May trip - Gator Hook to Roberts Lakes Strand

[Keith W]

I have a mind to try and reach Robert's Lakes Strand from the Gator Hook Trail on the Monroe Station leg of the Loop. I know the Fl. Scenic Trail runs through the Strand on the eastern end but I have yet to hear of anybody coming in from the west. The first couple of miles of the old Gator Hook logging tram that runs southeast off the Loop has been cleared, but it's all wild after that. The line of the tram is still evident after the cleared path runs out, and I was able to follow it for about another half-mile but it gets pretty boggy in places. Anybody else have any info on this route?

[Swamp Hunter]

I can tell you this much Bill there are no hunters out there. I have only seen 1 other hunter in 30 years past the Gauntlet. The trails around the Gauntlet are from deer and bear and maybe from me. But they change every year or so..  The tram lines may be elevated but I agree very hard to find at ground level.

Bill Riley said:

 One of my trips will be dedicated to the old dead end tram lines you saw in dale's diagram.  I think I saw some of them from the gauntlet area but they could just be old hunter paths maybe . Truly a different view when you are on the ground versus that GE ariel. 

 

[Swamp Hunter]

I carry a butt pack. I prefer to travel light and I try to be back before dark. I prefer jungle boots to rubber boots. Your boots will get wet. You need the same stuff. You will need to carry a lot of water until we can find the lost pump. Gatorade is better. GPS, compass, knife, ribbon, bug spray, mosquito headnet, T-paper in a ziplock, small raincoat, snacks or sandwich, butane lighter, flashlight, extra batteries, bandaides, meds, folding saw or machete. I carry a lightweight jacket and walking stick. I now own a lightweight water filter.

Jay said:

Thanks for the offer Bill.  I'll have much more time in April and I look forward to giving it a try.  I'll need a bit of coaching on what to bring - don't mind mud, slime or critters.  If anyone wants to chime in there - I would appreciate it.  Probably some of the same stuff I bring on my paddle explorations - first aid, basic survival, extra water, food, map, compass, GPS.  What you can carry in a small pack?

[Jay]

Much appreciated Dale.

[Swamp Hunter]

Here is my tracks from my last trip out. I have no idea how to save it. My topo doesnt have the tram marked. GATOR is where I stepped on one. The deer096 is where I saw the fawn hiding. Those film projector things remind me of a train so I use those to mark RR ties. I spent a couple years digging ties out of the muck and marking that main line. 113 may be a floater. GUMBO is the tree on the tram. HOLEY ROCK Is labeled. Fishes are deep water.  I was able to access Holey Rock from the south but I believe a straight cut through the wall of trees is the NPS preferred path.

 

 I have no idea why I marked a restroom 035. Its an old waypoint maybe a mistake. I think the picnic table is the Mardi Gras mask. I think I forgot to change the icon when I marked the bench camp. Hunt is a tree I hunt from. The deep dip is my search for the lost pump. I believe its somewhere between the skull and crossbones (GATOR) and fish105. I keep returning to 017 a very early waypoint.

 

[Swamp Hunter]

Here is the old trail that goes north I spoke of. I marked cable 1 through 7 where rusting steel cables are tied across the trail by the NPS to prevent its use back in the 70s-80s.. The cables are still there choking the largest trees they are tied too.. The mudhole saved me when I ran out of water last March. Its actually a beautiful waterhole I drank unfiltered and I need to relabel it. The car048 is where I parked my vehicle. The deer133,135 are self explanitory. They came to the road every night last September to browse on the edge and possibly to escape a panther that prowled the area. You can see Monroe Station where I lived, Oasis, Roberts Lakes, etc

 

I tried to mark this trail as best I could but without any use, it will soon be lost. If you look real closely on Google Earth, you can still see it.

 

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[Swamp Hunter]

Im planning on going out this Saturday March 9.  Who else is going?  Bill?  Keith?  SwampWitch? Jay?  We may have some minor differences of opinion but we all want what is best for the Everglades and the Big Cypress. Im going to continue working on this trail and any volunteer help will be appreciated. Im sure we can come to an agreement on whether we need to remove ribbons or put more up. Its not a big deal. I will concede that any trash in the area will need to be removed. But there is so little, past the benches, its not worth talking about.

The "bench builders" have left what appears to be trash plastic containers but Im sure its to prime the pump. I dont know who they are or whether they have permission or not. A primitive camp is legal in the Big Cypress and can be left in the woods all season, if they leave their name and contact number. I could not find any contact name or number.  Im sure its OK to stop for a rest but we cannot disturb someones primitive camp in the Big Cypress. I dont believe they are hunters. They look like trail people and its possible they are sanctioned by the NPS as they have helped tremendously clearing the trail up to that point.. I notice the orange marking spray paint can at the camp and its the type thats advertised to last 2 months so I doubt it will last the year.

 

If you look at my trail from January, you will see that I walked back and forth, back and forth, again and again, trying to make a well defined trail.  If my efforts were successful, and you guys were easily able to follow it, I am happy.  I am assuning the bench builders will follow.  Looking forward to meeting you Bill.  And Keith, you know its always a pleasure.  I cant wait to hit the woods!

[Jay]

Dale,

I would love to go but I have a commitment all weekend with a youth sports event.  I would love to be part of the process in the future.  However, this month is just crazy.  I am not sure I will even get on the water once.  April on the other hand....

Once you get this established somewhat - you might consider inviting a couple of scouting groups out to help trample it down.  They are always looking for new adventures.

[Keith W]

My plans haven't changed. I'll be at the trail head by 6 AM Saturday. I have tentative plans for an overnight trip from the Loop to Oasis in April, no firm dates yet.

[Swamp Hunter]

Thats great Keith. I hope Bill and Dallas can also make it.

 

Im posting Swamp Witch's trail map. I didnt realize until she posted it how much my trail dips below the tram. I dont know how I made this mistake. I may have been following one of the deadend legs or I may have unconsciously dipped south after years of going to the lost pump. The last theory is the most likely. Either way its wrong.  This may have to be changed at a later date.

I used red X's for the part that needs to be removed and the orange dashes signify the preferred route. If anyone wants to get out and search for these lost ties in the muck, be my guest.  Do NOT remove my trail until the other route is discovered. Be sure to mark the ties with ribbons so as not to lose your work and I can find them at a later date. Myself Im not too concerned at this time with this project as I am more interested in bypassing this and pushing on finding the remains of the lost sections before and after Holey Rock.

 

 

My tried and proven system involves finding and identifying ties in the muck and tying a ribbon at each find. Hikers generally will follow the ribbons but most hikers will get lost at the point of the last ribbon or what they conceive to be the last ribbon. After I have found all the ties I can possibly find, I come back at a later date and try and connect the dots. Only after I connect the dots, am I assured that others will follow the same exact trail.  IMO its of the utmost importance to have a well marked single trail. Otherwise we have hikers dispersing in different directions and as we have seen, can easily become disoriented and even completely lost.

 

Another thing, it doesnt make sense that we would need permission from the NPS to blaze a trail that supposed to already be there, as long as we stay on the historic rail bed..  I will take a picture Saturday and post it from the NPS trailhead that shows the trail well past Holey Rock. Of course there was no trail anywhere near Holey Rock as I was the first to re-discover the railroad ties only recently.  The trail did not even reach the Mardi Gras mask. It will be a job trying to trample a path through this thick center area. I seriously doubt it could be accomplished in one day but we can certainly try.

 

We can discuss this all in detail on Saturday and any suggestions are welcome..  Jay, its possible that the mysterious bench builders are a Boy Scout group. They have a ton of gear at their primitive camp, some of it quite bulky and heavy and it would have taken a lot of help to clear the trail and carry it all out.  SwampWitch, is there another name we can call you?

 

[Swamp Witch]

Y'all are breaking my heart.  Wish I could be there but I'm stuck in the Great White North.  I will definitely be thinking of you.  I’ve double checked my “markers” for the tram road using the website Gmap4 that Dale posted.  Amazingly, the points are pretty accurate.  Based on my GPS data, on one of my journeys I walked right by the Gumbo Limbo.  Can’t remember if I saw it or not.  May have just recognized that if it was there, I was on elevated land.  Good luck!  My real name is Pam.

[Swamp Hunter]

Its so thick in there, you could be 5 feet from it and not see it. I may have noticed it as I crawled past lol. 

Im not finding any bones lately. Maybe its a sign the panthers have moved on.

Panthers like trails too and I remember panther tracks down the center of the trail for a considerable distance.

 

Pam sounds better.

 

I almost forget daniel or anybody else is certainly welcome.

 

 

[daniel]

hey dale, thank you so much for the invite. i would love to go... unfortunately, i had hernia surgery yesterday... i won't be up and around really well for 4 weeks... i'm walking now, but i definitely feel it! not a time for me to start my hiking career. thank you again, though. another time, definitely. this thread really is interesting to me, like i said, i have not done much of this... but rather spent the past 20 years doing the equivalent on the water...