9/26/08
Today I started my 3-day hike through the Ocala National Forest. We hit the trail at 9:10am and hiked about 1 mi. to the actual FT trailhead.
I started with way too fast a pace. In no time my 40lb pack was really starting to wear on me. My feet and calves didn't take long to burn. So much for all that beach training. :-) The trail starts with a nice run of white sugar sand. It helps speed up the burn in your legs.
As I got used to the weight things got a little better. I got into a good rhythm and was able to really enjoy the scenery. What really surprised me was the many burned out trees as well as those twisted by severe storms. My clothes are streaked with charcoal marks. Nature has really been busy at work here.
I was pleasantly surprised to see the first water hole. Water shouldn't be a problem. It felt good to walk on the slightly damp trail. Sadly it was short-lived. It didn't take too long to get back on the sugar sand.
For most of the trail you only have a shoulder-wide path. In some sections you don't even have that. I pity anyone trying to wear shorts and t-shirts. The fallen trees and saw palmettos grab at you with every step. Your pants and shirt continually get snagged and debris clutters the path. Each step could easily put you on your face.
We passed several more water sources along the way and had to traverse small sections of flooded trail. Balancing a 6' person on a 6" log with a 40lb pack is an interesting feat when you're not used to it. But the real workout was still ahead.
If you're looking for a good workout, the FL Trail may be for you. Especially after some storms. The "easy" trail was replaced by a grueling dance alternating between duck walking and crawling on hands and knees to clear low-hanging trees covering the trail. After a lengthy section of this I find myself having to slow down my pace as fatigue sets in. Just when I was really sick of crawling it was over. Alas, as before, the joy was short-lived.
Note: this picture is misleading. You can actually see the trail here. :-)
If you ask someone, the camp site is always "just past that line of trees" or "right over the next hill." Hill? But this is FL!
Yes, Virginia, Florida does have hills. On the trail, they're covered with...more sugar sand. Up we trudge as the sand reflects the heat up to you and you start to feel the burn again.
I can hardly believe the amount of fire damage the area has seen. As a wilderness area if it burns it burns. No effort is made to stop it. No controlled burns are done. Whatever nature does is what you see. What wasn't burned was twisted by high winds.
Finally, it's there. The lake. It's not the final stop but it's very close. The water is surprisingly clear. It's much better than the other sources. We take the opportunity to fill up and I top of my hydration bladder and Nalgene bottle. Soon we take off again.
We finally see more people. Well, at least a single woman right around the bend. Perhaps there was someone else in the tent. We didn't stop to talk. We hike around another lake and make camp. We've covered about 6 miles in 3 hours. Not bad considering how cluttered the trail was.
I got a nice spot with three trees. I hang my hammock and tarp and I'm not alone. Out of 9 of us making the hike 6 were hanging. I use my third tree to attach a line to let my clothes dry out.
After some lunch we just sat around chatting. I'm sitting here against my tree looking over the lake. I look down and see I have a little friend. A cocooned worm is crawling by. He's slow yet somehow seems to be covering a lot of ground. I figure he's stocking up before sealing himself in for good.
I seem to have a blister on my toe. I'm surprised. I haven't had this problem before and didn't feel anything while on the move. Overall I've recovered well I think. I've refilled the Nalgene. The sun is going down so it's not too cool now as it's no longer blocked by the trees. There's a slight breeze so that helps. We'll see what happens tonight and tomorrow.
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