Kayaker Jerry McBride recounts his camping trip to the Everglades, just in time for you to plan one for yourself. Below, a few photos and planning tips.
Ranger Bertram points out potential Everglades National Park shoreline campsites. Campers must obtain permits at Welcome Center.
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Flamingo’s boat ramp and marina are open for business.
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Launching Sam Heaton’s old Ranger aluminum “Gatorboat” mothership at the ramp, loaded with kayaks, tents, coolers and gear for three days in the boonies.
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Our monster mothership after unloading at the campsite. Anchor with bow facing offshore. Tether stern to mangrove stumps. Bring lots of rope for securing boats and tents. Note grounded sailboat down the beach. They floated off on a high tide the next night.
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Not a good way to start the day. A week of east winds blew all the water toward Texas, leaving Ol’ Gator high and dry. Fortunately we had our kayaks.
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My kayak and home away from home. A mothership lets campers haul what would otherwise be luxury items.
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Sam’s fishing craft and accessories. We came back the second day to find his tent blown over, impaled and ripped on a stump. Fortunately, there weren’t any bugs. Bring big, long tent stakes and rope or cord to hold tent in soft shell beach.
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Sam hooked to a good trout in a low-tide creek.
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Trout getting even, soaking Sam. Fish fought hard in the chilly, wind-stirred water.
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Oysters exposed in low-tide creek.
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We tried to avoid the wind in the creeks, but even there we got blown around. Me with a baby redfish.
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Same creek, baby snook. Downed timber held lots of little snookies.
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Sam, with a good red on his favorite D.O.A. CAL jig combo. We caught most of our Lake Ingraham fish on plastic shrimp and jigs along channel dropoffs with the incoming tide ripping. No need to keep and haul fish around all day; plenty of trout on beach for dinner.
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Hurricanes reduced many ENP shoreline mangroves to firewood. The area has been slow to recover.
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Sam Heaton poling the east shoreline at high tide. A shallow-draft mothership performs this duty well.
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Typical beach trout. I found that color lure in either a shrimp or shadtail was the most productive.
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Returning to camp with dinner liter
ally in hand. |
Sunset over Gulf of Mexico. Star-lit skies later in evening rival anything you’ll see in Colorado. And you rarely hear snook or tarpon splashing in the dark in Colorado.
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Sam Heaton after a day of kayaking, wondering what’s taking me so long to come up with dinner. Fortunately, he’s too tired to nag. His wife never did send me that check for getting him out of the house for three days.
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Light, nesting, nonstick aluminum cookware like this Bugaboo set from GSI Outdoors beats hauling heavy cast-iron stuff on a camping trip. Cleanup is a snap also—simply wipe it out and get back to fishing.
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Dinner time—crab/shrimp stuffed trout, jambalaya and baked beans. Followed, of course, by homemade key lime/mango pie. No need to rough it just because you’re camping. Tough guys, by the way, do eat quiche. At least Sam never complained about my jalapeno sausage quiche at breakfast.
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The snook invaded at sunrise, working the mullet and glass minnows over.
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This snook put up a great fight in the tide blasting out of the cut—right up until a tarpon tore the plug out of its mouth. I’ve never seen that before.
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Smaller snook catch, just in time to catch the dawn light.
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Rapala Clackin’ Rap drops like a jig in the swift current, getting down to the bottom-hugging snook.
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Kayak Camping Venues Not in ENP
Northeast Florida:
Talbot Island State Park actually encompasses seven local state parks. Jacksonville. (904) 251-2320; www.floridastateparks.org/bigtalbotisland
East Central Florida :
Indian River Lagoon spoil islands bisect the Intracoastal Waterway in St. Lucie, Indian River and Brevard counties; www.spoilislandproject.org; click on Interactive Maps to find Active Islands designated for recreation.
West Central Florida:
Fort DeSoto Park has multiple boat ramps and campgrounds right off the beach; Busy place, so make reservations online or by phone. Tierra Verde, (727) 893-9185; www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_Ft_Desoto.htm
Florida Keys:
Marquesas Islands offers great kayak fishing, but if you want to pitch a tent, bring a big mothership—no camping allowed ashore.
Northwest Florida:
St. Joseph Peninsula St. Park offers incredible fishing and scenery, cabins and campground. Port St. Joe, (850) 227-1327
Florida Panhandle:
Big Lagoon State Park features great fishing, birdwatching and crabbing for kayakers, and a campsite with water and electricity. (850) 492-1595; www.floridastateparks.org/biglagoon
Florida Sportsman November 2009 WebXtra Coverage
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