Guten Morgen, hikers!

Well, I almost ashamed to report to you the events of the past day and night.  I don’t deserve the bounty that came my way.

The night before last was a wet one, storms rolled in all night showering Big Agnes with rainfall.  I, safely ensconced behind her fabric walls, stayed dry and warm.  Not so much as drop managed it’s way into my sanctuary.  Nancy, thank you so much for convincing me that Big Agnes needed to make this hike with me.  She acquitted herself with distinction.  Thank you, there, Nancy.

A lull in the rain around 0500 bought me enough time to pack up and hit the trail in time to meet Tom Daniel and Ed Walker at the Alaqua trailhead.  It was a three-mile hike to the trailhead, one made mostly in the dark.  I was to meet them at 0900, I got there at 0700.  Plenty of time to wait around and watch the golden silk spiders alert upon every drop that struck their intricately-woven webs.  Often misnamed as “banana spiders,” these beautiful arachnids construct their webs of a golden silk that is best appreciated in the light of morning.  Don’t miss it.

Tom and Ed are part of the Choctawhatchee Chapter of the FTA.  They and I were to meet Bob Deckert at the Nokuse Plantation to – get this – decide and flag where a brand new section of the Florida Trail will traverse Nokuse’s 50,000 acres.  I never thought I’d ever get the chance to play a part in deciding the course of a National Scenic Trail, of which there are only eight in the country.

These are three interesting men.  Tom is a retired IRS agent.  Lean, graybearded and intense, he has the longest tenure with the FTA of the three and serves as the trail coordinator for the chapter.

Ed is retired from three decades of making sure your mail gets delivered.  He’s a bull, powerfully built but quiet, like guys like that can be.

Deckert is the man charged with plotting the course of the Nokuse section of trail.  He is the section leader.  Trim and totally at home in the outdoors, he once rode his bicycle from Chicago to Los Angeles.  He has the aerial maps, the safety equipment, rolls upon rolls of vinyl orange flagging tape and all the other accoutrements necessary to set about accomplishing some serious trail routing, as it is known in the business.

We had a blast!  We bushwacked through ti-ti (prounounced tie-tie), a dense bush that is biologically inclined to grow in places that would make fine trail terrain.  We walked through acres of longleaf pine beneath which flourish a thousand fall-burnished turkey oaks embroidered with the brilliant yellow hues of goldenrod. 

I’ll be writing more about the trail routing process, the Nokuse Plantation and how these came to coincide in this Sunday’s Tampa Tribune.  Those beyond our circulation area can find the story on tbo.com by clicking the Tampa Tribune tab. 

We wrapped up our day at Nokuse.  I accepted Bob Deckert’s gracious invitation to spend the night at his place.  His place.  Man…

He and his long-time girlfriend, Mary, an OB/Gyn nurse, live in Ft. Walton Beach on placid Cinco Bayou.  Their home is breathtaking, paneled and floored with rich wood throughout.  It is one of the area’s first homes, built back in the day - built in that way that homes are no longer built - to last forever.

Bob’s an artist, and his studio – where he sculpts bronze, draws and pours over trail maps- overlooks the water.  Mary helps deliver babies and then teaches these new mothers how to nurse their wailing arrivals.  These are cool people.

One night I’m unwashed and sleeping in a tent that every single drop of rain is trying desperately to penetrate, the next evening I’m sitting on the dock of a placid bayou, legs outstretched, sipping a St. Pauli Girl and engaged with Bob in bright conversation about the events of the day.

Talk about a study in contrasts.

We dined on an excellent salad that featured every manner of vegetables ina light vinegarette, medium-rare steak, thumb-sized shrimp all of which was followed by a bowl of rum raisin ice cream over warm apple pie.  We watched the election returns roll in.  Trail magic?  Folks, that’s trail magic on a scale that defies comprehension. 

And that’s the news from just about a zillion miles away from the Florida Trail.  I attack the Alaquq section – the final section – of Eglin AFB next.  Eglin AFB deserves big kudos for allowing the FTA to route this trail on their lands.  These are great and wild lands just ripe for the hiking.

PS – Thank you for all of your mail and comments.  I am delighted that you are enjoying the trail with me.  For those of you whom have written wanting to know what sort of gear I’m packing, I’ll dedicate a blog directly to that topic next time. 

May you have fair winds and following seas until we meet again.  Cheers!  Mike