Okefenokee

[opie984]

I am looking at a canoeing trip in the okefenokee and from what I can tell on the website, hammocks just are not an option as the overnight sites to sleep are essentially platforms...err more like covered docks.

Anyone ever been to the okefenokee? If so, what would be my best option for sleeping: a SB and pad???

[Take-a-knee]

I just got back from there, I hung two nights, one at Maul Hammock and the next at Big Water shelter. My daughter and I hung diagonally from the 4x4's supporting the roofed shelter portion. Do spray your hammock with permethrin by all means.

[opie984]

That's a huge help. Did you really enjoy your trip???

[Take-a-knee]

That's a huge help. Did you really enjoy your trip???

Very much so. We started at Kingfisher landing and paddled to Maul Hammock the 1st day, 12.2 miles in 6.5 hrs. The next morning we were awakened my sandhill cranes. The paddle to Big Water shelter was 12 miles in a little over six hours. The entertainment that evening was frogs, and intermittently through the night. Day three's paddle was 7.8 easy miles through a cypress swamp to Billy's Lake and the state park there, what people typically think the Okefenokee consists of entirely( when actually it is mostly open marsh). We saw dozens of gators, a pair of otters, a raccoon and countless wading birds, several hawks and ospreys.

Be advised though that the shuttle from Stephan Foster St Pk to Kingfisher Landing is 100 miles, so plan accordingly. If you camp a Kingfisher it has to be a stealth camp, you are not authorized to camp there, but there is a private campground about a mile up the road, Kingfisher Wilderness Campground (912) 729-4672, 496-2186. The lillies will be blooming soon.

What sort of craft will you be using?

[opie984]

Haven't really decided what we are going to use. The number one choice right now is a single canoe because there's only two of us. The second thought was two kayaks, but wasn't sure if we'd get anymore storage space going that route.

We are thinking about the big circle: Kingfisher->Maul->Big Water->Floyds->Bluff Lake->Kingfisher

BTW, how did the toilet situation work out???

The next morning we were awakened by sandhill cranes.

For such a beautiful bird, they make an awful sound huh?