FT2018 Day 20: Treeline on Nova Rd (mile 313.7) to Christmas (mile 336.0)

22.3 FT miles, and 2.0 miles to Ft. Christmas Baptist Church

I made the decision to get up early today. There were a couple of reasons for this. The first was that I just wanted to get the last of the roadwalk out of the way.  The earlier I started, the less traffic there would be since it was a Sunday. It also would be cooler out. Road walks don't have any shelter from the sun and the asphalt reflects the heat.

The second reason was that I wanted to get into the town of Christmas early. I had run into the problem of the only campground in the area that I needed to walk to today was a private campground (again). I had been on the phone yesterday several times, despite low battery, leaving messages and trying to get a hold of the people in charge. It didn't happen.

I had a resupply box sent to the post office in Christmas that I would be picking up tomorrow. Last night I looked up the post office information and was disappointed to find it 2 miles off trail. I thought it was closer than that. Next to the icon for the post office  information was an icon for a church. I clicked on the info for the church and saw that it offered tenting space and potable water. The private campground didn't even have potable water.

I called the pastor and he gave me permission to stay at the church overnight. Because Pastor Ken was nice enough to both answer his phone and let me stay at his church, I didn't want to get into town late. There was also a Circle K along the way at which I was hoping to get some cold drinks and extra calories. So, I needed an early start.

The road was much easier to walk in the dark than the trail, and I made great time. I was at my last water source for a while before it was light out. I hadn't anticipated getting there that fast. I needed water, since I had drank much more than I had thought I would have last night and was left with less than half a liter. It was over 10 miles to my next source.

I was not happy about getting water in the dark. This is Florida. The general warning about filtering water was to be cautious near culverts, as alligators tend to den in them. This was a culvert. Again, I didn't really have a choice as I needed water.

This us one of the reasons I brought my MSR filter, with a long intake hose, as opposed to my Saywer squeeze, which uses a bag. I tossed the intake valve just barely in the water and stood as far away from the edge as I could. I was pretty confident I was further away than an alligator would be willing to lunge. But it was still nerve-wracking. I successfully filled my water supply and moved on.

I dug my heels in and gritted out the roadwalk. I finished the worst of it, about 9 miles, by about 9 am. After that it was only a mile to Tosohatchee WMA on a quiet road. Before Tosohatchee, it actually turned into a jungle-like 4WD road.

The last bit of road before Tosohatchee.

I entered Tosohatchee, took a break, then continued down trail to an actual footpath trail. They do exists! It didn't take long for the trail to start heading onto into a densely wooded area. I had no idea palms could grow so close to each other.

Back on the trail.

Ferns.

I decided to take a early lunch. I set my, pack down, went into the woods to pee, then came back and grabbed my sleeping pad to set down. On top of it was one of the biggest spiders I have ever seen. I later learned that it was a golden orb spider, which locals affectionately describe as “friendly.” At the time, I was not expecting to find that large of a spider. I jumped back with an audible gasp.

I used a palm frond to move the spider from my backpack to the ground, then took a very long lunch.  After all, I had plenty of time. On my way back down the trail I saw the other orb spider I have been seeing, the spiny orb weaver.

Golden orb weaver.

Spiny orb weaver. 

Vlog 1

Next, I entered a section labeled “ancient growth" in the Florida Trail app. I spent a lot of time in this section, taking pictures of, trees, taking pictures by trees, and vlogging.

The ancient growth section.

Poser.

More forest trail. 

Palm canopy.

More forest trail.

I continued to take my time, weaving through the trees. After all, I had plenty of time. Eventually, I  checked the GPS to see how far I had gone. It turns out that I didn't not have plenty of time. I had used all my time. I was now a little behind schedule.

My stroll through the woods became a crash through the woods. A couple miles into this fury, came an obstacle. There was a small cypress swamp to cross. Up until now I had been able to skirt around all the soggy areas with standing water. Not this time. I had to plunge right through. It was only ankle deep at its worst, but I was hoping to keep my feet dry.

I kept my pace through the woods, now with soggy socks, and emerged from the WMA into the town of Christmas and onto St Nicholas St. All the street names were festive, but that is where all “festive” attributes stop. There were chickens in the streets and angry dogs that were thankfully behind fences.

I called Pastor Ken to let him know that I had entered town, and talked to his wife. She said it would take them about an hour to get to the church, which was fine because that is possibly how long it would take me as well with my Circle K stop.

I made that Circle K stop (which practically had a beam of light shining down) and got a Coke, a Gatorade, a salad, combos, and whatever the Circle K version of a slurpee is called. I was a big spender.

A beautiful sight.

I sat at the church for a while, snacking. Eventually, Pastor Ken and his wife, Chrissy, showed up and had a treat for me. They showed me a bathroom that I could use at the back of the church.  Then they opened the rec center for me which had tables, chairs, outlets, drinking water, a refrigerator, and both heat and AC. I didn't have to tent outside.

Ft. Christmas Baptist Church. 

Vlog 2

I thanked them profusely,  ate dinner, then set up my mat/bag next to an outlet. My electronics were badly in need of a charge, so this was some great trail magic. I even turned the heat on and had a much more luxurious night than if I had stayed at the campground.