Maria's Camel Lake trip
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Florida winters are refreshing and mild so I was surprised when my husband
and I arrived at the Appalachicola National Forest and there were no people
in sight.
We had driven up from South Florida and my husband began sneezing on the way there. We were both worried that he was coming down with a cold on the first day of our week long December camping expedition in Florida's panhandle. The days are short in the winter and it was 4:00 when we hit the road that leads to the Camel Lake campsite. On the way we began to notice pick-up trucks parked on the side of the road. Then we spied men toting rifles. This was a new experience for city slickers such as ourselves. We soon realized that we were going camping in the forest during deer hunting season! Neither one of us had even known that hunting was allowed in a National Forest. The gunshots followed us all the way to the campground where we saw a sign that warned against firearms in the campground. This was of some comfort, although my husband was worried about our vulnerability. By this time my husband was feeling miserable and sneezing nonstop. We had enough daylight left to set up camp and eat peanut butter sandwiches with homegrown grapefruit for dessert. My husband took cold medicine and was out like a light. We were the only two people at the campsite and it was pitch black. I could hear howls but I didn't know if the animals were wolves or hunting dogs. At least the gunshots stopped when the sun went down. We had pitched our tent on the banks of a lake and twice in the night I heard a strange swooshing sound below us. I was certain that the sound was a gator and I couldn't remember if I had ever read about gators ripping through tents to eat the occupants. Finally morning came and we were still in one piece. I stepped out of the tent to a crisp cool day. The leaves fluttered to the ground and made a soft carpet under my feet. I walked to the dreaded gator filled lake and was amazed at how still and beautiful it was. Fog was drifting in and it soon covered the entire lake. It was a precious sight and my husband soon joined me. Miraculously he was feeling 100% better (I attribute that to our grapefruit). The rest of the trip was thoroughly enjoyable and while I prefer the solitude that we had at the various state parks, it would be a shame for this beauty to go unnoticed by others. A visit to Florida's state parks in the winter is the best time to go because you escape both the heat and the bugs! Just watch out for the hunters. |
