July Trip to Buck Lake WMA

As I intend to leave Florida by the end of August, I decided to make the most of my time here and plan a last-minute overnight trip to Buck Lake Wildlife Management Area.

Located in Mims, FL, it has a few trails, many running along powerlines, but this time of year you're unlikely to encounter anyone else, save poachers.

I mainly selected this site because it's 30 minutes away from my house, and I was trying to go out after work, but arrive at the campsite before dark.

The majority of the trails we'd travel were essentially powerline roads.  

The weather has been hovering in the mid-90s all day, with thunderstorms every evening, humidity in the low-60s.  It's not a very pleasant time of year to spend outdoors, but I don't know when I'll be able to see the sights again.  

Due to the excessive heat, I took a yeti bottle filled with crushed ice/water slush.  An empty yeti weighs nearly 2 lbs, but I figured since we only intended on doing 6 miles total, it wouldn't hurt.

My final pack weight was 35 lbs.  About 10 lbs more than I normally aim for on a single night trip, but the trails are totally level and composed of packed sand, I didn't anticipate any difficulty.  The previous time I had hiked this trail, water in any form was inaccessible, and the pump was inoperable.

I would soon regret wearing shorts.

The trip to camp was uneventful, me and Matt stopped occasionally to photograph wildlife.

Some kind of fruit or citrus. 

If this isn't called a coffee-bean beetle, it's a lost opportunity.

At a certain point, the improved trail surface becomes loose Florida sugar sand, and it was at this point that several animal tracks became quite evident.  It was easy to see wild boar, deer, armadillo, fox, rabbit, crane, coyote, and snake tracks.  A wolf spider with eggs, and juvenile black racer were also spotted.  

Sandhill Crane

An interesting frilled flower. 

Coyote track

Deer and pig tracks were everywhere.  

A wolf spider with many babies hitching a ride.  

Black racer juvenile, approx 18" long. 

We also encountered a Florida Grey Fox, and a wild boar, both in the same manner:  A sudden explosion from the fronds/palmettos, and a fast glimpse of the creature, they spot us, they run away.  No time to grab the camera, and had the boar wanted to do us harm, we would probably had been injured.  I usually carry a 1970s-era police revolver for this reason.  I've never needed it, nature doesn't bother you if you stick to the trails and aren't a total div.  

The campsites in this part of the state are well managed.  This one in buck lake, although inaccessible to vehicles, has a water pump and fire ring.  Fortunately the pump was operable this time out.  

As usual anywhere more than 20 miles from a library, the sign features several bullet holes. 

Perhaps the highlight of the evening was spotted a quarter of a mile from camp.  A very large (>36") black racer was occupying the center of the trail, working down the last 8" of a Pygmy rattler.  I enjoyed this immensely as a similar sized rattler had attacked my dog last September.

The rattler was squirming around.  The encounter lasted less than 10 seconds, and the racer took its meal to go when it sensed us.

We arrived at camp just as the sun set.  The camping tempo in Florida is a pretty relaxed affair.  Twilight lasts for over an hour this time of year, and the only thing you need worry about if you delay setting up shelter are the mosquitoes.  Speaking of which, these are some of the largest I've ever seen.  They bit like they look and I wished I'd worn permethrin treated pants instead of the shorts I had on.

That's an Orthopodomyia mosquito, according to a quick google. 

Setup was quick and easy, my Eureka Solitaire hasn't been used since the fiberglass tent poles snapped, and the pre-formed aluminum replacements from TentpoleTechnologies performed way better than the ones that shipped with the tent.  It went up in a snap and I didn't have issues with them snagging in the tent while threading them through.  They bent into shape better and didn't feel on the verge of breaking.  Well worth the $50 and extra 2 oz. 

Dinner was a quick bowl of ramen cooked on my MSR pocket rocket.  Matt had some dehydrated veggies and coconut oil, they really made it a full meal instead of a disappointing snack.  I need to consider comfort over weight more often.  

Speaking of comfort, I decided against my better judgement to bring my Husqvarna hatchet.  It weighs 2.5 lbs, and we didn't exactly need a fire, but I just got it, and I needed to chop something with it. It soon found some storm-damaged oaks next to the campsite. 

It took about 30 whacks to get through the 3" limb.  

The fire, while too hot to stand near (it was 85 degrees even at 11PM), drove away the mosquitoes and seemed to wick away the stagnant humidity. 

Nighttime was quite uncomfortable.  I left my bag at home, and opted for a single white sheet, but even this was too hot.  I rolled it up and used it as a pillow.  It was nearly sopping wet with sweat by morning, which mercifully was breezy and mid-70s.  

I made some oatmeal, doused the fire, and we were off.

The return trip was boring, interrupted only by a blister and a rather large hawk in a tree.  We spent a good while trying to sneak around it to get a face on picture, but it kept turning away from us, then flew off.

The entire trip was exactly 6 miles.  I learned some things.  

1.  No amount, strength, or variety of bug repellent matters. If there's enough of them, they'll bite you, and keep biting.  

2.  I brought binoculars & a DSLR. This is over 3.5 lbs of weight, and not at all acceptable for hikes over multiple days, or up any sort of incline.  I'll need to invest in a smaller camera.  

3.  3 liters of water is handy to have if you can't find water, but the most soggy state in the country in summer has many natural sources.  I'll need to be lighter.  Carry less, sweat less, drink less.  

4.  My boots are way too hot & heavy.  I've put off buying real hiking boots for years now, and it's apparent that the boots I bought to work on a construction site in KY in the winter are inadequate (or overly adequate) for the task of backpacking.  They weigh 3 lbs each and have steel toes.  Fine for four wheeling, not for walking.  

Finally, here's a fancy GPS track of my path.  It's a bit annoying hiking so near condo developments, but welcome to FL.