Florida Trail Church’s Helping Hikers

This morning I woke up for the first time around 4 AM. And it was such a good feeling and knowing that I could go back to bed for another couple of hours. And finally around six I started packing up and getting ready. I knew that I wanted to go over to the rest area to wash my shoes, socks, and gaiters in the sink there. I just didn’t have the energy to do it last night and I couldn’t be bothered. But today I still have to do more walking and I’m not sure when I’ll get the opportunity to do laundry again. So I really didn’t want to use my own other pair of socks to walk today.

As I made my way over to the rest area, I was surprised that my body felt completely fine. Absolutely no aches and pains or lingering soreness from yesterday. I was honestly pretty shocked.

I took about 15 or 20 minutes to thoroughly clean my socks which were filled with a fine sand. Then I took my insoles out of my shoes and cleaned those as well. And then I put all of them back on soaking wet. At least now they were soft and clean and wouldn’t be bothering or rubbing on my feet over the course of today.

Last night when I went to bed, I was slightly planning on doing a shorter day today, and only going about 17 miles to the church on the Seminole reservation. But then I was thinking about the fact that I just bought myself so much time by doing that big day yesterday. So I figure if I’m feeling good I might as well take advantage of that and try to do a fairly normal day today. That way I can still get good miles in and might even be able to spend the night in Clewiston when we pass through there in a couple of days. That’s our next actual town stop other than the small store on the Seminole reservation.

A big sign for the Florida trail, right around where the trail picks up again after I 75.

All of us sat at ate breakfast after that and it was so good. I had a hot mocha, which was fantastic. And some pancakes, potatoes, and fried bacon. We talked with another hiker Colossus who had spent the night at I 75 as well. And then while we sat there another hiker arrived who actually knew a lot of my mutual friends from the AT, which was cool.

I loved the green canopy of trees that we were walking under this morning.

We made some loose plans with Fresh Ground to see him maybe tomorrow. If we cover enough ground today and are still feeling really good then he might be able to slack pack us tomorrow so we can get all the way to Clewiston that night. That would be a really big day but would allow me to get into a hotel to shower and even possibly do laundry. It’s the start of day nine and I haven’t done laundry since I left home to start the trip. Otherwise, if we do two 28 or so mild days the next couple of days we won’t get it to Clewiston until the following morning. Which would mean just picking up my box of food and not really being able to charge devices or do any town chores or shower. I would really prefer not to take a nero in Clewiston if I can avoid it. It would be much more of a time saver to get to do the slack pack, rather than waste a day in town.

Bacon in a bag for second breakfast! Thanks to Fresh Ground.

Then we said goodbye to everyone and set out to begin walking. Fortunately, today we’re going to be on pine and dirt roads for basically the whole day until we hit the reservation. Immediately once we started moving, it felt so good to just be walking normally with no mud or water. My body feels fantastic. I just still feel a little bit rundown and tired today. My upper body is really sore from yesterday so I’m a little tired.

We walked across a bridge on the reservation with this large body of water underneath it.

Time went by pretty quickly as we were road walk this morning. It was nice and cool, which was perfect. The last few days have been really cold considering we’re down in Florida. But I’ve been absolutely loving it. It’s the perfect weather to be walking all day on exposed sections of trail and road. Before we knew it we were about 8 or 9 miles in and we hit the gate which marks the boundary for the Seminole reservation.

I actually slept there last year once I got out of the reservation going southbound. It’s the first option you have for camping because you’re not allowed to camp on the reservation unless you stay in their church.

We continued along dirt roads for the next couple of hours, making our way toward the reservation itself. There are a couple places to stop off in the reservation to get some food. So that would be nice to take a break there and eat something. But I actually packed out a couple ensures that I’ve been storing with Fresh Ground. So I drank those as I walked this morning which loaded me up on vitamins, protein, and a lot of calories.

We continued along dirt roads for a long time. Then got out onto an actual paved road for the next couple of hours. I wound up talking to my mom on the phone which was great. It had been a little while since we talked last. We were able to catch up for a bit while I walked alongside the road. Then she had to get back to work and I continued along.

Getting on to the Main Street of the reservation, around all of the stores and businesses.

Right as we were passing into the main portion of the Seminole reservation a vehicle pulled over. The guy was talking to Long Shot when I arrived. Then I joined them and he asked for my name. When I told him I was Peg Leg he got so excited and asked to shake my hand. Apparently he had been following my hike along the CDT. This man was actually the pastor of the Baptist church in town too! He said that we had to come over there and see the place. There are showers, laundry, snacks, and drinks.

The Baptist church! Their kindness and support of hikers is incredible.

So we began walking through town and headed to the church. This place was incredible! I grabbed a drink from the fridge and began charging my stuff up. My battery bank was pretty low so I was glad that I did. Then I got a blog and video up and decided to go take a shower. At first I wasn’t going to, but Long Shot said it was great. And it was!

The Florida trail tag that Ari gave me.

Walking along this canal after starting to leave the reservation.

After that we hung out at the church for a while. There were a few other hikers there zeroing so we talked to them. Then thanked the pastor and his wife and headed out around 3pm. It was a mile and a half down the road to a gas station and store where we wanted to stop briefly. Then we continued through town and then out onto a dirt road that paralleled the main road. 

The rest of the evening was nice and easy. We walked along dirt roads by a canal for hours. Watching large birds fly by and cars off in the distance. Eventually the dirt road turned and headed off away from the road. It was nice to have the privacy of heading toward the levee.

As the sun began to set, we got beautiful views which lasted for nearly an hour!

The sun began to set and it was absolutely exceptional over the canal channels. Then right as it got dark we turned and got onto the levee itself. This part of the trail has a closure. But you just have to walk on a levee across from the one which was previously open. It doesn’t add distance or anything like that. It was closed when I came through here last year too.

It’s hard to beat sunsets on the Florida trail.

We walked for an hour or so after dark and then arrived at the canal where we had talked about camping. But we couldn’t find any tent sites around. I texted Punisher to see if he was there, and he was still walking. Heading in the direction of the next tent site. Where I had actually camped last year when I was here. He said he’d start looking for some place flat and send us the location.

This canal was crystal clear as color flooded the sky and reflected off of it.

And after another 10 minutes or so he did. He was about 5 miles up ahead of us so we began walking there. We could truly camp wherever we want, but it’s nice to link up at the end of the day. Plus, Fresh Ground is planning on coming out to meet us for lunch and to maybe slack pack up tomorrow. It would be simpler to be around each other.

Truly the best part of the day.

Even though we weren’t planning to go further I didn’t mind the extra miles. They just put me ahead and helped me in the future. Plus my body felt great. No aches and pains. I wasn’t stiff or tight. It was just another hour and a half of leisurely walking along a dirt levee. Then around 8:30pm we saw Punishers tent by a small water pump building.

There was plenty of space around him to get set up so we did. The ground was hard but there were rocks to use to get the stakes in. Once I got in my tent I took my contacts out, did my stretching, and then ate an empanada that I’d packed out. Not long after that I drifted off to sleep. I barely had time to write before I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer.