Howdy

[Alan Gibson]

Just started getting seriously interested in glades tripping and am looking forward to it. Most of my tripping is done in Ontario so this is a whole new deal. I will ask some dopey questions so please be patient.......

I like trip reports and slide shows and frequently share......again please be patient as my contributions may miss the mark on occasion. Here is a slide show of a recent trip.
http://vimeo.com/74485430

[Jay]

Welcome aboard.  No stupid questions - except the one not asked.....that said - tons of great info archived on the boards.  Nice trip video.

[vivian]

Loved the pictures, Connie and I were at the Boundary Waters near Ely this past July. It was my 4th trip there but Connie's first. There are IMHO similarities between the Quetico, BWCA and the Everglades. I hope you will enjoy our Everglades and post your reports here.

[yakmaster]

That grass paddling looks like early fall in Florida! Who says we have only one season?!?!?

We have grass season, mangrove paddling season, mangrove hiking season and mosquito season. Though that last one does tend to overlap on the shoulders...

vivian said:

Loved the pictures, Connie and I were at the Boundary Waters near Ely this past July. It was my 4th trip there but Connie's first. There are IMHO similarities between the Quetico, BWCA and the Everglades. I hope you will enjoy our Everglades and post your reports here.

[Kim Gass]

Hi Alan and welcome. I am a Northerner too. A few places have grabbed me. The Yukon, Lake Superior and the Everglades. Yep I have done some six solos in Quetico too.  But its too much like home for me to really grab me.. ( not that this will be the same for everyone).  What I really like for me is places that do NOT look like home. And the Everglades truly fits that need. I usually go to the Everglades in January and  a shorter trip in March. March is often too hot for me and  I seek the Gulf paddling in the 10000 Islands. 

In January I have taken a ten day trip each year for the last seven years.  My packing list  for that season is a LOT like Ontario paddling in May!  Fleece is often worn each day and I have had several mornings over the year (though not each year) breaking ice in the cup of water.  The main difference is of course bringing your own potable water and being aware that animals want your water as much as your food. Being in a canoe I have to bring a couple of hard sided water containers to deter the raccoons..(you thought bears were bad?!). And I bring a large fabric square to keep sand out of my backpacking kitchen and also to put said kitchen on the chickees. I hate losing stuff through the chickee floors.

You have been on Pickerel Lake I suspect. Magnify that. Everglades is BIG water. The scale of the scenery is hard to get used to. While we northerners are used to calculating water distances assuming the trees on the shore are 80 feet the mangroves are about a third of that. So while it seems to be REAALY big in the Glades you have to adjust your scale.  Not that it makes easier paddling. The shallows of the Gulf and the bays make for some serious chop. And the wind is always up at ten am. !5 mph wind is a light day.

[Alan Gibson]

Sounds like a fun group.....

Kim did you used to post on solo tripper? Is it still down?

I am perhaps overly ambitious. I want to through paddle as my first trip. What's worse is I don't want the hassle of a shuttle so it will be there and back. Everglades city to flamingo on the inside and back on the outside. I am eyeing early December. I know very little so any and all advice with be consumed with much gratitude. The boat is a superior expedition which is a sea wind knockoff. Nice boat but I suspect a little less sturdy than a sea wind. Gear is going in 5 gallon buckets with screw top lids to thwart the thieves. Hoping the fish will cooperate.

Al

[vivian]

Alan, another option for your consideration is two loop trips. Start at e city and do the inside to broad river or Lostmans, come back through gulf. Do your shopping to load up on supplies, laundry and drive to flamingo. Loop inside to broad river and back around cape. Obviously it all depends on tides and weather for plan. Through trips are over rated IMHO you get better fishing ops looping.

[Alan Gibson]

I have a chunk of time and like the idea of a trip to get an overview of the area. I have fished out of Marco and e city for many years. Finally getting the paddling bug for the ten thousand islands and picked up the expedition to deal with the outside paddling. Finally get to try it out in the salty stuff.

Future trips will be more targeted with a strong emphasis on fishing and photography.

I'm wondering if I shouldn't reverse my order of operations and do the outside first.......then stop in the ranger station in flamingo to book the sites for the way back instead of locking in the entire trip with no margin for error.

I can water up in flamingo?

[Kim Gass]

Weather forecasts will help you determine your route..that and the tide tables. Weaving back and forth innie to outie is a possibility.

I would book at EC for the downward leg and Flamingo for the upward. The campground is reasonably close to the Ranger station.  While you can water up in Flamingo, the food choices at the convenience store are the snack and soda type for the most part.  You may need to carry all your food at the onset of the trip.

The campground has nice showers.  I forget if it has laundry. 

I find meandering too to be the most fun.. exploring the many creeks instead of being on a beeline.  Your motives may vary though  To me the Wilderness Waterway is ho hum and the real fun is finding your own route that goes in the general direction you want, without the markers and boat traffic.

[Alan Gibson]

I see a pattern developing with my tripping......it seems I like to see as much as is practical right off the bat. An overview of sorts. Then I can focus on what really interests me. I like the idea of doing the wilderness waterway. Great name and hey, I sort of like the idea of numbered pilings (lol). 1st time in probably not such a bad idea even if I often fish the backcountrys behind. I picked up a weather radio and will try and plan the outside leg with no fronts. The tides are a whole new ball game for me. I will learn rather quickly that i just cant just power through I'm sure.

One item of interest for you regulars which might not be so common will be a depth finder. I have a small 12 volt battery (think ATV size) and a depth finder which I intend to have on the entire trip. If the water should get churned up and murky I like the idea of knowing where I'm at. While I like fishing around oyster bars I dislike the idea of piling up on one with a full head of steam and full load. I wonder how many holes in boats we have on this board? That would be an interesting topic.

[Jay]

A couple of other things to log...

- Most of the time you can battle the tide (and win albeit very slowly), or battle a strong wind (and win albeit very slowly) - but you can't beat them both.

- In the Gulf, NE - E winds are pretty nice paddling - until you get east of East Cape Sable - then no-so-much fun.

- A hard W or NW wind after a front can pile water very high on the beaches on a high tide - plan your campsite accordingly.

- Conversely, hard N quadrant winds on the western end of the park can turn large bays into very skinny water (like none) particularly at low tide.  On the outer island campsites, the water can be blown out to where you have a very long trudge through mucky bottom to water - or water deep enough to paddle.

-Whitewater Bay got that name for a reason. Other big bays, and some rivers during certain conditions deserve that name also.

You're going to have a great time.

[Kim Gass]

I haven't piled on an oyster bar yet at full speed. Paddling with water colors in mind..you will learn that light brown means ick and shallows.. And watch for wave breaking patterns. Waves won't show up well in shallows.

Birds standing in the water are an obvious cue. Last year hard NE and E winds blew almost all the water out of Lostmans River delta.

Opposing wind and tides can make for lots of waves. But paddle early and hard and you can likely make progress.

[Jay]

For illustration about how the water can get blown out.  This is the front side of Tiger Key at a +1.3 low tide the morning after a N30-35+ blow. You could walk around the whole island.  I think it was 200+ yards to the water.