Okefenokee Swamp Part 3: Into the Wilderness

We began the day with a long drive to the other side of the swamp. Our putin at Kingfisher was at the farthest point from our campground, so it took well over an hour to get there. We feared the 10am launch requirement even though we had plenty of time to make the less than 8 mile trek to the Bluff Lake shelter. Kingfisher was unstaffed -- it was a parking lot and a boat ramp at the end of about a mile of dirt road. Gene and I ran the shuttle to Suwannee Canal while Lucas and Sheila solved the puzzle of what gear goes where. Sunshine accompanied us on the drive, but overcast skies soon took over. We launched around 11am local time, with rain clouds in the not-so-distant view.

Our itinerary had us on the green trail all day. The first mile was shared with the red trail in the Kings Canal, which the guidebook says was dug as part of peat mining in the 50s. What is peat mining? That was our question, too, so I don't have a good answer. We turned left from the canal and headed pretty much due south along the green trail. The view changed quickly from wooded canal to prairie. The overcast sky and nearby storm clouds gave the path an eerie calm as we paddled. Occasional sprinkles of rain reminded us that, while the weather forecast had improved, it wasn't exactly in our favor. We were treated to a few brave and hearty alligators along our route. We even saw a Sandhill Crane. The trail was banked by swamp candles (aka. goldclubs), pitcher plants, yellow-eyed grass and wildflowers that rooted in a five point pattern at the water surface. We got some mileage out of the field guide, but not enough to identify every plant or critter.

We took a break for lunch near the day's halfway mark. The canoe became the table between the two sea kayaks. Gene adopted a pet frog during the meal. The rain grew more serious. We hoped that by putting on the rain gear, it would change its mind, but it didn't. On and off it rained as we paddled, with the rain growing heavier each time. We reached Bluff Lake in a downpour and paddled quickly across it to find our shelter.

The shelters aren't the most protective structures for a storm, being a platform of wood with a partial roof. It was enough to get out of the rain. We set up the tents under the roof and tied up two tarps to help block the wind before we began cooking. Before dinner, Lucas got out the cards to play some Euchre.

Sheila cooked dinner for us, a delicious vegetable and tofu stir fry. We listed to the forecast on the weather radio. They called for 25-35mph winds to blow out the current storm. We enjoyed a little more citronella campfire before retiring to the tents.

During the night, the wind changed directions, making our wind-blocking tarps want to act like sails. The next morning, over a breakfast of fruit porridge, the weather radio told us our 25-35mph winds would be blowing due east. Lucky us, our path for over 7 of our 11 miles would be due west.