Posted By auntie on January 29, 2018

8.9 miles; Port St. Joe, FL

This is the main preserve, as opposed to the smaller part I did earlier this month. This is a really large area. I could easily have done another 3 or 4 miles through here. And it was very cool—so many tracks: deer, possums, raccoons, coyotes…even pigs! 

The Trail

This whole preserve is criss-crossed with these old logging roads and that’s what the “trails” were all like. Fortunately they weren’t super sandy, so the walking was pretty easy. As you will see, the day started out kind of cloudy and gray, but the sun did eventually come out.

Tiny White Violet

This was something I never expected to see here… a tiny white violet in bloom. This is, I believe, lance-leaved violet, Viola lanceolata. I don’t think it’s even officially its bloom season, but there it was.

Good Signage

All the trails/roads through here are marked like this at their intersections, so getting around was pretty easy, once you got hold of a map (more on this later).

Recent Burn

I wanted to walk here the day I walked the Wilderness Trail in St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, but when I got to the parking area there was a sign that a Prescribed Burn was underway and DO NOT ENTER. Mmm-kay. And here is part of the area burned. More on prescribed fire from the Florida Department of Agriculture:

Prescribed fire is one of the most versatile and cost-effective tools land managers use. Prescribed fire is used to reduce hazardous fuel buildups, thus providing increased protection to people, their homes and the forest. Other uses include disease control in young pines, wildlife habitat improvement, range management, preservation of endangered plant and animal species and the maintenance of fire-dependent ecosystems.

The Florida Forest Service through the Forest Protection Bureau oversees one of the most active prescribed fire programs in the country. In an average year the Florida Forest Service will issue approximately 88,000 authorizations allowing landowners and agencies to prescribe burn an average of over 2.1 million acres each year.

Interestingly, it was really only a very small area that was charred like this.

Moar Signage

You can’t read that sign in this photo, but it says “Bear Research Site—Please Do Not Disturb.” Hey, NO PROBLEM. I will NOT DISTURB BEARS WHILE THEY ARE DOING RESEARCH! OR FOR ANY REASON AT ALL. EVER.

Coyote Tracks

Feral Pig/Hog Tracks

Many, Many More Feral Pig/Hog Tracks and Some Possum

While the roads weren’t so sandy that it made walking difficult, they still retained TONS of animal tracks. I back-followed a coyote trail for miles. Just the one guy going someplace apparently important to him/her. And what I first thought were a lot of deer tracks, on closer inspection, turned out to be feral pigs/hogs. Which are literally pigs brought here by the Spaniards in the 1500s and/or European wild boar brought here as game animals in the 17-1800s and/or hybrids of the two animals. The only “pig” species that is native to the Americas is the javalina. Which is not actually a pig at all, but a totally different kind of mammal. Or so my research assistant, Dr. Harry J. Google, tells me.

He also informs me the only 4 people have been killed by wild hogs in the US since the 1800s.

Preserve Map (click for pdf file)

Now about that map… I searched for what seemed like days online for a map of this preserve. I knew it was big, and I knew it had hiking trails on it, but apparently the map was a MAJOR SECRET or something. Finally got a paper copy when I pulled in to the parking area—they had them in holders on the kiosk. Once I got home I scanned it using my cheap portable scanner that I brought with me, so please excuse the white lines. But as you can see, there are many miles of road/trail. In fact, I had planned to go back to my car on Dogleg Road (I believe its name is unfortunately under one of the white lines). Just as I was about to make the turn to head that way, a nice lady came up behind me and we got to talking and she asked if I had planned to go back via Dogleg Road. When I said I was she said, “Oh, don’t go that way, Dogleg’ll drown ya. It’s ALWAYS underwater. Here, follow me.” And she showed me a shortcut that wasn’t on the map and that wasn’t, also, underwater. I didn’t see anyone else the whole time, and she quickly disappeared ahead of me after showing me the shortcut. It was a miracle, I tell ya. The Miracle of Dogleg Road.

Track (click for details)

You can find out more about the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve on their “Friends of” page. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Categories: Florida, Walks and Hikes
Tags: 7–10 miles, FL, Port St. Joe FL