Paddling the Everglades Part 8: Food, water and critters

It only seems fitting to talk about critters in the same context as food and water. When you carry food and water with you, you are a potential food source for various animals living in the Everglades.

FOOD You can’t get around it, you will need calories and other nutrients while paddling through the Everglades. My knowledge of nutrition while paddling is partially from Everglades experience and partially from my profession, exercise physiology. If you are interested in the nutritional aspects of performance and want a deeper insight into the role of nutrition during exercise, please check out my website where you can find out how to calculate your calorie expenditure, learn about caloric intake requirements for paddling, meal planning with meal examples and information on diet supplements. Please go to: http://www.cmierphotoandfitness.net/fitness.html.

What I will discuss here concerns how to pack your food and some tips on preparing it. It should be no surprise to you that frozen items will not stay frozen long in the Everglades. For the first couple of nights, I can plan my evening meals with more flexibility because I can bring along a small cooler and keep whatever is inside it cold enough to last for a couple days. Beyond a couple days, there is no guarantee that meat and dairy products will remain safe to eat. Some may disagree and in fact, one of my paddling partners eats nothing but pre-made deli sandwiches for dinner on multi-day trips. I’ve seen him consume a turkey breast sandwich (without mayo) on the fifth night of a trip and he never got sick. To be safe, I use a cooler only for foods I will consume within a 2-3-day period. In those cases, I’ll bring homemade items like lentil soup or refried beans, or veggie burgers with condiments. The lentil soup (or any homemade soup) is great because it can be frozen in a plastic container or bag and will help keep other items cold. I also pack the cooler with plastic containers (like old Gatorade bottles) filled with water and freeze them at home. This is water that can be used for drinking and cooking after it thaws, so it doesn’t take up additional room in your boat. I’ve also found that frozen cans of Heineken beer taste quite good after a thaw. If you have a hankering for a cold beer, it will stay that way for a couple days for sure.

For the non-cooler foods, I like to pack foods for the kayak in an organized way so that I keep the breakfast items together and separate from the lunch and dinner items. That way, I don’t have to waste time searching around for food. I use nylon stuff bags for organizing meals and snacks. For instance, in one bag I may have 2 dinner meals that include pasta, crackers, bread, bag of dried veggies and nuts, tuna pouch and desserts. Another bag might include lunch items such as a plastic container with peanut butter, bagels, honey, jerky, and tuna lunch kits. And yet another bag might include several power bars and other snack items like jerky, dried fruit or trail mix. I plan my meals with one other person so we split up the camp items in such a way that one of us has all the food in one boat (with the exception of that day’s allotment of snacks). In the morning when I pack the boat, I place the snack and lunch items close to the hatch opening so I can more easily get to them when we stop for a lunch break. I also take out my daily snack allotment and put that in my deck bag.

In addition to using the nylon bags, I use zip lock bags for just about everything, with the exception of canned or pre-sealed items. In one gallon-size zip lock bag, I will put all the items needed for a dinner meal. Another gallon bag will house all the oatmeal, coffee and tea used for breakfast. So once again, items are bagged in an organized way. Another nice thing about the zip lock bags is that you can use the empty bags for trash. They also work quite well keeping your foods moist-free. For foods that come in cardboard boxes, I remove them from the boxes to get rid of bulk and debris. I place the loose food items into zip lock bags and if cooking instructions come with it, I cut them out of the box and place it inside the bag with the food.

Another convenient thing about the zip lock bags is you can pre-mix your meals and place everything in one container. For instance, I eat instant oatmeal for breakfast but I like to add dry milk, dry fruit and nuts to the oatmeal. I pre-mix all of it at home and place it in a zip lock bag. Another great breakfast meal is a package of Instant Carnation mixed with a 1/3 cup dry milk and a heaping teaspoon of instant expresso. Add hot water to that and eat a power bar with it, and you have yourself a 500-600 calorie meal bursting with caffeine, protein, carbs, vitamins and minerals. And yet another advantage of the zip lock bag (make sure you use the freezer bags) is you can eat out of them. They are sturdy enough to withstand hot water and will relieve you of dirty dishes.

WATER I bring about 1 gallon per day, but can get by with ¾ gallon. The weather may dictate the amount you actually use, and I found myself using extra water during an unseasonally hot trip we took over new year’s eve. One of my paddling companions uses very little water and before he dumped out his extra, he offered it to me and I willingly took it and used it. The point is, you need to carry in what you will need; there is no fresh water where you will be going. For the kayak, I have Stearns water bags that hold about 2 ½ gallons each and have a spout for pouring and can be hung from a tree. The bad news is they no longer make these water containers. There are other versions, like Dromedary bags, which I have no experience with. But, if you are in a kayak, water bags are easier to pack than hard plastic containers. In a canoe, you don’t have that issue and when I travel in my canoe, I use a large plastic container, either 4, 5 or 7 gallons or some combination of the 3.

CRITTERS There are two critters in particular that I will talk about. The first one is the raccoon. You will likely have a raccoon encounter and the chances of that happening largely depends on where you camp. Some sites are more notorious for raccoon raids than others; Pavilion Key once had the dubious distinction of being a raccoon-infested island. For good or bad, these little critters do not have a lot of fresh water available to them and will try their hardest to find it. To their credit, they are extremely clever and have left many paddlers distraught after waking up to find their boats empty of water containers, punctured water bags and food wrappers scattered about. So a big word of caution, protect your food and water as if your life depended on it, because it does.

If you are traveling in a kayak, all your food and water must be stored in your sealed hatches overnight or when you are not at the campsite. DO NOT leave food, water or food trash in your cockpit. If you think your nylon cockpit cover will keep the raccoons out, you are sadly mistaken. Do not leave your cooler out unless it is locked. If you are traveling in a canoe, all food and water must go inside hard containers (plastic or otherwise) that are sealed. For food, I use the large animal food containers that you can purchase at a pet store. The top screws on and is quite tight. Feel free to bring food items into your tent; you do not have bear issues down here. In fact, I bring my breakfast in with me at night and eat it inside my tent in the morning.

About those gators; the chances of you seeing an alligator on your trip is about as high as the chances of you not seeing an alligator on your trip. Whether or not you see one depends on where you paddle. On the coastline and the gulf islands, you will not encounter alligators, they are freshwater creatures. But, in the backcountry where the water is brackish, you will likely see alligators in a creek or possibly at a campsite. Some campsites have a resident alligator that lurks about in the water and sometimes comes up on land, blocking the boat entrance area. Sites that you are more likely to see an alligator include Willy Willy, Watsons Place, Camp Lonesome and Canepatch. Some of the chickees also have a resident gator that will circle the platform around dinner time.

So what do you do if you see an alligator? Not much, take a picture and maybe stare at it for awhile. On the creeks while paddling, give the animal some distance. What often happens is you come up on a sunning gator and it gets spooked by your boat. It will head back into the water quickly, making a splash and some noise which can give you the impression that it is on the attack. I assure you, it is not. It’s simply hiding and trying to stay away from you, so respect it and stay away from it as well. At the campsite, DO NOT feed the gator under any circumstance. If you can, clean your fish somewhere else, but if not, throw it as far away from the dock as possible. If you paddle up to a campsite and there sits a gator in your way, find another place to get out and stay clear of the animal. The gator is not going to go on the attack, rather it will lay there not moving for hours until its time to go back into the water. Simply let it be and it will not be a threat.

You may encounter other animals on your trip. Some lucky individuals have spotted bobcats in the mangroves. You may see wild pigs or deer on some sites, like Highland Beach or Tiger Key. If you don’t see them, you’ll find their hoof prints in the sand. I believe I have seen rabbits out there as well. And of course, you will see dolphin, probably lots of dolphin in the gulf, in the large tidal rivers and the back bays. You’ll spot a manatees as well and hopefully not by awakening it under your boat. Very large loggerhead turtles will show their large loggerheads above water on occasion. And of course, there are the fish and the birds. I’ve seen large tarpon fly out of the water, especially during sunsets off the cape. I have seen large sting rays shoot out of the water on several occasions as well. I’ll discuss the birds in another chapter when I talk about photography, but you will certainly see lots of them.

SOME TIPS ON FOOD PREPARATION
1. This really isn’t a food preparation item, but if you like wine, bring it. A 750 ml bottle fits perfectly in the stern or bow of a kayak. I’ve also found certain boxed wines to be very nice and they store well in the boat. You can also chill your bottled wine in the water before dinner.
2. Bring a thermos and heat water for breakfast and morning coffee the night before to avoid cooking in the morning. Bring it as well as your breakfast foods inside the tent with you at night. Wake up and have breakfast in the tent while the no-see-ums go on the attack outside. I use the Nissan thermos and the water stays unbelievably hot over a 12 hr period.
3. A nice hearty soup made at home makes a wonderful first or second night’s meal. I’m partial to lentils and will add barley or rice for a nice combination of carbohydrate and protein. It’s a good meal for those nights when you are very hungry and don’t feel like cooking. I freeze it in a gallon size (or quart size for single serving) zip-lock freezer bag.
4. I do all my cooking with a Trangia alcohol stove. It’s clean, it takes up little room and the stove is so low maintenance, nothing can go wrong (no clogs, no leak, etc). And unlike the popular Whisper Lite stove that sounds like a whispering jet taking off, it makes no noise. I use denatured alcohol and store it in old hydrogen peroxide bottles. I replace the bottle cap with a water bottle drinking spout for easy use. I carry a long lighter and waterproof matches as back ups.
5. Bring an extra meal for that small possibility you may be stuck an extra night. It’s always better to err on the side of bringing too much food than not enough. Of course, you can survive without the food, so adhere to this rule firmly when it comes to water.
6. Certain breads will get moldy fast. I find Lenders bagels and white flour tortillas to work well against that. Whole wheat breads, especially pita, do no last long and will turn green and fuzzy within a day.
7. You can use salt water for boiling pasta or rice, but know that you will likely get sand in there too. I do use the ocean water to wash my pots and pans after a meal. The shells and sand help remove the hardened food.
8. When I boil water for the next meal, I place my used eating utensils in the water for sterilization and will also pour the water into my eating bowls and then dump the water back into the pot for cooking. I don’t do this every night, but every couple of days.
9. Especially for beach camping where there are no picnic tables but lots of sand, I bring a large nylon tarp and spread it on the ground. Here, I set myself up with my Thermarest chair and all my cooking gear and food for a meal. This is our kitchen and dining area.
10. Use your food storage zip lock bags for garbage after you’ve eaten the contents of the bag.

Paddling the Everglades Part 7: Bug control, hygiene, & clothing

BUG CONTROL I’ve already given you an earful about the bugs. Now, some information about how you can make your stay in the Everglades as bug-free and painless as possible. About insect repellant; I don’t care what anyone says, 100% (give or take a couple points) DEET is the only thing worth bringing. It works on no-see-ums, biting flies and mosquitoes. Here’s the catch, DEET is a poison and despite what the deet.com website tells you, I will not put the stuff directly on my skin. I had an experience after spraying DEET directly on my legs and feet due to the fact that I was wearing shorts and getting bit all over by no-see-ums. I recklessly applied the DEET on my skin because I was itching like crazy and couldn’t stand it. I risked the poison exposure for the relief it would surely bring. Within a few minutes I began feeling very faint and somewhat nauseous. I could feel my blood pressure dropping rapidly. I got to the car and turned on the A.C and laid back (we were at the Outdoor Resorts marina in Chokoloskee). My partner brought me children’s benadryl and within 5 minutes or so, I was fine again. My blood pressure normalized and the itching stopped. I am not sure if this reaction was from the bugs or from the DEET, but nevertheless, one of the symptoms of DEET toxicity is hypotension. The moral of the story, do not apply the repellant directly to your skin if possible.

This brings us to the topic of clothing. At the campsite in the evening, I keep myself covered with long pants, socks, long sleeved shirt, bandana around my neck and a brimmed hat. I apply the DEET to my clothing rather than my skin. A good trick is to apply it on the underside of your hat brim, the bandana, and the socks. This seems to work 90% of the time. For the other 10%, I wear a mosquito net that covers my head and neck and cotton knit gloves. The clothing I wear at the campsite includes the following: polyster or wool socks, nylon pants, cotton or polyester shirt and cotton bandana. I dress to stay cool when it’s hot and warm when it’s cold.

The only other time bugs can be a problem is at the initial launch site (Flamingo, Chokoloskee Island or Everglades City). While loading the boats, I wear my paddling clothes, nylon long pants, nylon long-sleeved shirt, water shoes, a bandana or buff, and a Tilley hat (wide brimmed all around). Because of this, I always have the DEET handy by keeping a bottle in my deck bag so I have access to it at all times. I keep a second bottle in my cook kit for the campsite.

The bugs are always worse around dusk and dawn. The severity of the bug situation will depend primarily on temperature and wind velocity. I find that if the winds are a good 5-10 knots or more, the bugs are not much of a problem. 5 knots or less, the bugs will dominate the campsite. Some people are more tolerant to no-see-ums and mosquitoes than others. But I have seen the most tolerant person cry in despair while camping at Graveyard Creek. The moral of the story is, be prepared. Get into your no-see-um netted tent during the period when the bugs are worse and wait them out. I find that on beach campsites, if the bugs get bad at dusk, I can go hide in the tent for awhile, watch the sunset from there with a glass of wine and some cheese and crackers. By the time the sun disappears, so will the bugs. This is not always the case, however. I find certain campsites to be notoriously buggy even in the dark, like Graveyard Creek.

Do not leave your tent door open at any time after you’ve set up camp. This is a sure invitation for bugs and you will regret it when it comes time to hit the sack. Sometimes, you can’t help get no-see-ums in the tent, simply getting in and out will give them that opportunity. Here are three tips to relieve some of the problem. Tip #1: try to use the door that will get the most breeze, the bugs have less opportunity to get in that way. Tip #2: if they do get into your tent, you can get rid of the no-see-ums by wiping them off the tent walls with a wet bandana. Shine a light on the tent and they will congregate there. Tip#3: carry some children’s benadryl. I take 2 pills (one adult pill is equivalent to 2 children’s pills) when needed. This also works with ant bites that make me swell up and itch. The children’s benadryl does not make me too drowsy to paddle. Another quick remedy is rubbing alcohol (or hand sanitizer), which calms the itching.

One good thing about the no-see-ums and mosquitoes, once you are on the water, they are not a problem. I also find that the itching from the no-see-ums is temporary and once I am in my boat safely away, the itching has already stopped. A word of caution; if you want to get out of your boat or seek shelter while paddling, beware of the bugs swarming in the mangroves, especially during summer months.

One last thought on bugs, my camping experience in the Everglades begins in November and ends in early April. I spend time paddling during the day in the summer, but never camp during those dog day summer months. Thus, my bug experience does not include the insane bugfest that takes place in the heat of summer. Camper beware, I do not recommend camping in the glades anytime between May and October. Not only do you have the bugs, but you have daily summer storms, peak hurricane season, and the heat. If the bugs don’t get you, the heat will. I’m just saying…

MORE ON CLOTHING I’ve already described the importance of clothing for bug protection but there are other things to protect your body from, the sun being the first on that list. If you are from the north, I can certainly understand your desire to expose your skin to the sun, which you have not seen or felt in months. But please, use sun-screen. I really don’t pay too much attention to the brand of sunscreen I buy, but I do use spf 30 or higher. I also have lip balm with spf 15. The lip balm and sun screen are kept close by so I can apply as needed while paddling.

For paddling, I always wear long sleeve shirt and always wear nylon or polyester for quick drying. Forget cotton clothing for paddling, it will never dry. If it’s chilly, I’ll put on my Marmot rain jacket over the shirt and that is usually sufficient. Most of the time, I wear the nylon shirt that is popular with fishermen, it has pockets and vents. I always wear a bandana or a buff. The buff is hot in warmer temperatures, but is great for covering your face if you are getting too much sun exposure. I wear a Tilley hat, wide brimmed and it seems to not ever feel too hot or cumbersome. On my feet, I wear Teva water shoes with socks. Yes, your heard correctly, with socks. I use the Coolmax anklets and they feel wonderful even when wet. The socks give you the feeling of dryness despite being totally wet. Why wear shoes out here? Mostly to avoid stepping on a sharp oyster shell in the Ten Thousand Islands. Also, the Teva shoes do not get sucked off in knee-deep mud. They are comfortable when paddling, well ventilated, and they keep the sand and rocks out.

I already mentioned what I wear at the campsite, but for inside the tent, there are two types of sleep wear out here. One is for those 60+ temperatures, when cotton shorts and a short sleeve nylon or cotton shirt works well. Otherwise, I have long silk or polyester underwear for those cooler evenings. For those long trips, I prepare for cold weather and bring gloves, wool hat and nylon turtleneck.

HYGIENE And now for the topic that no one wants to talk about. But I will, because I’m a girl. And unlike boys, girls do not like to get dirty. I’m being a bit sarcastic, but in many ways, its true and we all know it. Guys do not put much thought into hygiene while camping; so if you are a guy, maybe this next section is of mild interest to you. But guys, if you are going out here with a female, you might want to read on. And of course, male or female, we all need to deal with human waste, so read on.

The one thing I will not compromise and will bring in quantities beyond necessity is toilet paper. I will not, under any circumstances, be without toilet paper. Remember, some of the beach sitess do not have port-o-lets (which is not necessarily a bad thing). If you are lucky, all your campsites port-o-lets will be clean, fully stocked with toilet paper and low on waste volume. But this will never happen, I guarantee it. You may have port-o-lets, but A), toilet paper is not guaranteed, and B), there is no guarantee the port-o-lets are fit for use. This past camping season was the worse I have ever seen in terms of port-o-let service. The park service has a few “honey barges” that go up and down the park to service the campsite pottys. During the busiest times of the year, a port-o-let can fill up quickly on the largest campsites, like Watsons Place. This past year, we camped at two different campsites each where the port-o-let was too full to use. And many times, the pottys have been without TP. The problem this year was that one of the honey barges was broken and the park service, which runs on a shoe string budget anyway, could not keep up with the demand. It also seemed to be one of the busiest seasons I’ve ever experienced. The moral of the story is, be prepared to go primitive.

Some of the beach campsites do not have port-o-lets, so there is no choice but to go primitive. If you find yourself at a backcountry ground site that has an out-of-service port-o-let, you’ll need to find an area in the woods to use and that is not easy to do, especially if you are sharing the site with several other people. This happened to me on Lopez River. Get as far away from the campsite as possible and dig a hole. Remember, the deeper you go into the brush, the more likely you’ll encounter bugs, so be prepared. There is a rule that you must dig at least 6 inches and that you must pack your toilet paper out. A large shell or rock works well enough for digging. To urinate only, you should go directly in the water when possible (especially easy to do on beach campsites).

For hygiene purposes, I carry small bottles of instant hand sanitizer, one in my cook kit so I can apply before handling food and another in a plastic zip lock bag with the toilet paper. I also carry a package of wet wipes in the plastic bag. To make the toilet paper more hygienic, at home I remove the cardboard roll from the middle. Then I take the end of the toilet paper from the middle and pull it out from the top a few inches. When I use the toilet paper, I pull the middle end, thus using only the untouched end of the toilet paper. I keep the toilet paper, hand sanitizer and wet wipes in a gallon-size zip-lock bag. I have another bag for paper waste. I keep all this handy when paddling.

When camping on a beach site, you can make a campfire and this is great for getting rid of paper waste. In fact, I’ve sometimes started a campfire for the sole purpose of burning the waste. Ladies, this is a great thing when you are camping during that time of the month. If you cannot take care of waste through burning, DO NOT bury the items, take them out with you.

The last thing I want is to get sick while out here, so staying clean is important to me. Disinfecting my hands before I cook or eat and after using the toilet is essential. Some may scuff at this and think I am overzealous with germ phobia; but so be it. I have not been sick once in the past 5 years and have never been sick while camping. The hand sanitizer may not be the reason for that, but it at least makes my hands smell clean!

What about bathing? I have a great tip for you! Campmor sells a product called No Rinse body wash that comes in a bottle. I’ve also found No Rinse wipes on-line as well. No Rinse products also include shampoo, hair conditioner and body bath, but the body wash version works just fine for both skin and hair. No Rinse is a wonderful NASA invention that allows you to clean your body without having to rinse off the soap. It smells great, it feels refreshing and it does not leave a soapy feeling or make your skin itch. I carry a small bottle of the stuff and I have a collapsible bucket that I fill with about a ½ liter of water. I add a capful of No Rinse to the water. Inside the tent, I lay out a 3 X 3 ft plastic sheet on the floor and use that as my bathing area. I have a bandana for bathing and a small microfiber tower for drying. After a bath, I put on my clean camp clothes and it feels so delicious. Now, I am ready for dinner and wine! Every other night, I take some extra water with No Rinse and run it through my hair. The No Rinse works well on skin and hair, I swear it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. It feels incredible to wash off the salt and sweat from the skin, and you’ll sleep better. And more importantly, if you share a tent, you won’t offend your tent mate. There is no excuse for being dirty out here! I also have a net bag that I use to put all my hygiene items such as deoderant, toothbrush, floss, toothpaste, comb, soap and lotion. I also carry a small bottle of Dr. Bronners soap, for washing my hands. And last, I have a small spray bottle for cleaning my eye glasses. I use a lens brush to brush off sand before washing them to avoid scratching the lens.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE Getting out of your tent at night may not be easy because of bugs, lack of privacy, rain, or you simply don’t like the discomfort of leaving your refuge. So what do you do when you have the urge to urinate? Bring a quart-size, wide mouthed, screw-capped bottle and pee in it. A plastic quart-sized Nalgene bottle works perfectly. In the morning, dump it in the drink and wash out your bottle with salt water to rid it of smells and you are good to go. Be sure to immediately screw on the cap after urinating before setting it down in your tent. Being clumsy, I can imagine a knocked over open bottle in my tent.