Blackwater Creek

BLACKWATER CREEK:

SEMINOLE FOREST TO SEMINOLE SPRINGS

April 11, 2015

                We met at the entrance of the Seminole State Forest to drive to the put-in at the Seminole Forest Launch bright and early on a Saturday morning. While waiting for my partner to arrive, I noticed a skull and some bones in the bushes. Once there, my partner looked at the skull and determined it probably once belonged to a young buck because there were two small holes at the top of the skull where antlers may have once grown. We hopped into the truck to make our way to the put-in and I was hoping my next wildlife viewing would be of a living animal!

 

                After a short drive through the forest, we arrived at our destination. We unloaded our kayaks and said hello to a couple who were fishing at the bank. A man walked past us with a kayak equipped for fishing and took off into the water the opposite way we were going. The woman fishing warned us to kayak along a different side of the creek because she thought an alligator was close by. This advice was given after noticing the kayaking schnoodle take her spot on the back of my partner’s kayak.

                As we paddled along Blackwater Creek we noticed how much lower the water levels were than the last time we kayaked here. Logs that we would normally paddle over became an obstacle course. We either did the “boot scootin’ boogie” to seesaw our kayaks across a log, or straddled a log so we could push our kayak underneath it with our feet and then try and get back in without tipping over. Though the water levels were low in spots, there was plenty of deep water still around – especially around the obstacles! We got whacked  in the face with branches and brushed off many spiders and ants from our body. Our yaks (and us!) were covered in mud and plant debris. It was awesome!

                 We didn’t see as much wildlife or as many birds as we have during past trips, but we could hear the birds whistling and chirping from along the outskirts of the forest. Some of the birds we managed to catch a glimpse of included ibis, little blue herons (which are VERY blue around their beaks, I found), limpkins and a kingfisher darting ahead of us. 

 

         We passed the “iron” bridge and kept paddling upstream. I only noticed a single baby alligator on the way up. We stopped alongside the creek for lunch and heard the shrieks of hawks flying by and owls calling to eachother from deep in the woods.

         After lunch we paddled downstream. We made it through the obstacle course and startled a few large alligators on the way back as we paddled by them. A few large alligators startled ME as we paddled by them! I only saw one snake hanging in a tree as we paddled past it. I didn’t stick around to say “hi”  because it looked poisonous!

          Though there was a 40% chance of rain that day, it held off long enough for us to finish the trip. The weather was warm yet breezy at times. The forest is filling out and all of its greenery is returning. Flowers are blooming. Spring has sprung and summer is just around the corner!