ROAD TRIP
This
year’s spring break trip had a number of inspirations. First, Christy was eager to get back into
triathlons, and decided to do an off-road race (lake swimming, mountain biking,
and trail running) at Bear Lake near Pensacola, Florida. It was my job to build a trip from
there.
One
of my goals is to do at least one hike in every state. I came up with a plan that would enable me to
hike in four new states – Mississippi, Louisiana, Missouri, and Illinois. Of course I didn’t want to spend the entire trip
in those states. I’ve wanted to do some
serious hiking in the Ozark Mountains of northwestern Arkansas for years
now. Last September two good friends of
mine had a great trip that included some hikes in that area. Their trip inspired me to do some real
exploring up there.
As
luck would have it, I got a job assignment outside of Atlanta the week before
the trip. I was scheduled to finish my
job Thursday afternoon. That meshed well
with Christy’s desire to get to Pensacola by Friday afternoon. There were some logistical challenges, but I
solved them by renting a car one-way from Charlotte to Atlanta for my job. I did most of the packing the weekend prior
to leaving for Atlanta. On Thursday
afternoon, Christy would pick me up at the Avis office in Buford, GA. We’d ride together from there, spending
Thursday night at a hotel in Montgomery, Alabama. That would allow us to get to Pensacola early
on Friday. As a result, Christy would be
able to ride the course in advance and pick up her race packet.
After
Christy’s race on Saturday morning we planned to hit the beach for a little
while. Then we’d head to Percy Quin
State Park in Mississippi, where we had campsite reserved. On Sunday we’d knock out two ½ day
hikes. The first would be to several waterfalls
on Clark Creek and its tributaries in southwestern Mississippi. That afternoon we’d do a hike to Castor Creek
near Alexandria, Louisiana. After
camping near there Sunday night, we’d drive to the Ozarks on Monday. We’d spend the next few days hiking in and
around the Buffalo National River. We
also planned to check out some caves and were considering renting kayaks to
paddle one section of the river.
Thursday evening we’d visit Eureka Springs, Arkansas and camp at Roaring
River State Park in Missouri. On Friday
we’d hike to Cave Spring on Missouri’s Current
River. We’d spend the last two nights of
our trip car camping at Ferne Clyffe State Park in
Illinois. On Saturday we’d do some hikes
in the Shawnee National Forest in Illinois.
Then we’d spend most of the day Sunday driving home.
BEAR LAKE AND JUNIPER CREEK
That
final week of work was awful. It was a
job I’d done previously, back in November.
That assignment had been a disaster.
Unfortunately, the follow-up assignment wasn’t much better. It was a relief when Thursday afternoon
rolled around and I was able to pull the plug on it. I returned the rental car at the Avis in
Buford and walked to the Mexican restaurant next door. I had chips and salsa and a couple of beers
waiting for Christy. She arrived before
long, having already endured a nightmarish drive. She recovered with a margarita. Then we made the short drive to P.F. Changs for dinner.
This was strategic, as we were hoping that Atlanta’s rush hour traffic
would clear out while we were eating. It
was a good plan, but we hadn’t counted on a major bridge on I-85 burning to the
ground that evening.
By
the time we neared that area the ghost of General Sherman had already done his
deed. I-85 was closed, so we took 285
around the south side of Atlanta. It was
after 8pm, but traffic was still pretty terrible due to the closure. We eventually made it to the Candlewood
Suites in Montgomery and crashed. The
next morning we realized that the Prius needed an oil change. We had a lot of miles ahead of us, so we
didn’t want to wait until after the trip.
We stopped at an express oil change place and took care of that before
hitting the road.
We
went straight to Bear Lake, which is a 45-minute drive northeast of Pensacola. Christy’s race would include swimming in the
lake (which is normally off-limits due to the presence of alligators), and
mountain biking and running on trails in the area. While Christy was scouting the mountain bike
course I hiked the running course. I
followed the trail around Bear Lake, but I didn’t see any bears or
alligators. However, I did find some
wildflowers, including a couple of areas with white-topped pitcher plants in
bloom.
I
finished the 4-mile hike and met Christy back at the parking area. From there we drove to a bike shop in
Pensacola so Christy could pick up her race packet. Afterwards we went to Olive Garden, mainly
because someone had given us a gift card.
They also gave us gift cards to Outback and Cracker Barrel. These aren’t restaurants we typically eat at,
but this trip was a good opportunity to use them.
From
there we headed over to the Candlewood Suites, where I’d booked a free
room. I would’ve preferred to camp at
Bear Lake, but they don’t take reservations and the campground is small. When we planned the trip we’d been worried
about counting on getting a spot there.
We
got up early the next morning and drove back up to Bear Lake. Christy dropped me off on the way
though. While she was racing, I would
hike the Juniper Creek Trail. She
dropped me off at the northern trailhead, with plans to pick me up at the south
end at Blackwater River State Park early that afternoon.
The
trail is only 7 miles long, and I had plenty of time. Christy dropped me off at the bridge over
Juniper Creek, so I took some time exploring upstream and down along it. There is a primitive camping area here, which
would be ideal if Christy does this race again in the future. The creek is lovely, with numerous sandy
beaches and dark tan water. A short
distance upstream I found mountain laurel in bloom. Prior to this trip, I didn’t know that
mountain laurel grows in Florida. It was
great to catch it in bloom.
After
exploring around a bit, I returned to the road and walked down it a ¼ mile to
the actual trailhead. There was a small
group of people here, as apparently there was a trail race on the Juniper Creek
Trail that morning. I was amazed, as we
were only a few miles from Bear Lake.
It’s surprising that there were two different races going on in the same
area on the same morning.
The
first runners started passing by a few minutes later. Fortunately, I reached a side trail that
demanded exploration at the same time. I
followed it to the top of a colorful, eroded bluff. It was a dramatic spot, at least by Florida
standards, as the bluff is 60’ above the creek.
I took in the views from the top, and noticed another dense stand of
mountain laurel. Then I found a trail
that led down to the creek at the base of the bluff. From there I was able to explore around the
eroded face of the bluff.
From
there I rejoined the trail and followed it south. At times it followed the creek closely, but
occasionally it wandered inland or up onto bluffs. One impressive stretch of bluffs featured a
camping area and shelter. Farther
downstream were more lovely beaches.
After
about 4 miles the trail and creek parted ways.
A bit farther on I crossed a paved road and passed through a stand of
longleaf pine. A bit later I spotted
another pitcher plant blooming in the middle of the trail. The final stretch of trail, in Blackwater
River State Park, had some wet and muddy sections. I reached the picnic area and trailhead at
the bridge a few minutes after Christy arrived.
I had originally planned to lounge on the nearby beach while waiting for
her, but I had dawdled so much during the hike that she beat me.
We
drove into Milton and stopped at a Mexican Restaurant. Then we headed out to Pensacola Beach, which
is pretty despite being very busy. We
lounged there for a bit before resuming the journey west.
Back to Florida
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