January 31
End: Hampton
Miles: 31.4
Total: 720.4
A night inside a screen, away from the mosquitos, felt nice. I got moving early, as I wanted to get some miles done, and hopefully finish the day pigging out at the Walmart near Starke.
There was a lot of different areas to cover before that, however. It took some time to exit the forest and start the road walk just to get to Gold Head Branch State Park. On the way I met some section hikers headed south. They warned of bad sections near Lake Butler, and one of them asked me to look for his cell phone.
Finally arriving at the next state park, I stopped at a dried up pond with good facilities and made myself some hot food. The wind tried to ruin my plans but I moved behind the building. I left as some employees pulled up to take care of the place.
Gold Head Branch was a cool little place, a lot like Etoniah Creek. I got a little turned around once as the trail went underneath a utility building on big stilts, but otherwise made good time.
Arriving at Camp Blanding, I filled out a permit card though I thought little of it. I walked through very recently-burned areas, then saw a stand of trees and plants shoot up in flames. A man in firefighter gear emerged and told me I couldn’t walk back there. I looked back and noticed I had missed a turn thirty feet ago. I continued down the trail hastily as it returned to wooded areas which I hoped were not scheduled to be burned in minutes.
Escaping Camp Blanding and still not seeing any cell phones lying near the trail, I walked around the Keystone Airpark and got back onto the former railway, which continues on from at least Palatka. Walking in the loose gravel left behind by the railway was terrible for my pace and my ankles, but I persevered and got to Hampton before dark.
I checked the map and saw that the Walmart was a bit of a hike from the trail. I settled for the convenience store in Hampton and pigged out on ice cream, pizza, and snacks. I was hoping for a second Paisley experience, ending in a hot shower and comfy couch, but no such luck. I found a good spot to sleep on the trail just before US 301.