As we prepare Primrose for joining the 2014 Florida Trail thru-hiker kickoff in Big Cypress, and make plans for Primrose to be our base camp to fill in a few of our missing Florida Trail sections, I started looking back over 2013 and our adventures of traveling with Primrose. Our first trip was the Valentine’s […]
Archives for January 2014
Addison Blockhouse Historic State Park
Beneath a dense canopy of cabbage palms and live oaks, the remains of a 19th century plantation rise from the forest floor at Addison Blockhouse State Park.
Barrier Island Nature Trail
At John U. Lloyd Beach State Park, the Barrier Island Nature Trail gets you away from the busy beach and into a patch of wilds along a slender barrier island.
Discovering Lake May Preserve
On our way to Doe Lake for New Years, I looked at Google Maps and saw the most efficient route was one we’d never taken before, using CR 44. As we rounded a curve, I noticed a trailhead for a trail we’d never heard of. Since it was only a half hour from home, we […]
Edward Ball Nature Trail
At the University of West Florida, the Edward Ball Nature Trail offers an escape for quiet contemplation beneath the shade of old cypresses on a 1 mile loop.
Kicking off Hiker Season with Primrose
On January 5th, we loaded up Primrose and headed south, traveling parallel to the Florida Trail for much of the trip, starting out at Christmas. Driving south of Tosahatchee, we continued through the Deseret Ranch where we spotted our first two Florida Trail thru-hikers walking up the highway. Although they are not keeping online journals, […]
Relocation of the Florida Trail near The 88 Store
According to trail maintainers in the area, the Florida Trail has been relocated in the vicinity of The 88 Store in the Ocala National Forest. The thru-trail now passes directly behind The 88 Store and within sight of FR 11 south of CR 316 for a short stretch, making it easier to access services at […]
Still Life, with Cows
It started with a scattered moo or two. Cows, curious by nature and ever followers, not leaders, collected at the fence of the Basinger Ranch. Perhaps they could count four legs – two natural ones and two hiking sticks – in my stride. The mooing got more persistent as the herd turned to walk with […]
Summiting Lake Okeechobee’s High Point
In completing an end-to-end hike of the Florida Trail, I knew I’d need to fill a gap or two left behind at the Big O Hike. Despite having walked around Lake Okeechobee several times, I was missing a few miles. During the Big O Hike, the hike begins and ends at trailheads, and in all […]
The 2014 Florida Trail thru-hiker Kickoff
When we started hearing a lot of buzz about friends and friends of friends headed to the Florida Trail this season, we figured that our new book The Florida Trail Guide and the talks we’d done at venues like ALDHA and Trail Dames had worked some magic. Sure enough, nearly a dozen people we knew […]