Swamp Walkers

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Comment by Barbara Bowen on March 9, 2010 at 11:30am

Thx Ata!

Comment by Ata on March 9, 2010 at 11:24am

Love your photos!

Comment by Barbara Bowen on March 9, 2010 at 8:49am

Find more photos like this on My Florida Hikes
Bradwell Bay 2010 Swamp Stomp led by FTA member Kent Wimmer and his son Eric. Despite the 28 deg morning low, 16 adventurists of the original 50 signees showed up to bare the cold water. The day soon warmed up to 65 degrees and we all had a great hike. Alot of fun was had by all! Thanks Kent for keeping us on the trail and for finding the holes before we had too!

Comment by Barbara Bowen on March 4, 2010 at 3:27pm

Yes, I have seen it defined as a "forested wetland" predominantly Cypress. Thanks for sharing! It certainly looked like fun. I want to try it next year after I get some overnight hikes under my belt.

Comment by ShortCut on March 4, 2010 at 2:14pm

OTL is full of`water features, including swamp. Of course, rain always helps.

You got me curious about defining a swamp and finding out where they are in Florida. The EPA says a swamp is a type of wetland dominated by woody vegetation but without appreciable peat deposits; fresh or saltwater, tidal or non-tidal. A simpler definition I found was "a forest under water". There's a GPS site out there that blew me away with over 1,000 coordinates logged in for "Swamps in Florida", www.lat-long.com/ListLocations-1-Florida-Swamp.html Don't know how trustworthy any of this is, so if anyone out there has the background for more accurate info please pass it on.

Comment by Barbara Bowen on March 3, 2010 at 2:19pm

Shortcut
Was Ocean to Lake a Swamp walk? I guess with all the rain it could have been classified as one. =)

Comment by ShortCut on March 2, 2010 at 9:26pm

Just a note to celebrate this year's Ocean-to-Lake hike, done in reverse, in Palm Beach County. Thanks to the intrepid leadership, wry humour and gourmet chili of Fred Davis 18 people started at Lake Okeechobee and finished at the Atlantic Ocean, Hobe Sound Beach, 6 days later..

When I hiked this a few years ago, it was pretty dry. This year was wet! We spent some time cooling our feet in water almost every day. Not too deep. Not too long. Just right. It was fun. Campsites were dry. Socks cooked well done over campfires a couple of nights.

Wildlife sightings included deer, gator, otter, wild hogs, assorted birds and a barred owl with an attitude. From maybe 100 feet off trail that owl watched our crew slog calf-deep thru a cypress dome and posed for photos with a look that asked why we invading its peacable kingdom.

A great time. Fun people.

Pictures and an excellent daily journal by Rocky and Swamp Fox are online at http://www.trailjournals.com

Comment by Barbara Bowen on March 2, 2010 at 5:27pm

Bradwell Bay Stomp Tromp to be wet in "leg numbingly cold" water this weekend. Hikers need to be up for the Challenge!Share

Below is an excerpt from the Florida Trail Association local Section leaders recent e-mail.

..[he] estimated that the water will likely be at least three feet deep where we cross Monkey Creek. With the cold weather and all the rain, the water will be feet and leg numbingly cold. It is likely that we may not be able to find much dry ground anywhere on our 8 mile hike. Due to the depth of the water, the cold temperature of the water, the lack of opportunities to get off the trail due to its remoteness, this will be a very strenuous hike that should not be taken lightly and should only be attempted by those up to the physical and psychological challenge."

For more information cut and pasted the following link.
http://www.floridatrail.org/component/option,com_events/task,view_detail/agid,967/year,2010/month,03/day,06/Itemid,204/

Comment by Barbara Bowen on February 3, 2010 at 8:25am

Finally getting my feet wet! I signed up for the Florida Trail Bradwell Bay Wilderness Stomp Tromp on March 6th. This is 8 miles of slogging through the heart of the Apalachicola National Forest and rated by Backpacker Magazine as one of the 10 toughest hikes! There is still spots available if anyone is interested. Contact Kent Wimmer at kwimmer@fs.fed.us.

Comment by Hammock Hanger on January 17, 2010 at 5:53pm

I escorted a friend through the swamp last weekend. Three days of water and mud, but great fun. See my blog for full report.

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