Everglades Wilderness Waterway
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The Everglades Wilderness Waterway is a 99-mile navigable recreational waterway route within
Everglades National Park Everglades National Park is an American national park that protects the southern twenty percent of the original Everglades in Florida. The park is the largest tropical wilderness in the United States and the largest wilderness of any kind east ...
, also known as
Marjory Stoneman Douglas Marjory Stoneman Douglas (April 7, 1890 – May 14, 1998) was an American journalist, author, women's suffrage advocate, and conservationist known for her staunch defense of the Everglades against efforts to drain it and reclaim land for de ...
Wilderness. It includes many interconnecting creeks, rivers, lakes and inner bays that are navigable by shallow draft powerboat, kayak or canoe. The official Wilderness Waterway route is 99 miles long, but a traveler can use various additional route options to greatly extend or slightly shorten the trip. The 99-mile Wilderness Waterway connects
Flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of Wader, wading bird in the Family (biology), family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas ...
and Everglades City. Most paddlers allow at least eight days to complete the trip. This route is recommended for experienced paddlers only. There are many areas of very shallow water that may be encountered along the Wilderness Waterway. Powerboats over 18' long may have to detour around Alligator Creek and Plate Creek. The “Nightmare” pass is passable only to paddlers at high tide. To prevent prop dredging, which results in increased turbidity and the destruction of submerged natural features, boats with drafts of two feet or more, including the propeller, should not use the waterway.


Navigation charts

The NOAA charts that cover the wilderness waterway are 11430, 11432 and 11433.


Camping along the Wilderness Waterway

There are around 40 camping designated sites along the waterway which include beach, ground and
chickee Chikee or Chickee ("house" in the Creek and Mikasuki languages spoken by the Seminoles and Miccosukees) is a shelter supported by posts, with a raised floor, a thatched roof and open sides. Chickees are also known as chickee huts, stilt houses, ...
campsites. * Beach sites are located along
Florida Bay Florida Bay is the bay located between the southern end of the Florida mainland (the Florida Everglades) and the Florida Keys in the United States. It is a large, shallow estuary that while connected to the Gulf of Mexico, has limited exchange o ...
and
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...
. During ideal conditions, insects may be scarce, but mosquitoes and no-see-ums (tiny biting insects) may be present, especially at sunrise and sunset. Gulf waters at beach sites can become rough; seas can exceed 3 feet. Low tides often expose large mud flats, which may make beach access difficult. Campfires are only allowed below high-tide line. *
Chickee Chikee or Chickee ("house" in the Creek and Mikasuki languages spoken by the Seminoles and Miccosukees) is a shelter supported by posts, with a raised floor, a thatched roof and open sides. Chickees are also known as chickee huts, stilt houses, ...
s are located along rivers and bays where dry land is inaccessible. They are elevated 10' x 12' wooden platforms with roofs. A walkway leads to a self-contained toilet. You'll need a free–standing tent, since stakes or nails are not allowed. No campfires are allowed on chickees. Some paddlers have difficulty accessing chickees from their boats. A loop of heavy rope may be helpful.in ''Wilderness Trip Planner''
/ref> * Ground sites are mounds of earth and shells a few feet higher than the surrounding mangroves, located along interior bays and rivers. They tend to have more insects than chickees or beach sites. No campfires are allowed on ground sites but gas grills or stoves are permitted. Wood, charcoal, or coal fueled grills or stoves are not permitted.


Outside Route

The additional 75-mile Outside Route extends along
Florida Bay Florida Bay is the bay located between the southern end of the Florida mainland (the Florida Everglades) and the Florida Keys in the United States. It is a large, shallow estuary that while connected to the Gulf of Mexico, has limited exchange o ...
and the
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...
from Flamingo back to Everglades City. This route can be used to avoid shuttle service and usually adds 5 more days of paddle. Travelers will have to
portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...
their paddle boats over a small freshwater/saltwater dam that separates the 99-mile "inside route" from the open water of Florida Bay. The campsites along the Outside Route are: * East Clubhouse * Clubhouse Beach * East Cape, Middle Cape, and Northwest
Cape Sable Cape Sable is the southernmost point of the United States mainland and mainland Florida. It is located in southwestern Florida, in Monroe County, and is part of the Everglades National Park. The cape is a peninsula issuing from the southeastern ...
* Graveyard Creek * Highland Beach * Hog Key, Turkey Key, New Turkey Key, Mormon Key, Pavilion Key and Rabbit Key - all part of the Ten Thousand Islands Archipelago.


Permits

Campers can obtain permits through www.recreation.gov. Campers must pick up their permits in person. Permits are currently 23.00 dollars and reservations can be made up to 90 days out.


Notable features and landmarks

* Nauti Buoy Chickee - the last remaining private property within the Everglades National Park. * Shell mounds built by
Calusa The Calusa ( ) were a Native American people of Florida's southwest coast. Calusa society developed from that of archaic peoples of the Everglades region. Previous indigenous cultures had lived in the area for thousands of years. At the time of ...
people. Most of the ground campsites are situated on the shell mounds of various sizes and state of preservation. * Watson's Place - a shell mound site occupied by a sugar cane farmer and criminal Ed Watson in the early 20th century. * Darwin's Place - a shell mound occupied by Arthur Darwin, a hermit of the Everglades from 1940s to 1980. Anyone who attempted to paddle the waterway would have to pass Darwin's place on the way so he became famous among the paddling community.


Publications

* ''Paddling the Everglades Wilderness Waterway'' by Holly Genzen and Anne McCrary Sullivan * ''A Guide To The Wilderness Waterway Of The Everglades National Park'' by William G Truesdell * ''Paddler's Guide to Everglades National Park'' by Johnny Molloy


Gallery

File:Flamingo-Marina-Slips.jpg, Terminus of the Waterway on the freshwater side of Flamingo Marina File:Gulf-Coast-Visitor-Center-Kayak-Launch.jpg, Terminus of the Waterway at the Gulf Coast Visitor Center File:Willy-Willy.jpg, Willy Willy - a campsite on a shell mound


References

{{reflist


External links

Wilderness Waterway Planner
Everglades National Park