Everglades Exploration Network

I've been a lurker to the site for a while, but like most of you, I'd much prefer to just be out in the 'Glades, hiking, paddling, or biking rather than sitting around talking about it.  But I'm beginning to see that if we all think that way, it's going to be much harder to do the things we love in Everglades National Park.

 

What got me going was (a) a visit to the new Johnson Key Chickee [what a disaster!], and (b) the discussions by Mike Jester on why it got that way.  I had complained last year to the Superintendent that the new chickees were apparently designed by someone who had never once kayaked or even actually camped on one.  He give me the same story that Mike spells out.  And it really worries me.

 

Beside being an avid paddler (I own 2 canoes and a kayak), I've also spend most of my professional career as an Everglades researcher, and even worked at Everglades National Park as a research scientist for almost 9 years.  I'm now the Senior Scientist at Everglades Foundation.  And what I've learned is that people's opinions matter.  A lot.

 

When the NPS was going through their general management plan public meetings, getting input how to manage the waters from Everglades City to Florida Bay, there was hardly anyone there speaking about how paddlers use the area.  The motorboats and anglers where there in force.  Any guesses what the GMP is going to do for paddling?  The Park and other agencies sees us as a tiny user group, and not even a very vocal or organized one at that.  

 

The Johnson Key Chickee fiasco can be avoided if the paddling community makes their views known. And not just to the NPS, but to the other agencies that came up with that insane design.  I hope I can help direct those comments.  (Ten letters from the public is an avalanche!)  

 

On the other hand, we should let the NPS know what we like. Have you noticed how nice the new chickees are at Watson River, Lane Bay, etc.  Tell them (Thanks, Mike!).  We can also help by reporting what we see, since we're out there more often and more intimately than nearly anyone else.  Someone one chopped down a mahogany at Lard Can? Report it.  See pythons in Lane Bay?  Call it in.   

 

Anyway, this is a good discussion group, and I hope to learn a lot about paddling, and offer tips on how to get what we'd like to see in the Park, Big Cypress, and other public lands in south Florida.

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Welcome to the EEN Thomas! Basically what you described is what we want to turn this site into. Not only a great resource for information and knowledge, but also as a way to have a voice in the park system. The people in this group are among the most active users of the park and its back country. Glad to see you on board!

Hi Tom, thanks for posting, you raise some good points.  Can I take advantage of your expertise and ask you some questions? We were recently in the Pearl Bay area, wandering around in the areas north of the chickee.  The water was very fresh, nothing like we experienced before.  This year, no salt water fish in the area, only bass. We also noticed more fresh water vegetation (more saw grass for instance).  Can you describe what is happening to cause such a change (I understand that this is really the way things use to be years ago).  What can we expect in these areas over the next few years?

Connie

Thomas, welcome! I'll bet you can share some interesting information on the Everglades through your work as a scientist in this area.

 

I just want to add that during the GMP process many of the kayak/fishing websites I visited were encouraging forum members to go online and give as much feedback as possible from a paddler, fishermen and camping perspective. I definately participated and know many others did too. We may have not been a majority at the public forums but we did voice our opinions.

 

This season I have visited Pearl Bay, Sunday Bay and Sweetwater Chickees. The Pearl Bay reconstruction was very well done. Lard Can has a new dock but needs some cleats to tie up at. Sunday Bay and Sweetwater were the same as I last remember. North Joe is another chickee that is well thought out. The park would be better off taking care of the existing campsites/chickees that are in dire need of repair. Invest in another honey barge the one at the north end is the worst. This instead of wasting money on structures that are only to be used by a very small number of people. Personally I can't use the Florida Bay chickees. I can climb up but not down as I suffer from vertigo, unfortunately. I agree with you they were not designed with paddlers in mind.

I give the park kudos for at least trying to create an option after we lost the option of camping at Carl Ross.  The chickees aren't perfect but with the myriad concerns they faced to build anything it's important to realize that they did try and are continuing to try and make it a better experience.  According to the ranger I just spoke with the Florida Bay chickees are getting a moderate and steady amount of usage. Certainly the other chickees on the WWW have come a long long way from what they were 20 years ago.  I remember the Harney chickee swaying back and forth a ton in the current, then looking down at the 4x4 pilings and seeing that several were eaten down to 2x2's at best.

 

The FL bay chickees: Not for everyone, but better than nothing.

 

From 2008, announcing the re-opening of Carl Ross to day use only:  "Everglades National Park is planning to provide a new camping opportunity in western Florida Bay. A paddler-friendly chickee will be constructed: the new chickee will enhance Florida Bay wilderness camping opportunities for paddlers beginning their trip from Flamingo or the Keys"

On another note, instead of more 'honey' barges, why not look into composting toilets which don't require any water & no pumping AND way less stink .. think aka Bahia Honda style toilets that do work and don't smell!

 

I know many paddlers who participated in the new GMP, went to the meeting at Outdoor World, we even hosted a meeting at the ol' Kayak Jeff shop a couple of years ago. We were assured that our written concerns would be looked into, obviously that didn't extend to the actual chickee construction so far .. our voice is quite small in the grand scheme of things. Def better than nothing!

One thing I do remember is that the park is working to restore access to east Florida Bay from US1, something to look forward to. Something else to look forward to, would be more chickees in the 'Bay to create a whole network of paddler-friendly chickees!!

I don't want to be Mr. Glass half Full all the time...but I think the current drafts of the GMP are pretty paddler friendly!

 

OK so no one is happy with the current state of the Fl Bay Chickees, but we have chickees in Fl. Bay...and we have Jester showing his face on line taking heat and trying to make productive changes!

 

We've got more chickees, more launches, more access, a 2nd waterway...

 

But let's keep pushing for more! 

 

Whatever we get this go around is all we're getting for the forseeable future. Once the GMP is in place, it will tend to become the bible...if it ain't in the GMP...it ain't in the park!

 

We have a pro-addler administration, that isn't guaranteed forever, let's get as much movement and commitment as we can while the getting is good!

We have a pro-addler administration...

 

That's good, since 'addled' is my normal condition.

so when you adding spellcheck to the site features!?!?!

This year does seem to be a bit of a paradox.  Salinities in Florida and Whitewater Bay nearshore areas are very low for this time of year, yet marsh water levels in the upstream Everglades are very low and dropping at above average rates.  That's not how it usually works.    I'm not exactly sure what's happening but it could be a combination of things.  Most likely, the rainfall has been higher over the Bay and nearshore areas, and much lower in the Everglades.  Moreover, cool air and water temperatures have lowered evaporation rates in the Bay, so salinities are not climbing as fast as usual.  

 

I'm not sure that there's been a documented large-scale shift in vegetation, as vegetation takes a several years to respond, though local changes are definitely possible.  

 

This does appear to be an anomaly.  Salinities are typically strongly correlated with water levels in the upstream marshes, and as water levels drop, salinities climb.   

I don't mean to suggest that the GMP does not consider the needs of paddlers, but I do think those paddlers take a back seat to the anglers and motor boaters.   And I know Mike Jester, and he's genuinely working hard on getting chickees in the backcountry.   But, two points.

 

First, if there were better connections with the paddling community, they could have gotten help to stop the craziness about the chickee construction.  Case in point:  when the USCG wanted to put up Intercoastal-type channel markers in all of the channels in FB, Park staff asked for help and got the plan changed.  I would have been happy to go and talk with whomever, but just assumed that new chickees would like like old chickees. 

 

Second, the Park really does, in my opinion, need to do more to comply with the Wilderness Act.  Almost all of the Park in a designated wilderness, and should allow for wilderness experiences, such as paddling.  But in Everglades NP, the bay bottom is wilderness, but not the water column; this was done to allow motor boats.  This allows motorized traffic practically everywhere in the marine/estuarine areas.  So, out of 1.5 million acres of wilderness, your options for a wilderness experience are a handful of paddling trails where motorized traffic cannot reach, or pole through the sawgrass during the wet season.   It also means that every prop scar demonstrates the rule isn't working.  The NPS should be attentive to paddlers if only because that's the best way to comply with the Wilderness Act. 

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