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Archive for the ‘Hiking’ Category

Dupuis Grade Road to Lake Okeechobee-OTL Trail (03/20/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Southeast, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 17, 2024| Leave a Comment »

In retrospect. It would have been smart to park at Lake Okeechobee and hike to Dupuis WEA, but being so familiar with Dupuis, I didn’t even think of it until I was already on the trail, looking back at the smoke from the prescribed burn.

Prescribed Burn East of Dupuis WEA

I drove through Gate 1 at Dupuis WEA and shortly noted there was a controlled burn going on east of Dupuis. It appeared distant, so I parked on the west side of Dupuis Grade Road just south of where the OTL crosses over, and I headed to the trail.

With the prescribed burn to the east of me, I headed west and was on the trail by 11:30 a.m. I hiked 4.5 miles to the lake and back for a total of about 9 miles. The first mile took me through a lovely pine forest, and I expected (hoped) to see some wildlife that may have been fleeing from the burn. My hopes were dashed as the only wildlife I saw on the ground was one very large wild turkey.

About three quarters of the hike was along dirt roads—probably used mostly by the farmers.  The last mile was a somewhat busy and very sandy/dusty road frequented by large trucks that sent clouds of dust and sand into the air and all over me.

OTL Ends Here–Lake Okeechobee

Although I did not enjoy the dust, I did enjoy hiking past the freshly plowed fields and new crops sprouting up; it felt very springlike. And the cows—I enjoyed our chat. (I love cows.) I arrived at Lake Okeechobee a bit dusty, but happy. I found a piece of shade next to the kiosk to sit (a bench or picnic table would be very nice here!) and have lunch before heading back.

By the time I returned to my car, the burn had moved westward. Driving the six to seven miles out on Dupuis Grade Road, parts of east side of the road were sizzling and swirls of smoke rose from the bushes. At one spot, a hot wind tunnel crossed the road in front of me.

Although this was not my favorite section of the trail, there were parts that were beautiful and certainly worth the hike.

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Dupuis WEA–Loop 4 (03/12/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Southeast, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Determined to see some wildlife this time (other than birds), I began my hike in the afternoon and was on the trail at 1:20 pm. This time, I parked at the Cypress Boardwalk parking area, about seven miles inside Gate 1. I hiked just over a mile to loop 4 and the OTL Trail. (The OTL runs along the west side of loops 3 and 4 and then leaves the loops to head towards Corbett Wildlife Management Area.)

Tall Grasses Frame the Trail

The spring flowers were just beginning to bloom, and I found myself alone on the trail with the exception of the many birds, and towards the end, many wild boars! The sounder of boar I came upon were in various shades of brown, tan, and black and went about their business digging holes on the side of the trail as I passed.

I paused for a snack and a rest at a campsite at the southern end of the loop for about thirty minutes. The campsite had two picnic tables, two fire pits, several benches, and lots of room for tents. Tall pine shaded the area—a welcomed relief from the sun!

Dupuis Loop 4

My hike was over seven miles total, so the loop itself was about five miles. As I drove from the nature area and across the OTL trail, I was reminded how close I was to the lake. My next hike would be an out and back from Dupuis to Lake Okeechobee—about nine miles.

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Lake Kissimmee State Park (02/27/2024-02/28/2024)

Posted in Camping, Central, Hiking, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I arrived at Lake Kissimmee State Park shortly after noon, stopping at the office to check into my site and get recommendations for hiking trails. I drove away with the park map loaded into my Avenza app. A small winding road took me through the park and finally to my campsite—one of two small sites—about three miles in. I set up my tent under the shade of live oaks and slash pines and headed out for my hike on the Kristen Jacobs Trail, the North Loop.

Tall Pines Along Kristen Jacobs Trail

Kristen Jacobs Trail (02/27/2024)

The 6.5-mile Kristen Jacobs Trail appeared well traveled, maintained, and blazed. Surprisingly, this looped trail, covered with fallen oak leaves and pine needles and landscaped with saw palmetto, cabbage palms, and tall straight pines, showed no signs of boar activity. What an easy hike!

A Shady Rest Along Gobbler Ridge Trail

I loved the pine forest! Prescribed burns had left the forest transparent with smaller pines sprouting up, now easily competing for sunlight and nourishment. Standing on the trail, I could see through the trees and felt I could camp safely at the primitive site.

A Campfire to Keep Me Warm

Back at camp, I started a fire and watched as the sky turned dark and the stars came out. I woke up to birds singing around my campsite.

Starry Night at Lake Kissimmee

Gobbler Ridge Trail (02/28/2024)

My first day at Lake Kissimmee State Park was all about the tall slash pines and a beautiful transparent forest. Day two, on the Gobbler Ridge Trail, it was all about the ancient live oaks dripping with Spanish moss and the golden prairie surrounding it.

The 2.5-mile trail began on concrete as I walked through the playground and past the lookout tower to get onto the dirt trail bordered by a prairie on one side and gorgeous ancient Southern Live Oaks on the other. After a bit, the trail turned to sand and traveled along Lake Kissimmee. I came across some  water on the trail, but I easily walked around it.

This trail was great for walking/hiking, biking, and horses. I admit, I took longer than usual on this short trail, taking advantage of the brand-new benches to sit and reflect. Something about the beautiful golden grasses bending with a cool breeze invited me to linger. Back on the trail again, a bobcat ran across my path, in a hurry to get somewhere!

Departure

I stopped in the office when I left the park, and I chatted with Matthew, an inspiring biologist working on his second masters, about the trails. I asked him why the trails were so clear with no boar activity–this was unusual for any Florida trail. He explained that they do have a bad boar problem, but that they are on the trails daily keeping them clear. We talked about the pine trees and he explained the difference between long needle and slash pine, stepping outside to show me as well. What a great trip and wonderful state park! I would recommend this park to anyone and found the trails wide and safe enough (little or no water, no trail brush for ticks) to bring the kids.

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Dupuis WEA–Loop 3 (02/14/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Southeast, tagged , , , , , , on March 2, 2024| Leave a Comment »

The third loop—Happy Valentine’s Day to me! I had hiked the first two loops of the Dupuis Wildlife Management Area during the summer and fall of 2023, and I wanted to hike the last two before the hot summer weather and daily rainstorms arrived.

Saw Palmetto and Slash Pines Along the Trail

With help from some Facebook folks (Florida Trail Lox Chapter), I knew where to park to access loop 3. I arrived at 9:15 a.m. and parked west of the loop on the Grade Road accessed through Gate 1—just past where the OTL Trail crosses over the road. I hiked one mile to connect with loop 3.

What a gorgeous day! About 60 degrees with a slight breeze and a few clouds when I started on the trail, the weather couldn’t have been nicer. I was thrilled to see maintenance had been completed on the trail and all was dry. With the exception of some wild boar activity, it was an easy hike.

Tall Pines Silhouette the Sky

Alone on the trail, I enjoyed my surroundings of tall slash pine, vivid green saw palmetto, and wax myrtle. The birds kept me company—red shouldered hawks, red bellied woodpeckers, and cardinals. I appreciated the benches along the way—if only to use for a stretch. When I exited the trail onto the OTL trail, it surprised me how close I was to the lake, only 5.5 miles from where the OTL connects to Loop 3.

Next stop—loop 4!

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Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park (01/31/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Southwest, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

After a night spent camping at the Collier-Seminole State Park, I began my drive home, and I decided to fit in just one more hike. The Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park was not far away, with a website that claims it to be the largest state park in Florida with an “emphasis on the preservation of its natural character.” I did not want to miss this!

Ferns Add a Splash of Green Along the Trail

I turned off of State Road 29 and onto the Janes Memorial Scenic Drive, past the Visitor Center and restrooms which make up the “limited facilities” offered by this no frills park. The “Janes,” as the website warmly refers to this six-mile dusty road with holes and bumps that could easily complete with any city speed bumps, is the main access to the hiking trails. Driving down the road (slowly), it became clear that this park lived up to its goal to preserve its natural character, and it did not rely on RV campsites or children’s playgrounds to attract nature lovers. This park was big and wild!

I headed towards Gate 7, the West Main Tram Trail, a 4.5-mile out-and-back trail surrounded by swamp strands. The tram roads in the park are old logging roads built in the 1940s used to haul cypress logs from the swamp.

Between Me and My Car

Although very buggy (Those babies can bite through steel!), I enjoyed my shaded hike through this beautiful, wild country. Swamp strands to my right and left were filled with cabbage palms and bald cypress cloaked in orchids, bromeliads, and air plants. The saw palmetto and ferns along the sides added a dash of brilliant green to the landscape. An occasional orange tree appeared to be out of place.

The skies and trees were alive with red-shouldered hawks, woodpeckers, and warblers. Ibis and herons waded in the water. Butterflies fluttered past me. Alligators sunned on the banks and rocks besides the trail, and yes, the mosquitos still bit me. Picnic benches invited hikers to pause and enjoy it all. On the return, about a half mile from my car, one gator had left his sunny rock and moved onto the trail. I spent fifteen minutes yelling and clapping my hands with no reaction from him. My “gator-gone” methods exhausted, I pulled out my phone and played Taylor Swift, Bad Blood, as loudly as I could. Slowly, the lazy alligator raised up and walked into the water. (Add that to your hiking list!)

I returned to my car and headed home, sorry I could not stay longer and hike another trail.

(Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. 137 Coastline Drive, Copeland, FL 34127. (239) 961-1925. Website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/fakahatchee-strand-preserve-state-park)

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Collier-Seminole State Park (01/30/2024)

Posted in Camping, Hiking, Southwest, tagged , , , , , , , , , on February 15, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I chose Collier-Seminole State Park as my next camping/hiking trip, as I have wanted to hike in the Everglades area for some time. The website boasts that it is “within one of the largest mangrove swamps in the world.” Well-known for the heat and bugs that summer brings, I felt early spring was a good time to visit.

View from the Trail

The small feeling of the park surprised me. I drove through the gate and checked in. My campground was close by, the smaller of the two. The park also had a grassy community area and as well as the river area where I had rented a kayak a couple of years ago.

I parked at my site and put my tent up quickly (Yay! I’m getting better!). The smaller campground allows only tents and smaller campers/RVs. The restrooms and laundry were a short walk away. The facilities were clean. The park felt comfortable.

I wanted to get a hike in before the sun set, so I headed out to the Prairie Hammock Trail, the trail recommended by the park staff. Access to all three hiking trails is outside the gate off of US 41. The other two trails, the Strand Swamp Trail (closed due to the hurricane) and the Flatwoods Trail (very wet and muddy) were not recommended, so Prairie Hammock Trail it was!

A Peak through the Ferns

The Prairie Hammock is a loop trail, my favorite kind! I hiked the grassy road, peaking through gorgeous tall ferns to look out across the prairie. Saw palmetto, cabbage palm, and tall slash pine added to the beautiful landscape around me. I read posted signs along the trail warning of panthers and bears in the area—and hoped to see something! I was not alone; many birds enjoyed the afternoon with me—red-winged blackbird, yellow-rumped warbler, and common yellowthroat. Bird watchers would love this trail.  

Ready for the Evening

As I made the turn back on the loop, the trail narrowed and became a bit muddy—but there was never  a lot of standing water, so the hiking was easy. I arrived back to my car after about a 4.5 mile hike, disappointed that I did not see any animals but happy, as always, to have the privilege to experience nature.

I returned to my campsite, and after a shower and a bite to eat, I built my campfire (nailed it this time!). What a great day and successful (but short) camping trip. 

(Collier-Seminole State Park. 20200 Tamiami Trail East, Naples, FL 34114. (239) 394-3397. Website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/collier-seminole-state-park)

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Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park (01/23-01/24/2024)

Posted in Camping, Central, Hiking, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I knew as I drove along the long dirt road in the midst of a prairie grassland from the entrance of the Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park to the office and campground that I was in for a peaceful experience with Nature. I stopped my car, rolled down my window, and listened. No sounds of traffic.  Perfect.

Where the Prairie Meets the Hammock

I arrived on Tuesday with a last minute reservation I was able to grab for just one night. My first stop was the park office where I checked in and checked out trails with a volunteer. My campground, the family campground, had only twenty sites, with several that looked out to the prairie. How beautiful!

After setting up my tent, I started on the Prairie Loop Trail—a recommendation for an afternoon hike from the park volunteer. This trail, about 4.5 miles, was surrounded by live oak covered with moss, saw palmetto, wax myrtle, and tall prairie grasses blowing in the breeze. I returned to the office area a couple hours later to see deer and wild turkeys grazing in the tall grasses.

Sunrise on the Prairie

Evening in the campground was quiet and friendly. In need of a shower, I walked to the bathhouse, and was surprised to see how dark the campground had become when I stepped back out. I had looked forward to some fabulous star gazing, but unfortunately, the clouds kept the stars away. Once I snuggled into my sleeping bag, the nearly full moon appeared and lit up my tent. At 2:00 in the morning, I took a brief stroll through the campground, happy to see the stars had finally made it to the party. At 6:30, I rose to see the sunrise, nearly running into a deer on my way to my viewing spot. I watched as beautiful shades of red, orange, and yellow painted the sky while birds sang their morning songs.

Before leaving on day two, I hiked through the Hammock Trail to the Kilpatrick Prairie Trail and back—about six miles (another recommendation from a park staff member). Such beautiful prairies! With no one on the trail, I enjoyed the peace and serenity that Nature offered. There were some wet areas on the trail, but they were easy to walk around. I passed a couple deer on the side of the trail—no fear, they hardly moved. On my return through the hammock, a small white boar scurried away.

Mother Nature Paints a Beautiful Picture

 My goal for this trip was to test out my new tent and stove and make certain I could keep a fire going. I made progress! I’ll work on the fire on my next trip. 🙂

(Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park. 33104 NW 192nd Ave, Okeechobee, FL 34972. (863) 462-5360. Website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/kissimmee-prairie-preserve-state-park).

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Jonathan Dickinson State Park–White Loop (01/10/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Southeast, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 6, 2024| 2 Comments »

Jonathan Dickinson State Park is my “go to” park, when I don’t have time to travel far. I returned to JD State Park to hike the 7.5 mile White Loop for my third state park in the new year. This is where I had spied the Florida Panther the previous New Year’s Day, and I hoped to see one again.

Saw Palmetto Among the Pines

I began my hike in a clockwise direction and made the same mistake I did the first time I hiked it. About one mile in, after going over the little bridge and around the water, I became overconfident being on the service road and missed the right turn onto a smaller trail. My AllTrails app gave me a “heads up” that I was off trail about a block later.

Sixty-five degrees with a slight breeze! Perfect hiking weather. For the remainder of the trail, I came upon water from time to time, but never to the point where it flowed into my shoes. I was thrilled to see they had built small boardwalks around the deeper water.

I love that this trail has a couple of rest spots with benches. The first is about 3.5 miles into the trail. I passed only a couple of hikers heading in the opposite direction as I, and I saw one hiker come off the OTL Trail in the distance (This distraction may have caused my missed trail.).

Loggerhead Shrike to Keep Me Company

The moist sand from a recent rain made for easy track identification—wild boar, raccoon, and then some I could not identify. The trail had very little boar activity until the last mile.

Only the birds kept me company—loggerhead shrike, red-shouldered hawk, yellow-rumped warbler. Alas, no panther to be seen.

Although there is next to no shade on this trail, it’s always a great trail to hike.

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Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park (01/04/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Northwest, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 29, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Among my goals for 2024, somewhere between “learning to cook a Mediterranean diet” and “complete the next thirty miles of the Appalachian Trail” is that to “visit at least ten Florida State Parks” this year.  So, after spending some time at Perdido Key State Park and to keep the momentum going, I drove to Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park in Pensacola. Access was easy with the parking lot just off the main road and an honor system entry fee.

Caramel Grasses on Tarkiln Bayou Trail

I began with the Tarkiln Bayou Trail, an out-and-back one-mile round trip with a scenic view of the Tarkiln Bayou bordered by beautiful tall grasses. This trail is ADA accessible with concrete walkways and long boardwalks leading to the bayou. Along the way, benches invited me to take an undeserved rest and scannable information signage filled me in on the surrounding flora.  

Autumn Colors Dress the Perdido Bay Trail

After completing the Tarkiln Bayou Trail, I increased my effort with the Perdido Bay Trail. This trail branches off at the beginning from Tarkiln Bayou Trail. My hike was about 6.5 miles, often shaded by oaks and pines. Although mostly a dirt trail, there were occasional portions filled in with large gravel, difficult to walk on. (On the return, I realized that thoughtful hikers had created small, grassy paths to bypass the gravel.) The loop portion of this trail borders along the Perdido Bay.

The cool weather made for perfect hiking. A very recent burn had caramelized the landscape in shades of orange, brown and black—perfect for a Halloween set. The lack of green vegetation did not keep the birds away. I spied many yellow wobblers, red belly woodpeckers, and even a bald eagle.

Map: https://www.floridastateparks.org/sites/default/files/media/file/tbp-brochure.pdf

(Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park. 2401 Bauer Road, Pensacola, FL 32507. Website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/tarkiln-bayou-preserve-state-park. (850) 492-1595.)

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Perdido Key State Park (01/04/2024)

Posted in Hiking, Northwest, tagged , , , , , , , on January 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »

On my drive home from Alabama after visiting family for the New Year, I wanted to stop at a couple State Parks. I started with the most westerly and furthest away from my home—Perdido Key State Park, which according to the State Park website is a “favorite destination for swimmers and sunbathers” with “white sand beaches and rolling dunes covered with sea oats.”

Sea Oats on the Dunes

I knew that Hurricane Sally in 2020 had caused devastating damage to the park and forced it to close. I was thrilled to see that two of the three entrances—the middle and east entrances—were now open with beautiful new boardwalks at both entrances and a new restroom at the east entrance. Construction crews worked on the west entrance.

Although the beach and dune areas were closed to protect an “environmentally sensitive area,” it was a beautiful site from the boardwalk and an uplifting promise for a New Year of great beginnings.

New Boardwalks to the Beach

(Perdido Key State Park. 15301 Perdido Key Drive, Pensacola FL 32507. Website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/perdido-key-state-park. (850) 492-1595.)

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