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March 29, 2008
Across St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge on the Florida Trail
I love winter backpacking! In the mountains here in the southeast, the views can be great, the insects non-existent, and the days can be mild. I've hiked some great trails in the winter including the Alabama section of the Pinhoti Trail and South Carolina's Foothills Trails. In January 2005, I assembled a group of friends, and we headed south from Tennessee for a different kind of hiking experience - Florida Trail style! We walked about 45 miles over three days in Eglin Air Force Base near Pensacola, Florida. During that trip, I kept hearing about the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, and what a great place it is for hiking. It took me three years, but I finally got down there to experience it first hand. Simply put, it is one of the best places that I've ever backpacked!
The Florida Trail is designated as a National Scenic Trail. With this being the 40th anniversary of the National Trails System Act of 1968, and the 25th anniversary of the Florida Trail's designation as a National Scenic Trail, I couldn't think of a better way of celebrating than hiking part of this great trail. Joining me on this trip were my good friends Mark Stanfill and Sue "Hammock Hanger" Turner. Mark manages the Tennessee Youth Conservation Corps, and Sue is Chair of the Florida Trail Association's Long Distance Hikers committee.
Mark and I headed down to Florida on Sunday January 20th. We drove down to Ecofina State Park where I had booked a room. After dropping off our gear, we made the 20 minute drive over to the town of St. Marks to eat dinner and watch my NY Giants beat the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game.
Day 1
The next morning we rendezvoused with Hammock Hanger, and by mid afternoon we found ourselves at the trailhead ready to begin our hike. Our plan was to start our hike in the Apalachicola National Forest at the western boundary of the Bradwell Bay Wilderness. Bradwell Bay is a unique area that is often inundated by water, causing hikers to slog their way through Cypress Swamp. Unfortunately the area was dry, so we didn't get to experience this incredible ecosystem in all it's glory. March is a much more reliable month for water.
We made our way through the Wilderness area, and only managed to get lost briefly. It is clearly an easy place to get turned around. A quick map and compass check got us back on track, and we soon emerged out of the Wilderness area into forest dominated by Longleaf Pine. As night began to fall, Mark & I setup our tents in an established campsite just off the trail - and a few hundred yards from a water source. Sue strung her hammock, and we had a pleasant night under the stars.
Day 2
Our plan for today was to get across the Apalachicola National Forest and into the refuge. The Forest Service had plans for a controlled burn, and we didn't want to find ourselves caught in the smoke and flames. During the morning, the trail followed the Sopchoppy River for a number of miles. The Sopchoppy is a beautiful blackwater river lined by oaks and cypress. The sandy trail was so pleasant in the morning, at one point I took off my trail runners and walked about 3 miles barefoot. It was great!
Barefoot on the Florida Trail
Photo by Sue Turner
The only downside of the day is that we miscalculated water availability, and after we left the Sopchoppy, we didn't see another water source the rest of the day. By the time we reached camp - about two miles from US 319, we were all out of water - even though some occasionally fell from the sky. It was a dry dinner and night.
Day 3
Our challenge when we awoke was clear. Find water! We broke camp quickly and walked briskly through the chilly morning air. We soon reached US 319, and decided to walk up the road until we found a store or a spigot. Thankfully, we didn't have to walk far. About a quarter mile up the trail, we found a seafood shack - Nichols & Sons - nestled under some stately Live Oaks. The place had both a spigot and a soda machine. Pay dirt! We dropped our packs and filled our bottles and our bodies with water and soda. It was just what we needed.
As we reentered the forest, we found ourselves in the wildlife refuge for the first time. Sue's knee seemed to be acting up, so we took a number of breaks and enjoyed the area. The sandy trail was great for tracks, and we saw all kinds of evidence of wildlife. I spotted the first of what would later prove to be many sets of Bobcat tracks in the sand. What was especially cool about the Bobcat tracks is that it rained last night into the early morning, and these prints were made after the rain stopped, making them only a few hours old! We also came across the carcass of an armadillo, and passed many Live Oaks covered in Resurrection Fern.
As the day grew on, we entered an area bordered by salt marsh. We were close to the Gulf of Mexico! Unfortunately, Sue's knee seemed to grow crankier with each passing mile, and soon it became clear that she was in some serious pain. This would be her last day on the trail with us. Sadly, she would have to get off the trail and rest her knee.
We ended up at a road crossing, and walked a couple of miles to the small fishing village of Spring Creek. There, Hammock Hanger found someone to take her to her car while Mark and I waited outside the Spring Creek Restaurant. When Sue returned about an hour later, she bought Mark and I a sumptuous seafood dinner. I had mullet, a local favorite, and it was fresh and tasty! Afterwards, we decided to get a hotel room for the night in nearby Panacea, Florida.
After checking into a motel that had definitely seen it's better days, we all decided to sleep on top of the bed spreads in our sleeping bags. I fell sound asleep after a shower, and soon Sue was waking us up. Time to go! It was 5 AM, or so we thought. We dressed, threw together our gear, and headed out into the inky blackness. I drove Sue's car to the nearby breakfast nook, and when we got there, it was closed up and dark. I looked at the clock on Sue's dashboard, and asked her why it said 1 AM. We quickly realized that Sue had set the stopwatch on her wrist watch for 5 hours instead of setting the alarm for 5 AM. We had gotten up 4 hours too early! We howled with laughter and went back to the room to snag another 4 hours of sleep.
Day 4
In the morning, Sue dropped us off where we left off, and Mark and I headed up the trail while Sue drove back to her home. It was sad to lose her as a partner. Not only is she good company, but she knows the trail well.
A couple of miles into the hike, we had a really cool wildlife sighting. A River Otter was smack dab in the middle of the trail in a pine forest - with no water anywhere within sight! We watched the otter for a few minutes until it walked off into the underbrush. Very cool!
The day was fairly uneventful, but we did pass a really cool spring, and finally cut our day short when we arrived at the Wakulla Field Campsite. Camping in the refuge is only permitted in designated campgrounds (permit required), so that dictated our mileage for the day. As dusk fell, we had a small herd of wild hogs walk into our camp.
Day 5
Without question, this was our longest (20+ miles) and best day of the hike. In fact, it was one of the best days I have ever spent backpacking! The morning was quite chilly, and required us to walk for several miles along US 98. As we neared the road crossing, I found what I initially thought was trash on the trail, but it turned out to be a note from Hammock Hanger wishing us well. She's such a sweetie! Once on the road, we crossed the Wakulla River and refilled our water bottles at the spigot of the local canoe outfitter.
A few miles later, we were on a paved greenway walking steadily towards the village of St. Marks. We were on a collision course for lunch, so we stopped at the Riverside Cafe for a cold beer and a grouper sandwich. It was great! While we ate, we watched pelicans, gulls, herons, and a wide assortment of shore birds fly up and down the St. Marks River.
After lunch, our challenge was to get across the St. Marks River. That required hailing down a boater and asking for a lift. Thankfully, it took less than 5 minutes, and we were soon on the other side and hiking along a beautiful trail.
The boater who took us across the river
At one point we passed an alligator nest from the previous year. You could see the shell fragments mixed in with the grass of the nest! That's a first for me while hiking!
As the day wore on, the hike got better and better. We saw alligators basking in the sun, Bald Eagle, Osprey, endangered Wood Storks, dozens of Belted Kingfishers, and too many wading birds to count! Virtually every kind of heron you can find in Florida, we saw. The trail in this part of the refuge travels along levees making wildlife viewing really easy.
Otter tracks along the trail
At the end of the day, we camped at perhaps the prettiest campsite I have ever had the pleasure of staying at. Ring Levee Campsite is surrounded by water, palms, and salt marsh. It is indescribably beautiful. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.
Campsite at Ring Levee
View from my tent at Ring Levee Campsite
Day 6
Getaway day was finally here. We had about 11 miles to go to reach our car, so we walked briskly all morning. It was a fairly uneventful day on the trail. We saw some wild hogs and beautiful forest, but we were focused on finishing up and driving back to Tennessee.
We reached the car around lunchtime, and Mark kindly drove me to Panacea where I spent about $50 on fresh seafood to bring home. We feasted for three days on all that Apalachicola Bay goodness that I brought home.
In conclusion, I couldn't recommend the Florida Trail in St Marks National Wildlife Refuge any more highly. I saw more than 70 species of birds during the trip and all kinds of wildlife sign. In fact, I can't ever recall seeing more tracks, scat, and evidence of wildlife along a trail.
When it was all said and done, we walked a total of about 70 miles, give or take. I'm definitely looking forward to hiking it again. You'll need a permit to camp in the refuge, and I would suggest a winter hike to avoid the bugs. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed! The area lends itself well to some great day hikes. Especially out on the levees near the waterfowl impoundments. That's where we saw gators and incredible bird life. Checkout the Florida Trail Association's website for more information! There you can purchase maps and guidebooks for the trail.
Happy Trails!
Great Places to Hike | By Jeffrey Hunter | 06:25 PM
Comments
Jeff: Great trip report, love the photos. I was so bummed about the knee that I never wrote up my journal :(. Glad you did. BTW: I told you it was beautiful.
PS: Now my doctor is checking for a torn meniscus.
Posted by: Susan "Hammock Hanger" Turner at March 31, 2008 10:50 AM
Thanks Sue! You're a great trail partner! I hope the knee is feeling better and you're back on the trail in no time! I'm hiking the Benton MacKaye Trail in Tennessee in a few weeks. That'll leave me 28 mile shy of being a 300 miler! Only Smokemont to Davenport Gap will remain.
Posted by: Jeffrey Hunter at March 31, 2008 11:10 AM
