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Smooth cruising on Bear Lake towards the connect to Gator Lake.
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Aerial seagull’s eye view of group camping on East Cape, Everglades National Park, February 2014.
CLICK for interactive superwide panorama !
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“Go West to East Cape young man”, said no one ever!
However going west, in this case west of the main Park road is where the majority of paddling and exploration in Everglades National Park is to be found. This trip, organized by modern day ‘Glades explorer Terry Helmers of the Everglades Exploration Network was spurred by rumors and suspicions that an inland route to East Cape was possible and could and should be rediscovered! Through the 70’s, 80’s and up until hurricane Andrew roared over South Florida in 1992, the preferred route for paddlers was to take the Homestead Canal all the way west to intersect with the East Cape Canal. This was a protected route that enabled canoeists to avoid and bypass potentially choppy and windy Florida Bay – as in this entertaining account from 1986. After Andrew and a few more hurricanes, this route became impassable. Through years of volunteer efforts of Tom Rahill and the Swamp Apes, a section of the Homestead Canal has been cleared, and is now part of the Bear Lake Canoe Trail. Further west, a new “plug” dam has been recently constructed to prevent both unauthorized motor boat access and salt water intrusion into the nearby prairies. What makes this story interesting is that Terry and the EEN gang realized that it may be possible to now bypass the plug and canals almost completely if a path could be forged west of Bear Lake into Gator Lake and on through the Raulerson Prairies!
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NOTE:
This route is very much seasonal and water level dependent.
It is NOT a guaranteed route to the Cape and should always be considered as ‘experimental’!
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Satellite view of route traveled in relation to main points of interest between Flamingo and East Cape. The interior route from Coot Bay Pond to East Cape is 16 miles.
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The day started early at 4am in order to meet up with the group at 0700 !
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Patchy pre-dawn fog on the main Park road in Everglades National Park.
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Launching into Coot Bay Pond in the early morning.
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Paddling under mangrove tunnel connecting Coot Bay Pond to Coot Bay.
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Coot Bay was named for the once plentiful “Coots” (birds similar to ducks) that resided there. The many canals dug throughout the 20th century increased salt water intrusion into the Everglades interior and forced the birds out. The mangrove canopy tunnel we paddled through was actually cut and dredged by Capt Louis Watson only in 1945 in order to enable easier boating access into Whitewater Bay. Today it is very picturesque and provides excellent canoe and kayak access from the main Park road.
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Cool mangrove tunnel in the Everglades!
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Exiting onto a glassy smooth Coot Bay.
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Paddling out across Coot Bay and Mud Bay provided an nice & easy warm-up to the day’s paddling. As pointed out in the above map, just south of Mud Lake is an ancient and very large Calusa mound called Bear Lake Mound. From this high ground, the native engineers and builders had dug a canal all the way down to Florida Bay to the south. Referred to as the “Bear Lake Indian Canal”, you can still trace the outline on Google Earth today. It was some 20 to 30 feet wide and only a couple of feet deep. This was enough to enable travel in native dug out canoes and more importantly was part of a network that allowed Calusa paddlers to traverse the Everglades interior via Mud Lake, Coot Bay, into Whitewater Bay and out towards the Ten Thousand Islands. In this way the ancients were able to avoid having to paddle out around the exposed Cape!
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Debris filled ancient (Calusa) canal that ran from Mud Lake to Florida Bay.
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://www.floridamemory.com
Photographed in 1922 by John Kunkel Small.
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Time didn’t permit us to explore the area, although we headed out towards the Cape on the inside for the very same reasons that the Calusa had – enlightened minds think alike!
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Incredibly gorgeous morning on a mirror-like Bear Lake.
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Toby aka “Whitecaps” a Watertribe expedition adventure racer on Bear Lake.
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On Bear Lake, Everglades National Park.
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Charlie Arazoza of www.bushpaddlers.org paddles on Bear Lake.
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Paddlers cruising on Bear Lake in the Everglades.
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The section between Bear Lake and Gator Lake has been recently scouted out, and you can read detailed discussions of it here.
Needless to say this connection is critical to a successful inland passage. Terry and Co have dubbed it “Spoonbill Pass” on account of seeing a Roseate Spoonbill standing there. It’s as good a name as any, and certainly this pass has existed for some time, just waiting to be re-discovered! In February 2014, there was easily enough water for easy passage and a good time to try for a push all the way through to the Cape.
NOTE:
This route is very much seasonal and water level dependent.
It is NOT a guaranteed route to the Cape and should always be considered as ‘experimental’!
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Satellite view of the section between Bear Lake and Gator Lake.
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Lining up exiting Bear Lake and on towards “Spoonbill Pass”.
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Paddlers negotiating their way around barnacle and oyster encrusted deadwood on exiting Bear Lake onward and forward to “Spoonbill Pass”.
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Approaching “Spoonbill Pass” – the connection between Bear Lake and Gator Lake.
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Google Earth view of actual paddled route to compare with 1959 aerial photograph below of the same area!
Aerial view from 1959 of Bear Lake and “Spoonbill Pass” with Florida Bay on the horizon to the south.
Route paddled overlaid in blue. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://www.floridamemory.com
Photographer: Karl E. Holland
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Compare these two views of the same area 55 years apart!
What stands out immediately is that half a century ago the vicinity of the Homestead Canal (on the left) was much wetter and fresher than it is today, as the mangroves haven’t filled in that far yet. I would imagine that our route was probably doable even back in December of 1959!
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“Spoonbill Pass” – the KEY to the inland route!
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Gliding under a mangrove canopy through “Spoonbill Pass” in the Everglades.
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Once through “Spoonbill Pass” we arrived at the junction of the Homestead Canal at Gator Lake, where an old campsite used to be. The Homestead Canal was dug in the 1920’s to establish a navigable route from Flamingo to the Cape and thereby also to Miami. It never lived up to serve the dreams of land speculators and investors and fell into disuse, eventually becoming a trail for Everglades adventurers. Today the site is overgrown, but the high ridge is dry above the water!
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Aerial view at the transition to Gator Lake on the Homestead Canal.
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Gator Lake at the Homestead Canal and ridge.
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Terry cuts into a section that was once the Gator Lake camp on the Homestead Canal.
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First look at the Gator Lake camp and Homestead Canal ridge.
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The Homestead Canal ridge and what is left of the Gator Lake camp and is dry ground.
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The Banana Boat at the Gator Lake camp on the Homestead Canal.
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This spot also marked where our group split up into two. “Terry’s kids” headed north into Gator Lake and beyond up into the Fox Lakes and try for a possible connection to the South Joe River Chickee – still TBD and was a very long day trip!
In the other group our goal was to camp on the Cape. Onward we continued on into a Terra Incognita – the vast Raulerson Prairie named for the Raulerson brothers who tried a cattle ranching operation there back in the day.
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Cruising the wide open expanses of the Raulerson Prairies in the Everglades.
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Unknown to us was the water level in the area, as we had heard many stories of pea soup like sticky mud that others had reportedly encountered. As it were, we actually had a good 2 feet or more and it was really easy cruising the entire way.
In especially dry times however, this may not always be the case
you have been warned!!
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A short break on the coastal prairie.
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Bob and Helen cruising in their tandem kayak.
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The last stretch from the Raulerson Prairie and out the East Cape Canal into Florida Bay.
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Everglades photographer Constance Mier checks the map on the Raulerson Prairie just east of the Cape.
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Connie paddles her canoe through the Raulerson Prairie.
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Reporting station EDEN East_Side_creek next to the East Cape Canal in the Everglades in February 2014.
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NOTE:
This route is very much seasonal and water level dependent.
It is NOT a guaranteed route to the Cape and should always be considered as ‘experimental’!
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I was hoping to spot a gauge station somewhere inside the Raulerson Prairie to be able to get remote water level data in the future, but the only one there is just outside of the East Cape Canal called the East Side Creek. It’s part of the very useful “EDEN” Everglades Depth Estimation Network.
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Paddling down the creek towards the East Cape Canal.
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The paddling had been so easy that we were literally being pulled out into the East Cape Canal, even though it was an incoming tide. This is something I still don’t understand! Once “dumped” out into the canal I was greeted by a speeding powerboat and back to reality c’est la vie.
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Exiting into the East Cape Canal.
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The East Cape Canal “plug” dam is just a few hundred feet away so we went to check it out!
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East Cape Canal RIPRAP !
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Small dock at the East Cape Canal plug dam – canoe/kayak ramp at left.
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Checking out the recently installed “plug” dam on the East Cape Canal, it’s easy to get on and off, but the ramp can be slippery. Also you’ll probably want a wheeled dolly to make the short portage, especially if you’re going solo with a load. The East Cape Canal was one of several dug in the early 20th century in vain efforts to “drain” the Everglades and make the land suitable for human consumptive uses. The book “Dredgemen of Cape Sable” by Lawrence E. Will is an entertaining first hand account and a good read. It can also be downloaded for free as a PDF.
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NOTE:
This plug has been destroyed by Hurricane Irma and further storm erosion!
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Looking due north, on top of the East Cape Canal “plug” dam, aerial view.
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February 2014 afternoon, on top of the East Cape Canal plug dam, looking due south towards Florida Bay.
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The canal zone is actually pretty busy with boaters heading in and out of Lake Ingraham, especially on a weekend!
Once out in Florida Bay, we were actually ahead of schedule, and made landfall well before 3pm.
We chose a nice spot right next the the little creek just before rounding the Cape. The beach isn’t as wide as further up the coast, but it had direct exposure to the southeasterly breezes that were forecast.
East Cape hasn’t changed much, except there aren’t as many Coconut Palms left since a hundred years ago or so!
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Coconut Palms on the beach at East Cape in 1916.
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://www.floridamemory.com
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At camp on East Cape .. the dead can dance, witness a complete Tern skull.
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The last sunlight illuminates the beach foliage on East Cape!
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Aerial bird’s-eye view of our camp on East Cape, Everglades National Park.
CLICK for panoramic – try it on your iPhone!
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Camping on the Cape is always nice, however there can be some serious no-see-ums, and for us it was no exception. After dusk we set up a nice campfire and with some help from a little breeze we were alright.
NOTE:
This piece of land is no longer there after Hurricane Irma and other storms!
However there is another similar sandbar on the opposite side of the creek as of Summer 2020.
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Sunset discussions in camp on East Cape.
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Classic beautiful sunset over East Cape in the Everglades!
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NIGHT LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY and DIGITAL ART from the EVERGLADES, FLORIDA BAY, TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS, BIG CYPRESS & BEYOND!
(click pic to enter)
ART of Darkness – Camping with the Stars! Part II
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By the campfire on the beach at East Cape in the Everglades.
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The setting crescent moon prompted Connie and Toby into a photo-symbiotic episode utilizing Toby’s powerful LED lamps!
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Connie and Toby were lighting up the night!
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Setting moon at the mouth of the little creek that runs up into Lake Ingraham.
I was using a wide field LED light for fill in on these shots.
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It gets really nice and dark out on the Cape!
NIGHT LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY and DIGITAL ART from the EVERGLADES, FLORIDA BAY, TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS, BIG CYPRESS & BEYOND!
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Night time on the Cape is very dark except for the permanent glow from the Miami urban area to the east. Note that the Big Dipper is rising and bright Jupiter nearly overhead!
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I made plans to stay out on the Cape another night, so I tried to sleep in as the rest of the group departed. Toby had the best plan by far, launching before dawn before all the bugs came out to play. As I dazed in and out of continued sleep I overheard someone quip “Oh they’re bad out here [on the water] too!”.
I observed the very numerous gnats, no-see-ums & skeeters outside, and resolved to stay inside the sacred inner sanctum of my tent for as long as possible.
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I sat up from my slumber just in time to see Vivian paddle off in the early morning.
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Look closely & you will see the many reasons why I didn’t get out to wave goodbye.. 😉
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Unable to sleep due to building heat inside my tent, I anxiously survey the early morning bug situation! 😉
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It feels timeless to be on the Cape!
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Man and skiff at East Cape in 1953.
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://www.floridamemory.com
Photographer: W. Armstrong Price
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After the bugs left I had the beach all to myself, and there was a lot of it on low tide. I took some time to explore and photograph the wide expanses.
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Early morning on the beautiful Cape Sable coastline at low tide!
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An Ibis feeds on the low tide mud flats surrounding the beach at East Cape.
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Low tide in the morning on East Cape.
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Delicate sea grasses on low tide at East Cape. Salad perhaps?
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Super-telephoto view due southeast across Florida Bay shows the tip of Sandy Key, about 7 miles away.
Note that Sandy Key is a bird refuge and off limits to the public.
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Photographer on Photographer .. the closer to be to the wading birds at low tide.
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My delicious dinner is ready! Potato, brussel sprouts, carrots & more with Octopus simmered in beer! 🙂
Tasty & Quick Cooking for backcountry kayak campers!
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NIGHT LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY and DIGITAL ART from the EVERGLADES, FLORIDA BAY, TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS, BIG CYPRESS & BEYOND!
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It’s a shame that so may people no longer observe the night sky or ever see our Milky Way Galaxy. East Cape can be a great place for stargazing on a moonless night!
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Our whole sky Milky Way neighborhood as seen from East Cape in the Everglades on low tide.
Bottom: Due south, note glow from Marathon & Key West on right.
Top: Due north, glow at left is the perpetual light from Miami/FLL metro areas.
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After a delicious night with a nearly constant breeze I elected to launch before dawn to avoid the bugs. Taking in the sunrise from the water is a special treat not to be missed!
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Dawns like these can be found on Florida Bay!
Chickees and Keys in Florida Bay – Kayaking, Camping and Nice Dreams!
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NOTE:
This route is very much seasonal and water level dependent.
It is NOT a guaranteed route to the Cape and should always be considered as ‘experimental’!
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My approximate route on this trip totaled up about 28 miles.
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As I got to paddling, I recalled a conversation with Terry. He asked if I’d take the interior route back. I suppose I could, but said that no, I’d be paddling on the outside. He said something like “what for?”, it’s just open water.
I thought to myself then and there, yes! Yes, I enjoy open water, after all I am a sea kayaker! 🙂
It’s good times paddling under that big sky, and as it were the winds dropped and it was flat and beautiful!
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Aerial buzzard’s eye-view of the Oyster Keys, just outside of Flamingo on Florida Bay.
CLICK for interactive panorama!
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I wasn’t in a rush and later paddled out by the Oyster Keys before heading back into Flamingo before noon just as the northeast winds started to pick up again.
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Here’s a fun video of the trip from Jay Thomas:
and again the EEN discussion link:
http://gladesgodeep.ning.com/forum/topics/inland-route-flamingo-cape-sable
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I’d like to say a big thanks to Connie for shuttling my vehicle to Flamingo for my return.
Much appreciated!
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Enjoy!
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To learn more about Florida Bay and the Everglades, I can recommend this informative and beautifully done book. There is a wealth of information inside along with incredible images by internationally recognized and top local Everglades photographers. If you like Florida Bay and the Keys, you will LOVE this book!
Full Disclosure: A few of my images are in it too.
“Florida Bay Forever” – Everglades Foundation book edited by Dan Burkhardt (with some photography by Flex Maslan).
Cover photo by Rob O’Neal
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© 2014 – 2020 Flex Maslan / kayakfari.com / awakenthegrass.com. All original photographs, artworks and music in this portfolio are copyrighted and owned by the artist, Flex Maslan, unless otherwise noted. Any reproduction, modification, publication, transmission, transfer, or exploitation of any of the content, for personal or commercial use, whether in whole or in part, without written permission from the artist is strictly prohibited.
All rights reserved!
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DISCLAIMER:: The maps and images on this site are not intended for navigation, I am not a guide; use any and all information at your own risk! Your mileage may vary .. so use good judgement before venturing out!
With that said..
Blessings friends!
🙂
Kayakfari
kayakfari ( kayak .. far .. i ) 
Pingback: Go West to East Cape – paddling an interior route via “Spoonbill Pass” and Raulerson Prairie | kayakfari ( kayak .. far .. i )
I too have been through there a few times. You can also portage through Slagle ditch into Raulersons Prarie or take the side (natural) channel near the East Cape plug. That way you can don’t have to load and unload your gear. Did anyone make it into Fox?
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Hi James, cool video! Yes, I believe “Terry’s kids” went up into Fox lakes and had a really loooong day. Here’s a link to a discussion on the EEN site: http://gladesgodeep.ning.com/forum/topics/inland-route-flamingo-cape-sable
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In the book “Gladesmen: Gator Hunters, Moonshiners, and Skiffers”, Glenn Simmons mentions going through here in the 1930’s. I hope a hurricane comes and closes it back off. Sorry. It’s better off with out us back in there. Paddle On!
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That is one of the S Fl classics, first hand accounts of Gladesmen culture with strong ties to Native peoples! I’m afraid the problem(s) facing the ‘Glades aren’t as simple as just excluding people. The damage human exploitation has caused the KOE system took decades, and will take many more decades to fix – if it’s even possible. I feel for what your saying, but think that education and conservation of what’s left are the best options moving forward. There’s been a lot of salt water intrusion into that area, any hurricane would likely make that even worse .. let’s be careful what we wish for! lol
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Great Post! 2 questions: 1) would you consider the Gator Lake camp suitable for overnight stay? 2) what was your estimated total mileage from coot launch to East Cape camp, how many hours in total, and what was you average “effort level” of paddling?… guess that might qualify as more than two. thanks in advance, planning to make the trek later this year.
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Hi Jax, this trip was in February, and there was still a lot of water in the Glades. Anytime after October it will be a nicer place .. ! 😉
There used to be a camp there a long time ago, but the Gator Lake camp is not one of the official ENP backcountry campsites, so you can’t camp there as far as I know. It does make a good stop over point however.
The inside route to East Cape is about 16 miles, and it took us about 6 hours with breaks. In retrospect we got lucky in that there was more water in the Raulerson Prairie than expected so it was really easy cruising. But this isn’t always the case, I’ve heard reports by others of that area turning into an impassable bog, so you’ll need to monitor the water levels in that area. You don’t want to get stuck there – no powerboats get in there, FYI!
It’s a neat trip, definitely worth it!
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As he said there’s no official campsite on Gator Lake and there’s little in the way of open ground. I spent the night but had to share a muddy campsite with a trio of alligators ( see above video) It’s beautiful back in there, very peaceful. DO NOT rely solely on a GPS for navigation. There are no accurate and detailed charts either. I print Google Earth Satellite images and use them as my charts. Good luck if you go.
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Pingback: Poling around “The Cape” at East Cape Sable in the Everglades. | kayakfari ( kayak .. far .. i )
I really enjoyed your piece. I found it after googling “Raulerson Prairie”. Growing up I was told that my great-great uncles on my maternal grandmother’s side had an ill-fated cattle ranching venture there. It was great to see that it wasn’t all a tall tale that my family is famous for.
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Thanks Brian, glad you enjoyed it! “Back in the day” the Raulerson Prairie looked different than the wet brackish mangrove habitat we see today. There’s actually quite a bit of human history in the Everglades both ancient and recent. For instance check out Totch Brown’s “lost” liquor still in the Ten Thousand Islands from another famous Glades pioneer family:
https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/kayakfari-art/art-at-liquor-still-bay-hidden-history-in-the-everglades/
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Wondering if anyone has recent information re: the spoonbill pass trip out to East Cape Sable? Looks like the last posting were all in 2014. Was thinking about doing the trip in a couple weeks (Dec 23).
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This past wk-end there were a couple of trips out that way as part of the Paddlers’ Rendezvous: http://www.bushpaddlers.org/Rendezvous.html
I believe one of the groups went into the pass, but ran out of water before reaching Gator Lake. Skeeters were a big problem! Check it out on fBook:
https://www.facebook.com/scott.baste/media_set?set=a.1354211804609338.1073741853.100000615934358&type=1&l=3d7b80dbaf
https://www.facebook.com/groups/156617625824/10153976397315825/?ref=notif¬if_t=group_activity¬if_id=1480865778197044
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Thanks! Hmm… millions of mosquitos and insufficient water, huh? Maybe we’ll drop by noble hammock and then paddle along the coast this time. 🙂 Really appreciate the update!
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Sure thing! The interior is just super buggy this year so far. For fewer insecrs, I’d go either up to the 10K or consider Little Rabbit Key or the two chickees in Florida Bay. See:
https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/trips-sea-stories-pics/chickees-and-keys-in-florida-bay-kayaking-camping-and-nice-dreams/
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Pingback: A short tale about the 2016 Florida Paddlers’ Rendezvous in Flamingo! | kayakfari ( kayak .. far .. i )
Hi! Great stuff! I want to do Flamingo to East Cape this April 2020. Am I insane with that time of year? It just happened to be the only time my group could make work. I think we’ll do the bay route, any tips or preparations I can make? Thanks in advance.
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Hello! April should be fine, ideally you’ll have some wind to keep skeeters away. The Cape is never the same, sometimes lotsa bugs, sometimes pretty nice. I would def have full coverage light clothing and a bug shirt. No-see-ums will be around, esp at dawn – you may want to sleep in. The beach is not nearly as wide as it used to be before Hurricane Irma. The farther up toward Middle Cape, the nicer. This is what paddling along the shoreline will be like:
https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/fitness/easter-4-20-exploratory-coastal-fitness-paddling-a-k1-trainer-on-florida-bay/
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