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Feb 13 – (If you are planning a
Paddlers:
Stew, Tom, Sam, Dave Note: Tom drove down from Kayaks:
Current Designs Expedition,QCC 700, QCC 500, Current Designs Solstice
GTS same order as paddlers list. Preface The trip
report below has a recurring theme about how cold we were. To be honest, there were many times when we
were so cold we were miserable but the spirit of adventure, being with
like-minded friends, and just being outside in nature on our own made up for
the challenges we faced. Sometime in
the first 3 hours of paddling we remarked how beautiful the
Day 1 After
spending Friday night at the motel we arise at Dave was
the same driver who shuttled us 3 years previous when we did the We arrive
at the park and the gate was already open.
We were worried it wouldn’t be because the park doesn’t The plan
is to paddle in the wrong direction (westward) for 2 miles to a place called
Billy’s We
dressed somewhat lightly for the conditions in the belief that it was going
to warm up and with our paddling, we would be After
over an hour of paddling, we were not getting warmer and our hands ached with
the cold. Sam isn’t looking too good
and kept saying how he hates being cold.
As we are approaching the park again since we back tracked after
reaching Billy’s
There is
an area called the “ Amazing
scenery and we make it out of the “ We
finally make it to We set up
our tents, make dinner and all fly into our tents because it was getting a
lot colder as the sun was going down.
What a cold night! Dave hardly
slept because he got cold and never warmed up and thought his sleeping bag
would do the trick – but it didn’t. A
35-degree bag in 25-degree weather on a river bank does not cut it. His speech was slurring and he probably had
the initial onset of hypothermia. The
rest were cold too and no one was eager to get started the next day. Day 2 No
paddling today. Dave wakes up from a
very uncomfortable and cold night and is still shivering and finding it hard
to think straight. He does pass out
cards to all the guys since it is Valentine’s Day after all. Each card had a before and after picture of
the recipient. First photo was normal
but the second photo was their face placed on a scantily clad woman! The cards read: “Most people see you as you are but on this
trip…” Open the card: “I’ll see you as you can be!” “Lock your tent!” Oh well, Dave thought it was funny.
I truly
believe if I went over I would have died from hypothermia – and I am not
exaggerating – we were in danger. We
talked it over some and decided to give in to our common sense and not paddle
today and try to contact the outfitter for a shuttle. It was difficult to concede but it also may
have saved one of our lives. Never
before had we backed off from a trip but we were that cold and not prepared
to deal with someone going over in these cold conditions. A guy in a
truck and a woman in a van with a kayaks on the roofs pull up as we are
standing there shivering and being miserable. They belonged to a kayak club
out of We get
back to camp and decide to call Marty - the guy we met at the ranger station
at We set up
camp at the campground and check out launch sites through the woods and since
it is only just past
We
watched the news and weather report – dang, 31 degrees tonight. None of us wanted to go back to our tents
but we had too. I was thinking of
sleeping on the old couch in the hall but decided to tough it out in my
tent. We plan to launch by Day 3 Woke up
with frost all over everything and the tent flaps stiff with ice/frost. Not as bad as yesterday but still very
difficult to get up in the cold. Breakfast
in the hall was a great idea and we warmed up somewhat with coffee and
oatmeal. Then back outside in the
chilly air to break down camp, carry the kayaks to the launch area that was a
nice hike through the woods, and then load and launch. 8:30 am and we’re off for another day of
paddling. Forecast is for the weather
to deteriorate and rain from Without
the sun it is very cold again and then we get this steady. heavy down pour
that lasted exactly as they predicted – We make
it to Holton creek just after the rain stopped and quickly unload and move
our kayaks up to dry land. Sam just
has to make a fire and does even with damp wood. The fire was great and we found another
treat with hot showers that really warmed us up until we had to get out and
walk back to camp. The river camp was
deserted because they evacuated the hosts due to high water – the roads were
washed out – but they called us before our trip and said to go ahead and use
the facilities. This is a great site
with enclosed platforms, bathrooms, showers, and electricity. The bummer was that the weather forecast
called for 27 degrees tonight. Some
stories around the campfire and clothes set up near the fire to dry and then
we’re off to bed before the bitter cold sets in. The night was cold and we were protected
somewhat by being on the platforms which kept us drier. I wore my long-johns, a silk lined for my
35-degree sleeping bag, and this is what clenched it, I used an
emergency/space blanket to wrap around my feet and lower half. That night I was comfortable as were the
rest with my new sleeping arrangement. Day 4 Up at Sam
doesn’t look good – he is having great difficulty dealing with the cold. He absolutely hates being cold. A side fact is that Sam raises reptiles and
I think his aversion to cold may be what attracts him to them – similar
attributes. Come to think of it, Sam
would always lay down on any concrete structure we stopped at to get warm –
just like a lizard. Hmmmmmm. We all tried it and it does work. Sam did start looking better and he had no
episodes today. The scenery was
beautiful but still very cold out.
Lunch time found us warming up and our fingers actually got some
feeling back. It was a
long, hard paddle and reminded us that maybe next year we will start doing
some paddling months before our trip to be in better shape. Tom was the only one of us who paddled
regularly since our trip a year ago.
The rest of us hadn’t paddled all year except maybe for a few short
paddles. We arrive at Layfayette
Springs park around As luck
would have it, we asked the park ranger about cabins and one was
available. That was a no-brainer – of
course we took it! It was really nice
and somewhere I will visit again with my wife. The cabin had an outside deck with tables
and rocking chairs and a swing. The
inside was nice with a kitchen and a fireplace which we had going in no
time. Each of us cooked our dinners
using the stove and made use of the availability of hot showers. This time the showers were even better
because when we came out we were still in a nice warm cabin. We had a very nice night in the toasty
cabin. Weather forecast for tomorrow is
a balmy 30 degrees in the morning… Day 5 By now we
were all laughing at how cold it is every
morning. Today was no
exception. Damn, we’re in Well, we
make multiple trips from the cabin to carry our stuff to our kayaks by the
river and by Today our
target is Dorothy Land boat ramp just south of Branford near river mile
66. We remembered meeting a nice guy
by the name of George last time and his dog, precious. George was quick to point out that his wife
named the dog. Also at this site is a
memorial to a Chief Leroy – he was well liked in the community but one night
he sped down the road and ran into a tree just before the Suwannee River and
was killed. We camped close to the
marker. This is a
nice little park at the end of a long, straight road. We saw George again – he visits the park to
walk his dog a lot. Then we made Day 6 Tired of
hearing that it was cold? Well, yes,
it was yet another cold morning with frost on the tents and kayaks. Get up around Today we
saw something that we’ve never witnessed or maybe just hadn’t noticed
before. The sky was a brilliant blue
and every now and then we would see little white clouds. Then the clouds would be gone. So I started watching the sky and sure
enough, a little white pin point would appear, grow to a small shape like a
baseball, get larger and turn into something that resembled Mickey Mouse,
continue growing into a dragon, grow and split into two diverging
butterflies. Then the cloud would
slowly fade away and disappear and presto, blue sky again. I started looking for these points of white
that were growing into clouds and then disappearing and sure enough, they
were happening at regular intervals.
We all started looking for them and it was a treat. We figure the moisture was rising and would
become clouds as it rose and got cooler but then they became heavier and
would sink to an altitude of higher temperature that would cause the cloud to
dissipate. Pretty cool and I have not
witnessed that since. Then again, I
haven’t been sitting in one place with nothing much to do except look at the
clouds. That’s a shame – I plan to
make time to do that more often. Today’s
goal is Fanning Springs around river mile 34 – a leisurely 32-mile day. Tom was setting a fast pace and we averaged
7 mph while paddling the first 4 hours.
We got a welcomed push from the Beautiful
scenery as usual but you notice how high the water is all along the
banks. The river is unusually high and
we were told by a local that it gets this high once every 10 to 15
years. We continue taking our breaks
and seeking out places to stand that are in the sunshine and out of the wind. We make
it to Fanning Springs and were looking forward to this stop because it is close
to town and there is a good BBQ place there.
The campsite is nice but what make it especially good was a large fire
circle and lots of cut wood that the rangers had gathered for campers. We set up our tents, paid for the campsites
and moseyed on into town for our feast.
It was a very good meal and afterwards we walked around some in town
and explored the park.
The
rangers we met were very friendly and knowledgeable. One is involved with trying to prove that
Stephen Foster actually did visit the With our
bellies full and a very nice fire raging, we sat around the fire and did our
nightly ritual of talking and telling stories. We found that throwing pine cones into the
fire makes for a nice display and just fun to do. Day 7 Today is
Tom’s birthday so we all wish him the best.
We re-start the fire, make our breakfast and are on the water by It is
windy and getting stronger as we continue and the water is becoming
choppy. Finally we see the town of We set up
camp in an old cook house – the camp ground was previously a fish camp. Tom was determined to sleep in his hammock
and did so. Finally we had a decent
night that wasn’t to frigid. Dinner
was at Sarah’s restaurant and I’m telling you that the very best hamburger
you can buy is at that place. I told
Sam that before and during our trip and he rolled his eyes at me. Then he had to try one. He commented “You know, that was the best
hamburger I’ve ever had!” We bought
Tom key lime pie to celebrate his birthday. Drank a
bunch of beer and headed back to camp where we made our last fire. A very nice ending to a somewhat
challenging trip. Dave fell asleep in
his chair and thankfully Sam woke him up before he slid into the fire! Day 8 We had a
nice night with the warmer weather (40s) and went over to Sarah’s for
breakfast and walked around a bit. The
outfitter was right on time and we packed up the van and loaded the kayaks. A two – hour trip back to Spirit of the The best advice I can give is to
plan a trip and JUST DO IT! – BUT… know the weather forecast. We knew the forecast but it was wrong by 20
degrees which made parts of the trip more dangerous - beyond our acceptable range
- and a lot more uncomfortable than we had anticipated. If in winter, be prepared for freezing
weather - have cold water paddling gloves (biggest mistake we made was not
having these), a good paddling/rain jacket and pants, dive booties or other
good method to keep your feet warm while paddling. For camping, have warm camp and sleeping
clothes, a sleeping bag rated for 15 degrees or combination – mine was rated
at 35 degrees and with an extra silk liner and space blanket, I was just okay
– barely okay. I have since bought
neoprene gloves and a dry top. I am
looking into dry pants and non-cotton clothing for layering. Resources: A MUST:
Call Suwannee River Water Management District 800 226-1066 and request
several “Boat Ramps and Canoe Launches” maps of the river (these have mile
markers on them every mile and places of interest like potential camp
sites. Ask for any other brochures
they have that may help for your trip planning – a good one is Suwannee River
Wilderness Trail brochure. The people
there are very nice and helpful. Website: http://www.srwmd.state.fl.us/ Get the
Suwannee River Wilderness Trail brochure from Suwannee River Wilderness Trail
800
868-9914 and on the web www.SuwanneeRiver.com There is a National Geographic Destination
Map of the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail too that is pretty good. Not sure which organization sent that to us
– ask for it. We were
very happy with The Canoe Outpost in the Spirit of the 800-428-4147
(800 number not listed on their website).
They have a website too www.canoeoutpost.com/Suwannee/outpost.htm www.aca1.com - American Canoe Adventures in White Springs – Wendell was very
helpful and knowledgeable and they also offer shuttle service. His positive email two days before our trip
sealed our resolve to start in Oke TrailMasters Marty
Johnson – the gentleman we met at He does
just about anything and if he doesn’t he’ll probably figure it out and do
it. A great resource and Help. He lives in/near http://paddleacrossflorida.com Our website for more photos and other trips
we’ve done www.canoe-suwannee.com
– Bill Logan’s site We also
used maps.google.com to get a better idea of the terrain and research as well
as just plugging in “ |
