The Suwannee, So Dark It Reflects Beauty
One might imagine
an intimate, slow, winding river, full of alligators coming out of a cypress
swamp, yet the Suwanee River is a wide jet-black river with steep banks,
occasioned by the wide sandy beach. It
is a river with a pace rather than a standing swamp.
We chose to
canoe the Suwanee River because the amenities for canoe camping are known to be
incredible. The State of Florida
provides screened platforms to sleep, picnic tables, fire circles, electricity,
and bathrooms complete with hot water for showers. And all of this is free or you can pay a
minimal charge to reserve your spot along the river. We wanted Ruth’s brother, David, and
sister-in-law, Debbie, to have a great experience their first time on the river
and so we tried to make canoe-camping as easy as possible – no roughing it for
them – they would have the ultimate canoeing experience.
Our plans
for this ultimate experience would soon go awry, and we had a different kind of
ultimate! A few days before our trip, the
local outfitter let us know that Suwannee River State Park was still closed due
to hurricane Idalia. Suwannee River
State Park was to have been the end of our river trip. Hurricane Idalia had passed through the upper
peninsula of Florida in late August and we were canoeing in October. We had assumed the area would have been
completely recovered from any damage.
Surely, they could have gotten a park in working order. What kind of repairs did they need to
do? Not only that, our outfitter told us
that the Wilderness River Camp at Holton Creek, where we had hoped to stay, was
also considered closed. We never received word of this from the Florida State
Park online reservation service. The outfitter helped us decide that we could
still do the trip, but instead of taking out at Suwannee River State Park, take
out earlier at Gibson Park, making it a shorter third day. So, here we go!
We planned
an early start from the put in at Suwanee River Wayside Park, Hwy 41, outside
White Springs, a sleepy little town. We
spent the night at the only hotel in the vicinity, Quality Inn, which was
decent but on this Sunday there were no restaurants open and we had to go to Live
Oak to get something to eat, which was a hub of activity with restaurants and
motels.
The next
morning, we unloaded the canoes and dry bags at Wayside Park as Hwy 41 crossed
the Suwannee River and the drivers drove the cars to Gibson Park to meet our
shuttle. We had contracted with Suwanee
River Canoe Rental (located near Suwannee River State Park) to drive us back to
the put in. Those of us who stayed at
the put in waiting for their return, realized Wayside Park was a drive through
and hang out place, even early in the morning. We must have not looked very
interesting because several cars rolled in quick, took a look and rolled right
on out. Over an hour later, the shuttle
had arrived with our missing drivers. We
loaded the canoes and were ready to paddle by 9:30am, an early start for us.
We were
surprised at the speed of the river as we began our paddle. The depth of the river was near its high-water
mark, as we could not see any water line marks on the banks of the river. This high water caused the river to be
flowing faster. We settled into an “Ahh!
Experience” of loving the cypress greeting us in their beauty and stillness – a
feature of Florida rivers. The cypress trees along the river
release tannins that cause the water to be black. One doesn’t look into the water, with its
being so dark, it becomes a mirror, reflecting back everything not in the
water. Also, striking to see were the several
limestone outcroppings on the sides of the river which looked like giant
bracket fungus, hanging over the sides of the river.
This part of
the Suwannee River offers several side trips to get out to explore, the first
coming soon after the bridge for Hwy 136.
It was The White Springs, encased in a building of cement/rock/coquina
mixture in the early 1900’s. It was
Florida’s first tourist attraction, people coming from all over to experience
healing from the spring’s sulfur waters.
The town grew to have 14 luxury hotels.
The spring is no longer spectacular to see, but the remains of the
structure are still standing.
White Springs, circa 1911
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| Bird's Eye View from the White Springs Pool |
Leaving the
springs area, the next stop is Stephen Foster State Park, a park that hosts the
Florida Folk Festival every year. We
were looking for a convenience stop but did not find any. We could see that they are renovating their
boat ramp and it will be finished soon.
It will make a nice place to put in.
At the moment, the boat ramp was closed.
There were
not many places along the river that were flat enough or dry enough to get out
and stretch, or have a snack. It might
be because of the high water. One of my
favorite side trips was turning our canoe up Louisa Spring. The entrance to the spring-fed creek is on
the right side of the river, a short distance before the I-75 bridge. Here a foot bridge of the Florida Trail crosses
the tiny spring flow. The spring creek is barely wide enough for one canoe with
the sharp, rocky limestone walls on both sides.
These sharp walls were perfect for the growth of ferns and we actually
found begonias tucked into the nooks and crannies of the limestone. As we paddled further back, the current
became stronger and the black water actually started becoming clear with the
fresh spring water feeding it. It was a
totally new world. But our stomachs were
talking to us, and no one had the energy to keep going to find the source; we
turned around because we just wanted to eat lunch.
Canoeing Up Louisa Spring, Florida Trail Bridge
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| Begonias on Rough Limestone Walls |
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| Entrance to Suwannee from Louisa Spring Access |
We stopped at
Rocky Creek Rest Stop for lunch, and set ourselves up on the sandbar. We shared the space with some local people
who were fishing. They were the first
people we had seen all day.
When we got back on the river, we realized we only had 3 miles left to paddle. David hadn’t been canoeing since he was a kid, but we sure couldn’t tell. We had to paddle constantly to keep up with David and Debbie. We were at Woods Ferry Camp, our destination, in less than an hour. The camp can’t be missed. It is on top of a bluff on the left side of the river and has a long zig-zag ramp from the river to the top of the bank.
Zig-Zag Ramp at Woods Ferry Camp
The camp is really set up to care for guests. Canoe racks are at the river level to leave canoes in a safe space, not to be swept away by changes in water levels. There are also carts for carrying all the gear up the zig-zap ramps to the camp. Load them up!
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| Carts to carry dry bags and luggage |
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| Canoes being unloaded before put on the canoe racks. |
A camp host greeted us at the top. We had reserved Pavillion #1, handicapped accessible. It was waiting for us, and offered a place to recharge electrically and physically.
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| Pavilion #1 at Woods Ferry |
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| View of the Suwanee from a Bluff, Love the Colors |
BUT, the hurricane had messed up so that there were no hot showers available and even though there was water in the pipes, the host did not think we should trust it for drinking. No problem, we just needed to boil the water. The evening was restful until we hit the sack. Interstate 75 could be heard all night and very late at night we heard three pops of a gun. Debbie was planning on where to hide if they came for us! We had purposedly planned this trip after October 15th, which was the end of gun season for that area, so I was surprised to hear the shots in the middle of the night too.
The next morning, we were again on the river by 9:30. We had an 18-mile day before us, so we made steady progress not making many stops. There were many more sand bars on this part of the river so, it was easy to find places for stretching and lunch.
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| Photo by Debbie Lantz |
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| Many Sandbars to Stretch and Relax Photo by Debbie Lantz |
The perfect place for lunch was at Suwannee Springs. It wasn’t well marked so we almost missed it. David and Debbie went to check out this weird building – and find out it is enclosing a spring. The frame of the “building” is made out of limestone with arch windows. If you see this RIGHT on the river, you will know that you are at the spring.
Limestone walls around Suwannee Springs
Wade in the spring, smell the sulfur, and
have a picnic on a table on the grassy manicured lawn. There are also port-a-potties available. As you leave this area, enjoy the art on the
abandoned 129 bridge.
On the left of the river is the Spirit of the Suwannee River
Music Park. We were told by phone that there were no accommodations at the
park, but we believe it is because the hurricane tore the place up so they were
actually closed. We could see one of
their treehouses from the river. As we
passed Deese Howard ramp on the left side of the river, we remarked at the
quality of the boat ramp – it’s width and openness. It is found at the end of
103rd Road. That would be a
good put in site.
We are really making good time, not playing around, but doing
solid paddling. On the left side of the river there is an indication of the
Florida Sheriff’s Boys’ Ranch between mile marker 143 and 142 on the map. A boat launch was being built and it looked
quite sturdy.
It wasn’t long before we found Holton Creek River Camp. We pulled our canoes onto the dock and walked up the wooden steps. No host greeted us here, but it was devastation which greeted us. Massive trees felled all over the camp by Hurricane Idalia. The toilets and showers were demolished as well as one screened sleeping platform.
There was no access to water
or electricity. This was no longer the
ultimate in canoe camping. This was the “roughing it” that we were trying to
avoid. Yet we had still received confirmation of our camping reservation by
email and then afterwards a survey to ask how our camping experience had
been! It was only in the middle of
November when we received an email letter giving notice that Holton Creek River
Camp was closed as of September 5 and up until April 2024! A full month after we camped there.
Demolished Pavilion at Holton Creek
After surveying the entire camp, we found screened platforms
that we felt were safe (with no hanging trees precariously dangling above) and
made camp. We had brought along enough
drinking water and used the river water for washing dishes. It was a quiet evening as we were further
away from civilization.
As we pondered our time on the river that evening, we
realized that the wildlife that we would have expected on a Florida river were
not here. We did not find any wading
birds or ducks, birds that we associate with the water. There were a few
kingfishers and pileated woodpeckers and a few warblers traveling through, but
that was it. Few turtles, no alligators. We did observe a young deer trying to cross
the river, and another deer early in the morning which were lovely sightings,
but we found it sparse.
Early Morning Mists on the River
