Last Waltz Tour Feb 20 – 28, 2026 (Photo AI Generated. Stew, Sam, and Dave) We kayaked the Choctawhatchee River in Florida, around 95 miles west of Tallahassee, FL. It had been on our “interested in” list for a while. There is a Florida Designated Paddling Trail called the Choctawhatchee River Blueway and it is 64 miles long. We did that entire trail and added 18 more miles to make our logistics easier. We were looking at adding 40 or more miles to the northern end but decided to have a more leisurely paddle this year. This may be our last big wilderness trip due to Dave and Stew getting older and it just isn’t safe for us to be out in the middle of nowhere paddling around – not that it ever was! Thus, the title “The Last Waltz.” We will hopefully put together future trips where we stay in one place and explore. By the way, everyone in our group are Rock Stars!
Paddlers: Sam, Stew, Dave Sea Kayaks QCC 500, Current Designs Solstice, CD Solstice,– same order as paddlers Trip Conditions: The river had around a 2.5 mph current most of our trip. We had mostly very windy days and nights, occasional rain, and a few cold mornings with one being around 28 degrees. Luckily, we were on a river camp platform that night which made it not too bad. The only significant rain we got was an almost all-day down pour on our last day. Meals: We each brought our own meals and made them each morning and evening. Lunches were sandwiches, bagels, tortillas with peanut butter and jelly or honey. We ate breakfasts of oatmeal, granola and fruit cups and had coffee at camp each morning. A friend, Craig met us at one of the river camps and he brought food and beer which is always great when you’re out camping. We even ordered pizza one night at a boat ramp! Snacks: nutrition bars, cheese crackers, apples and oranges. Water: We each brought three to five gallons. Some in 16.9 oz bottles, some gallon containers, some in MSR water bag. We also had a water filter but didn’t need it. Beer: As usual, yes. We also had a re-supply!
Day 1: Friday, Feb 20, 2026 Stew and Dave drove up together and Sam met them at Sister River Retreat located in Vernon, Florida, about 95 miles west of Tallahassee, FL. We loved the cabins there as well as the owner, Hank Weeks. He was great. Arriving at Sister River Retreat	The retreat is rustic but exactly what we needed and more than what we expected. We called it “Luxurious Rustic.” It is located around 18 miles downriver from the end of the official paddling trail.
Day 2: Saturday, Feb 21, 2026 14 miles We loaded our kayaks onto Hank’s flat bed trailer the evening before. We found a way to cinch them down tight and used our pads to protect our kayaks. We have had damage in the past and are now very careful when loading onto platforms that were not meant for composite kayaks.	Dave, Stew, and Sam; kayaks secured
Hank drove us 68 miles to our starting point that is at Hwy 2 and the Choctawhatchee River. East Pittman Creek Landing.	Hank and Dave
Launch Site - always exciting getting things packed and finally pushing off to begin a trip. We launched at 10:50 am.	Our plan was to get at least six miles in on our first day. We did 14 miles and found a nice sandbar. Sam
Stew It got very windy as we were setting up our tents and they kept blowing over. We were concerned that our tents may collapse in the wind.	First night We made our dinners, drank some beer and talked for a while as we relaxed in our camp chairs. No fire due to the wind and occasional showers. Bats swooped down going after insects just as the sun went down. We heard far away owls during the night and experienced a heavy rain that night.
Day 3: Sunday, Feb 22, 2026 22 miles Launched at 9 am. We were already ahead of schedule but pushed on and did 22 miles with some exploring. The 2.5 mph current was helping a lot. Dave reminded everyone that we had seven days to do this so “let’s not do it all in one day!” Rrain and cold weather was forecast so we wanted to find a good camping spot. We passed a lot of “campable” sandbars but then they were fewer as we progressed down river. We found a good spot at Douglas Ferry Landing which is mile 35 on the paddling trail map. Boat ramps usually have a grassy area and we were delighted to see one here. We were starting to get a little nervous about finding a place for the night and talked about just pushing on to the Commanders River Camp which would have made a 30 plus mile day. Excellent high and dry, and protected from the wind by the surrounding trees. Bonus: had a porta-potty!	Throughout our trip we were amazed at how much noise the wind was making as it blew through the trees. We constantly heard a sound like a train going by. But it wasn’t a tornado!
Really enjoying the paddle
Camp at Douglas Landing
Dave and Stew – getting colder tonight!	Yay! We made a nice fire.
Day 4: Monday, Feb 23, 2026 11 miles with side trips. Launched right around noon due to short paddle day. On to Commander’s Landing River Camp We wanted to camp on a platform since it was forecast to be 28 degrees tonight. We would arrive a day earlier than our reservation and we were praying no one had the shelter reserved… Another beautiful chilly and windy day on the river. With the sun out, it was almost perfect weather (except for the constant strong winds.)	We passed a lot of floating fishing cabins Enjoying the ride
Paddled in to Morrison Springs – very impressive and well worth doing.	Part of any trip are these chance off-shoots that turn out to be really cool.
The military was doing training with divers. We think it was Navy Seals. We suggested to the lead guy to get one of those remote controlled shark fins to see how the students react. On our way out we took a narrow path back to the main river, which required a little bit of paddling skills to avoid trees but it was fun. We paddled up a few more side streams and found a few small springs.	Lunch at Morrison Springs
Rare photo of Dave (in green kayak.) He takes most of the trip pictures with his waterproof camera so not in many. Sam took this with his cell phone.	Dave and Stew
Commander’s Landing The River Camps were extremely nice except they were not kayak friendly. Difficult to beach a kayak or canoe and walkways not for kayaks/canoes	Boat Ramp at Commander’s Landing We found a place to pull out our kayaks which wasn’t terrible. Not too far of a hike to bring our stuff into the shelter.
You could not get out of a kayak or canoe to use this ramp We were very happy to be able to use these river camps – very nice but difficult with kayaks.	Long and narrow walkway to shelter Commanders Landing had a boat ramp area where we took out and then carried our stuff to the shelter.
Friend and fellow paddler Craig drove here (Commander’s Landing) and joined us for two nights.	Craig has been on a few trips with us. Since he brought beer, we let him stay.
Nice Fire!	We spent the evening sitting, drinking, and talking around the campfire. It was getting cold and we were thankful not to be camping on a sandbar. We watched for bats but didn’t see any. Sometime late at night a young couple pulled into the parking lot and walked up to the shelter. Craig got out of his tent and talked to them – the rest of us didn’t want to get out of our sleeping bags – it was cold!. They didn’t know that just anyone who didn’t live in the neighborhood could use the shelters or reserve them as we did. They left but were disappointed the shelter was in use.
Day 5: Tuesday, Feb 24, 2026 Down Day! Craig and Stew went into town for food and to find something to repair Stew’s rudder assembly. Stew’s rudder stopped working yesterday – not critical since he could do well without a rudder but with current and trees, a rudder can help a lot. The highlight of the day (for Sam and Dave) was a group of 21 women ranging in age from 60 to 80 came by to scope out the landing. They were going to shuttle their canoes upriver and take out here. Dave and Sam showed them the area and suggested the group stop on a sandbar just before the landing then proceed one canoe at a time due to a stong current and a tight turn. Throughout the day we (Sam and Dave) were drinking but watching for our lady friends coming down the river. When we saw them, Dave put on his bathing suit and water sandals – he was ready to start rescuing the canoeists. Much to our surprise and delight, each canoe came flying in and made an expert turn and came up the ramp. The women all worked as a team and quickly exited each canoe, hauled it up, and readied to help the next canoe.	Dave and Sam stayed at the camp and decide to Day Drink. It was very relaxing! Canoeists doing an excellent job The leader walked up to us and asked “You didn’t expect that, did you?” Dave admitted he thought he would have to rescue at least two or three. These women were amazing and they were having a blast. They are a canoe club but I can’t remember the details.
Craig and Stew brought back food for dinner and more beer! Craig and Stew did a field repair but it broke after several hours the next day. Oh well. We don’t need no stinkin’ rudders!	Another cold night but great times around a campfire with good friends.
Day 6: Wednesday, Feb 25, 2026 11 miles Launch time 10:30 am Paddling to Dead River Landing We had reservations for one night. The paddle was enjoyable and we had some trouble finding the entrance to paddle up to Dead River Landing. Dave had loaded the GPS points using Goggle Earth but the terrain was different – rivers can change due to weather, especially rain. With the help of Sam using his cell phone, we found the entrance to Seven Runs Creek and still had a few turns we had to decide upon to get to our destination.
	The skies were overcast most of the trip and we had occaisional sprinkles. The wind was always there and as mentioned before, we heard it whisking through the trees along the river. It was nice to get out of the wind every now and then and not hear the noise. Almost like tinnitus!
Dead River Landing Pretty neat deep in a cypress forest
	Dead River Landing would be a nice place to stay a few nights and explore the Seven Runs Creek and just relax. We paddled up the river a little ways and liked how it was “more personal” with it being narrow and surrounded by trees.
Day 7: Thursday, Feb 26, 2026 On to Cowford Landing 14 miles with a side trip Launch 10:00 am	Loading up
	Paddling out Dead River to join the Choctawhatchee once more. We stayed on the east Choctawhatchee river going south (paddled past Boynton Landing) – in this section, it looks (per Google Maps/Earth) like one could take either the east river or west river that joins together a little further south.
	Another fine day for paddling. We were enjoying our leisurely mornings with no rush to get on the river because we didn’t have huge miles to cover as in some of our past trips. We took our time, explored little tributaries and sandbars, and paddled up to a spring that was recommended.
	We took a side trip to explore Washington Blue Springs. About a two-mile there and back from the main river. It was neat and worth doing.
On to Cowford Landing for the night. Cowford Landing is a more developed river camp with a parking lot, nice bathrooms, and two shelters people can camp in. Reservations are needed to ensure you have a spot. There was no place to land our kayaks at the landing due to the ramp is not for kayaks as we noted on the last river camp. We found a place below the shelter with a steep climb to get under the shelter and then make our way to the stairs and ramp. We pulled our kayaks up out of the water and placed them on a sparse piece of land. In high water, this may not be possible.	Cannot get a kayak up this ramp
Our shelter for the night	Small sandbar to store kayaks beneath the shelter.
Huge shelter!
We met some guys who were fishing on the dock. One of them showed us a picture of an alligator gar he caught – that thing was close to five feet long! Sam got one of them to take him to a local bait shop where he purchased beer for the night. Sam also used Uber Eats to get us a pizza delivered!	Dave
Day 8: Friday, Feb 27, 2026 Last Paddling Day 18 miles Launch 9:15 am Today was another blustery day and very cloudy. Our luck with the weather ran out as the skies opened up with pouring rain and a chilly wind was blowing. We still greatly enjoyed the paddle. Stew’s cable fix on his rudder did not hold up so he paddled without a rudder. We tend to not use our rudders unless there are tight turns, current, or wind.	Sunrise
Only place to leave our kayaks Below the shelter	Ramp not good for kayaks but the river camp is a great resource that we really appreciated.
On our way enjoying the river.	Love the scenery
Checked out a short cut but decided we may get stuck so paddled the main river	Rainy Day
Cold rain with lots of wind!	We were prepared with our rain jackets
Weaving our way to Sister River Retreat	Done! The hard rain stopped for a few minutes as we unloaded.
We always try to have a celebratory lunch or dinner before we depart. Hank told us of a nice restaurant, Boon Docks, that was only around 10 minutes away. 30 minutes later we arrived – it was 15 miles, near Panama City Beach. It was well worth the drive especially afer 7 days of camping. We each had a great meal and the location was excellent – right on a river with nice views. Dave had fish and chips and said they were the best he ever had. We said our good byes to Sam – he was leaving to spend the night in Tallahassee and Stew and Dave were spending one more night at Sister River Retreat, They would drive home early the next day.
Conclusion Our trips are about the friendships we have built over the years. It was great being together, outdoors in nature, camping, sharing meals (at camp and restaurants we happened upon), enduring bad weather, some tough paddling, meeting people, and exploring. Is this our last trip? Who knows but I hope not…
Resources: Choctawhatchee River Paddling Guide: Choctawhatchee Paddling Guide A must if you are doing this trip We Google everything – look up places to stay, suggestions for trip, local things to do, parks, reservations, outfitters, stores, bars, restaurants. Google Maps, and Google Earth for research, look for places to stay, launch, eat, visit/explore, camp, etc. and to measure distances and get GPS points. Facebook: used to research and get connections/local knowledge – we found Sister River Retreat that way. Sister River Retreat – we highly recommend: 11666 Steele Field Rd, Vernon, FL 32462 (850) 585-6523 – Hank Weeks. Rustic but nice and Hank is great. He can help with many things – just ask. As I recall, we made reservations per the below – you may need to call the Walton County parks to confirm Reservations for Cowford Landing and Commander Landing: www.Waltonrec.com Which takes you to Catalog - Walton County, FL Reservations for Dead River Landing: Dead River Landing - Online Reservations Local Knowledge: Always ask people you meet (bartenders, restaurant patrons, fellow hikers/paddlers, etc.) about places to go, neat things to see and do.