Everglades Kayak Trip 2026 (Solo)
Old Man and the Gulf—The Meaning of Human Existence
Richard Rathe January 2026 (Birds, Camping, Nature)
This was my 30th trip to the Everglades—different from all the others in several respects. First I was trying out new equipment (a sit-inside folding kayak). Second, I planned to just camp on a desert island, read, and take it easy. Third, I left from the Smallwood Store on Chokoloskee Island because the actual Ranger Station was closed for long-awaited hurricane repairs. I was also alone as there were no takers to join me this year.
My plan was simple: Camp two nights on Rabbit Key and then head over to Jewell Key for a change of scenery, then out on the fourth day. If conditions permitted I was considering a day trip over to Pavilion Key on my layover day. Alas this was not to be. A huge arctic air mass was about to come down from the north—and this meant it could get very windy and cold. I pulled a second permit so I could leave a day early, and this turned out to be a good thing!
Day 1
The downside to this plan was I started at low tide, which meant I had to paddle against both the incoming tide and a 12kt southerly headwind. This turned out to be a minor issue… it was near quarter moon so the tides were attenuated and leaving late in the day the wind moderated nicely. I got to Rabbit Key at high tide just after sunset, then portaged my gear to the south-facing campsite to stay in the breeze and away from the bugs! I slept out under the stars!
Day 2
By morning there was fog with a heavy dew fall. I was getting dripped on by my netting. I should have put on the fly before morning, but I was lazy. No big deal because the sun came out and it became warm and breezy.
I was acutely aware that there were critters (raccoons & rats) living on these islands that could easily chew holes in my gear, including my boat (!)—so I kept a very clean campsite. I basically hung everything I could from nearby trees and left the kayak completely open so they'd have no incentive to bite their way in! I had no problems and saw no critters, not even a rabbit. 🙂
I went for a walk around the island before breakfast. The seaward side showed significant erosion and hurricane damage. Several vultures were roosting there. I found the expected osprey nest, but no Ospreys?! I tried my whistled version of their call and sure enough one answered me! (More on this below.)
There were many Horseshoe Crabs and Conch shells lying about.
Horseshoe Crabs (Limulus polyphemus) evolved some 250 million years ago and they have no close living relatives. They are true living fossils and generally fascinating. First, they are not crabs—but remotely related to spiders. They have nine eyes, two underneath near the legs. They have twelve legs, including specializations for pushing, feeding, and mating (males). They breathe and excrete using book gills just behind their legs. And here's the best part—they chew with their knees!
By the time I got back the sun was fully out, so I proceeded to eat breakfast and start reading my book for this trip The Meaning of Human Existence by E.O. Wilson. Here you can see me sitting in the shade (it was still hot & humid) eating breakfast next to my little folding table (such a great thing to have when camping on sand!).
Everything changed about 1pm. The wind shifted to the north and a line of dark clouds rapidly approached. The marine forecast predicted this so I was not surprised, but I was worried about getting rained on.
I quickly moved to the main campsite on the northernmost point of the island (this site is somewhat degraded from years past). I settled in amongst the larger trees for a bit more protection. It did not rain but the wind was blowing 17kts with gusts over 25kts for the next 24 hours.
That evening I made a little kitchen out of the wind next to a piece of driftwood. Dinner was Tikka Masala over rice. (Very good!)
It got down to the mid-40s that night and the wind continued to roar. I used earplugs to block the sound of my rainfly flapping. (Even though there was no threat of rain I left it up just in case
because of my wet morning.) The next night I took the fly off and slept under the stars again.
Day 3
The third day was more of the same—only colder with highs in the mid-60s. The forecast was about the same with a little less wind. I read my book and explored some more. Here are a few highlights:
The Osprey Dating Game — There were two Ospreys, one I could hear behind me on Rabbit Key and one I could see soaring over neighboring Lumber Key. They both exhibited dating
behavior—basically fly high over head and scream I'm here, come and join me.
Later that day there were suddenly Three Ospreys overhead, zooming around, maybe fighting a little, and generally having a good time. I think—but am not certain—that the new bird joined the bachelor on my island. 🙂
The Crow — I met this Crow on the Lumber Key end of the sandbar during my first walk. It was making odd whistle noises
while hunching over. I thought it might have something stuck in its throat (like a fishhook). Then suddenly it cawed like normal and flew away.
I encountered this (same?) crow several times over three days. At one point a boat passed by out of my view, and I heard a sound something like a child coming down the beach while I read. This lasted several minutes (!) until I got up to see if I had visitors. I looked up and there was that crow again making his strange vocalization!
More Crabs & Couches — I came across several living Horseshoe Crabs at low tide. Not sure if they were stranded or just at the ends of their lives. I put them all back in the water regardless, except this pair (there is a second animal buried just in front of the first). They appeared to be mating.
Dinner that night was my version of Pad Thai made from packets with powdered peanut butter and ramen noodles (because I couldn't find rice noodles in time). Also very good!
Day 4
When I was planning for my departure I noticed something odd on my tide chart. After Monday with the expected double low/high entries, the rest of the week had only one tide cycle per day! What was up with the missing tides?! On Tuesday the tide did appear to remain low for most of the day. As far as I knew the sun and moon were still in their orbits, so why no midday high tide?
I put out some sticks to better gauge the water level and discovered that the tide did indeed come in about when you'd expect it, but it was subtle—maybe a foot or less—a Demi-Tide. This was good for me because I wanted to leave the island around the backside of Lumber Key to stay out of the wind. It gets very shallow there.
As you can see, I was all bundled up because it was still about 60° and windy. The paddle back was uneventful. It got warmer and the sun even poked out occasionally. I did see a flock of White Pelicans over by Jewel Key in the distance.
A small pod of feeding Dolphins also passed me near the end. I hadn't seen any sign of them the entire trip.
After
As I was leaving I had a chance to visit the New Visitors Center and official canoe/kayak launch. It was not open yet, but it looked great!
Final Note: Apparently I was experiencing what remained of Winter Storm Fern
. I did not know they named winter storms and it just happens that my mother was also named Fern. Made me think of her. 🙂
Photo Gallery
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