With the Rodman Reservoir drawdown ending, it was time to revisit Sweetwater Creek and Deep Creek while the water was at a low level. On a previous paddle in September 2019, the water level was quite a bit higher and much of the paddle was over the hundreds of tree stumps killed by the reservoir waters…James
It’s been over 20 years since I’ve paddled on the Upper Santa Fe River, the stretch above Oleno State Park, and a first-time paddle onto Olustee Creek. It was a beautiful spring day ( despite being February ) and I was definitely treated to an exciting new adventure! …James
We spent President’s Day on the Dora Canal down in Tavares. It was my first time on the canal and I found it to be a quite pretty place to paddle, though very busy with tour boats, fishing boats, and pleasure craft. I would highly recommend doing this on a day other than the weekend or on a holiday…James
With the Rodman Reservoir drawdown taking place every few years, it presents a wonderful opportunity to experience paddling on the original Ocklawaha channel, lined with the towering remnants of Bald Cypress, Tupelo, and Ash, killed when the reservoir was filled. These past couple of weeks I have shared paddles to the ‘Sentinel Cypress’, an early morning Sunrise through a cold mist, and today I share a unique paddle to observe the January ‘Wolf’ Moon rising over the Ocklawaha, Enjoy!…James
This morning I planned a short trip over to the Ocklawaha River near Orange Springs in order to capture photographs of the sunrise through the cold haze and dead tree trunks, exposed during the Rodman Dam drawdown. I was on the water by 7:00 am, it was in the low 40°’s but well worth it. Not a soul around, hundreds of Storks, Limpkins, and Herons just waking up. The haze, the silence, and the silhouettes of dead tree trunks made for an eerie, yet beautiful setting…totally cool!…James
2019 is over and it’s time to reflect on this past year’s paddles and offer my Top 10 choices for the year. Each year and …
This final paddle had a mission to find one of several Sentinel Cypress’ located throughout the swamp forests of the Ocklawaha Basin. With tips from previous guides, and without being given the exact location, we were able to locate one of these beauties and photograph it! It was the perfect way for Florida Paddle Notes to end 2019…James
