained by the St. Marks NWR employees, and they typically don't start maintaining things until much later into the hiking season -- like January and February.
No matter. Part of hiking is the unexpected, and facing challenges. There was only one area with several downed trees that was difficult. I had to cross by walking across some of the downed trees, which were thin, moss-covered and slippery. But I prevailed!
I ended up finishing about 45 minutes ahead of schedule. While waiting for my shuttle by trail angel/volunteer Linda Patton, I was attacked by no-see-ums. Ack! I'd totally forgotten there would still be bugs here. After all, I'd been hiking in snow and 20-degree temps back home just two weeks ago.
Back at my motel, I couldn't find my cell phone. After searching for 30 minutes I recalled setting it on top of my car in St. Marks, something I never do. But my backpack had leaked into Linda's car and I was flustered. I flew back to St. Marks but the phone wasn't in the parking lot. Before heading to the police, I decided to stop in at this restaurant that was one block from the parking spot. I had made a left-hand turn here, and thought maybe the phone fell off here.
Bingo! It had, one of the employees had seen it fly off the roof, and she had been calling all over to find me. I was so happy. Despite all of the craziness in the world, most people are good people.
Bonus: I met Cameron, Karl and Collins at the restaurant; they gave me a booklet that had also flown off the roof. I think it was one of Linda's. We had a lovely conversation. Come visit me in Wisconsin!
Snowshoe
P.S. Still working on the photos. There is a glitch with this blogging platform, which is out of date.
Friday, November 24, 2017
Day 34 / 1: Shell Island Fish Camp to St. Marks Visitor Center
Nov. 24, 2017
This is it! I'm going to finish the Florida National Scenic Trail in my fourth and final trip here in 2017! Woot, woot!
Ideally, I prefer hiking a long-distance trail in a linear fashion, going from Point A to Point B. This didn't happen with the Florida Trail, but that's okay. Nothing in life is ever perfect.
To recap: I began at the southern terminus (Big Cypress Swamp) in January 2017, reaching a spot just southwest of Orlando. I returned in March, but skipped the Orlando area because my husband had a conference there in May and I wanted him to hike some of the trail with me at that time. So I jumped ahead to a spot north of Orlando and hiked to St. Marks in the eastern panhandle. In May, I returned and did the Orlando section. (Ironically, my husband's conference was cancelled, so I ended up hiking it alone and could have hiked sequentially.)
All of this meant that today I'm picking up at my farthest northbound (NOBO) spot, St. Marks. But again, I have to mix things up. Last March, I had planned to end my hike after crossing the river into St. Marks. But a pending storm meant the boats weren't ferrying hikers across, so I got off five miles short of town, at the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center.
My flight today got me in mid-afternoon; I reached St. Marks at 4 p.m. The last shuttle boat leaves at 4:30, so that meant I did not have enough time to hike the five miles from the Visitor Center to the river. Instead, I hiked southbound, taking the boat across from St. Marks right away, and then hiking the five miles to the Visitor Center. I got an Uber back to my rental car at Shell Island Fish Camp in St. Marks with Jenny, a lovely local lady.
Oops! Almost forget to talk about the trail! The boat ride was quite nice. The weather was sunny and 70, so perfect. The captain gave me lots of info about the area as we puttered along in the no-wake zone, although I couldn't understand everything with his accent.
I assumed the five miles here would be easy walking on a levee, as that's what the trail had been like when I got off. Wrong! The first 2-ish miles were singletrack, and due to the recent hurricane and the fact that it's just the start of the hiking season, it was in rough shape. I got pretty cut up by the scrub. Normally I wear compression socks that protect my calves against this kind of stuff, but with the compressed timeframe flying in today I forgot about them. Oh well, it was just two miles. The last three were on wide dirt roads, so it was quite pleasant.
Oh -- the singletrack portion was very fragrant. It was just lovely. I couldn't quite tell what I was smelling, though ...
Snowshoe
P.S. I'm trying to add photos, but am having technical difficulties. Please try back later. :)
This is it! I'm going to finish the Florida National Scenic Trail in my fourth and final trip here in 2017! Woot, woot!
Ideally, I prefer hiking a long-distance trail in a linear fashion, going from Point A to Point B. This didn't happen with the Florida Trail, but that's okay. Nothing in life is ever perfect.
To recap: I began at the southern terminus (Big Cypress Swamp) in January 2017, reaching a spot just southwest of Orlando. I returned in March, but skipped the Orlando area because my husband had a conference there in May and I wanted him to hike some of the trail with me at that time. So I jumped ahead to a spot north of Orlando and hiked to St. Marks in the eastern panhandle. In May, I returned and did the Orlando section. (Ironically, my husband's conference was cancelled, so I ended up hiking it alone and could have hiked sequentially.)
All of this meant that today I'm picking up at my farthest northbound (NOBO) spot, St. Marks. But again, I have to mix things up. Last March, I had planned to end my hike after crossing the river into St. Marks. But a pending storm meant the boats weren't ferrying hikers across, so I got off five miles short of town, at the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center.
My flight today got me in mid-afternoon; I reached St. Marks at 4 p.m. The last shuttle boat leaves at 4:30, so that meant I did not have enough time to hike the five miles from the Visitor Center to the river. Instead, I hiked southbound, taking the boat across from St. Marks right away, and then hiking the five miles to the Visitor Center. I got an Uber back to my rental car at Shell Island Fish Camp in St. Marks with Jenny, a lovely local lady.
Oops! Almost forget to talk about the trail! The boat ride was quite nice. The weather was sunny and 70, so perfect. The captain gave me lots of info about the area as we puttered along in the no-wake zone, although I couldn't understand everything with his accent.
I assumed the five miles here would be easy walking on a levee, as that's what the trail had been like when I got off. Wrong! The first 2-ish miles were singletrack, and due to the recent hurricane and the fact that it's just the start of the hiking season, it was in rough shape. I got pretty cut up by the scrub. Normally I wear compression socks that protect my calves against this kind of stuff, but with the compressed timeframe flying in today I forgot about them. Oh well, it was just two miles. The last three were on wide dirt roads, so it was quite pleasant.
Oh -- the singletrack portion was very fragrant. It was just lovely. I couldn't quite tell what I was smelling, though ...
Snowshoe
P.S. I'm trying to add photos, but am having technical difficulties. Please try back later. :)
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