Katie's Landing - Lower Wekiva River

Katie's Landing is a canoe launch off of Highway 46 on Wekiva Park Drive. It has been closed for quite a while, but the public launch facility has reopened during the past few weeks. Katie's has a storied history as a privately owned facility that rented canoes and cabins, but is now owned by the county. While the launch area is still fairly rough and rutted, you can get a car right to the river, drop your non-motorized boat, and park in the newly paved parking area. There are also rest rooms available. There is a sign that says the boat launching fee is $3.00, but there doesn't appear to be a place yet to pay. In any event, this is great news for paddlers because of the location on the Lower Wekiva River.

Mary and I launched from Katie's Landing this morning, and paddled to the St. John's River and back. We took our time and basically floated downstream to the St. John's (over 3 hours) taking in the beautiful scenery. For the first stretch from the launch there are several private homes, but once past there it is very isolated. At one point we became a bit concerned because we heard several very load alligator growls, and there were several very large gators in the middle of the river that didn't seem inclined to move when we got close. We were under the impression that the growling was primarily a Spring thing - will have to check that out a bit further. We saw many birds today, including Blue Herons, Egrets, Ibis, Tri-Colored Heron, Wild Turkeys, Sand Hill Cranes, Limpkins, and others. We also were quite close to a couple groups of Manatees today.

The trip back upstream was a bit less than 2 hours. This was not because we wanted to go that quickly, but because we were racing a thunderstorm and lost. We encountered a driving rain for about 20 minutes, but fortunately the lightning stayed in the distance and we returned safely. While the Lower Wekiva is beautiful and fairly primitive, there are very few if any places to seek shelter during a storm.

Even with the storm, it was basically another great day on the river. Having made this run, Mary and I have now paddled the entire stretch (at one time or another) from Rock Springs Run (Kings Landing) to the Wekiva River to the Lower Wekiva River to the St. John's River. We look forward to many more days on the rivers this fall!

Here are a few pictures from today:

A few of the Manatees we saw today.

The entrance to The Lower Wekiva from the St. John's River - either the water level is a bit high or the sign sunk! : )

A baby tree frog on some of the tall grass in the river.

Historical Tours with Steve Rajtar and the Florida Trail Assn.

In July Mary had seen a mention somewhere of a guided canoe tour of the Winter Park chain of lakes with a historical emphasis. We decided to check it out, and were thoroughly pleased that we did. In fact, during the past 2 weeks we have been on walking tours of the Greenwood Cemetary (night tour), the Lake Eola area in downtown Orlando, and a canoe tour of Lake Ivanhoe.

The tours are sanctioned by the Florida Trail Association, and are conducted by local attorney Steve Rajtar. Steve had done extensive research on many areas and towns in Central Florida, and he (often with his wife) has published many books and articles on the history of the area. When conducting tours in person, he blends history with a perspective of modern day, and does so in an entertaining manner. If you have any interest in the history of various places in Central Florida, it would be well worth your time to check out Steve's schedule and plan to attend one of his tours. The Florida Trail group also sponsors many other hikes, canoe trips, bicycle rides, etc. led by a variety of volunteers. We hope to attend some in the near future, and will write about how those go!

The historical tours with Steve are completely free. While he typically has available a variety of books for sale, as well as a patch for each tour available for $4.00, there is absolutely no pressure to purchase anything. You can find the upcoming schedule on the local Florida Trail website at http://www.central.floridatrail.org/. The is also a website that lists all of Steve's tours and links to the self-guided tours and directions that you can download, but that website will be going away in the near future - here is the link: http://www.geocities.com/yosemite/rapids/8428/historicalseries.html.

The group starts the canoe tour of Lake Ivanhoe.

View of downtown Orlando from Lake Ivanhoe.

One of the many interesting homes we saw in the neighborhoods around Lake Eola.

Fountain along the edge of Lake Eola

View of downtown at the end of the Lake Eola tour.

Mosquito Lagoon and Apollo Beach

We have been to the beach at Canaveral National Seashore several times, but today is the first time that we have taken the canoe to paddle in Mosquito Lagoon. We entered the Apollo Beach section of the park on the north end by New Smyrna Beach (Highway A1A). The fee is $3 per person, and admits you for the day for whatever activities that you choose to do.

We launched the canoe at parking area 7, which is on the one-way Eldora Statehouse loop. You can also launch from the boat launch area just inside the park, but you must park across the street. Area 7 is a great place to start if you are just paddling the lagoon. We spent about 4 hours on the water, and saw a group of Manatees within a few feet of the canoe, and a dolphin fairly close by. It took a little while getting used to all of the small fish jumping in the water around us. We also saw a group of 9 or 10 great blue herons that were together - we usually see these in pairs. There were also several pelicans around, including one fishing nearby for quite a while. We saw numerous other species of birds as well.

The park rangers here are generally very helpful. We originally thought about paddling the Shipyard Island Canoe Trail today, but the ranger let us know that the bugs are still very bad right now, and that trail would better paddled later in the fall. Hopefully we will write about that trip in a few months!

After exploring the lagoon a bit, we went for a walk on the beach. We had never been to the southern end of Apollo Beach, and today there were open parking spaces (be careful here to only park in designated spaces, which are limited!). There was a pretty strong surf today, and the beach was nice as always. Be advised that this is a very primitive beach (one of ten seashores in the country protected by the National Park Service) The sand is a bit soft when walking, and the dark sand can really stick to your feet - there are no showers, running water, etc. in the parking areas, and the restrooms are basically port-a-jons in permanent structures. Also, if you are taking a wheeled cart, be sure to ask the ranger at the entrance which lots are open and have ramp access - not all of the 5 parking areas have ramps.

One interesting thing we learned today - a few hundred feet south of the southern-most parking area (Lot 5) is "unofficially" designated as a nude beach. It was a bit of an awkward situation for us, but we trudged on as far as the park allows without a back country permit. After searching for this on the internet, we must be among the few who don't know about this being a nude sunbathing area. Just be aware if you are taking children to this beach - frankly, some of these sights aren't for the faint of heart!! : )

Here are a few pictures from the canoe today:

Manatee in the Lagoon

As you can see, the Manatees were very active today

Hard to tell - but this is a pelican diving for a fish.

Our canoe

Caladesi Island

We have visited many beaches over the past few years, but our favorite by far is Caladesi Island. It can only be reached by private boat or by taking a ferry service. We always take the ferry from Honeymoon Island State Park, which is $10 for adults and $6 for children (There is also an $8 fee per vehicle to enter Honeymoon Island, unless you have an annual pass to the state parks). This allows you a 4 hour visit on Caladesi. There is also a newer ferry service that now operates out of Clearwater Beach. In addition, we understand that you can reach the island on foot from Clearwater Beach (about an hour's walk from Pier 60), but we haven't tried that yet. We hear that it is easier to reach the island from Clearwater Beach at low tide, as you have to cross a cut to reach the island.

The ferry ride is only about 15 minutes, and it is very likely that you will see dolphin along the way. We snapped this picture from our ferry ride on 8/30. There were 3 or 4 close to our boat for several minutes as we made our way to the island. You enter the island through a mangrove forest, and into the island's marina. At the marina is a snack bar and gift shop. The snack bar makes a decent hamburger, and you can also get hot dogs, fries, chips, etc., as well as fountain drinks. They also carry a small inventory of essentials such as sun-tan lotion, beach toys, hats, etc. From the marina and gift shop, there are 2 trails that lead to the beach that are about a 5 minute walk. The trails are flat with a ramp to the beach, so you can safely take a wheeled cart if you so choose. About half way down each trail you will also find rest rooms complete with showers and changing areas. At the beach, you can rent chairs, umbrellas, and kayaks if you wish.

Even with these conveniences, you will find that the island is one of the few completely natural islands on the Gulf Coast of Florida. The sand is white, the waters are shallow, and the water is clear and usually fairly calm. You can walk about a mile north before reaching the tip of the island, and several miles south. For beach combing fans, there are always shells galore. If you prefer other activities, there is a nature trail running through the island, or you can rent a kayak at the marina and paddle the 3 miles of trail through mangrove tunnels. There are also ample picnic tables and shelters.

Because Caladesi was named America's Number 1 beach in 2008, it was very difficult to get to the island for a while without enduring large crowds and long waits at the ferry service. If last weekend was any indication, it is still a popular destination, but the crowds seem to be somewhat back to normal. We look forward to many more visits in the future.