Kayaking enthusiasts will soon be able to kayak around the
entire Florida peninsula using the Florida Circumnavigational
Saltwater Paddling Trail.
Doug Alderson, field director at the
Department of Environmental Protection, finished scouting out
all the campsites along the way in September. Most of the trail
campsites are open, but the department is still getting
permission to open campsites at some of the state parks and
wildlife refuges. Those campsites, including three at St. Mark's
Wildlife Refuge, should open sometime next year.
Alderson gave a presentation on the trail at the Wilderness
Way's kayaking demonstration and workshop at Maclay Gardens on
Sunday.
Starting at Big Lagoon State Park near the Alabama border,
the trail winds its way along the Florida coastline, ending at
Fort Clinch State Park near Georgia.
"Along the way we have a lot of points of interest, like
lighthouses, museums and Native-American temple mounds,"
Alderson said. "I'm trying to include those in the guide to make
it kind of a cultural, historical trip and not just a paddling
trip."
Alderson
said the trail is about 1,500 miles long. He estimates it would
take four months to negotiate the entire trail.
Kayaking is becoming popular among the middle-age and older
crowd, in part because the boats come as light at 20 pounds and
are thus easier to transport than canoes.
Jerry Plath, an Opelika, Ala., native who came to Sunday's
demonstration to try out and purchase a couple of kayaks, said
he became interested in the sport as something active to do
during the winter months.
