Clearwater Lake to Alexander Springs

 So we made the plans on doing this trip for about 3 weeks before we went, little did we know what we were in for. We all were watching the weather all week, lows in the 40s. We thought " thats do able" , hmmmmm well when i woke up Saturday morning I did my normal coffee, turn the news on, then POW right in the face. The weather man told me it was going to be 28 degs. Sunday morning. My first thoughts were OMG what is Deb going to think, so i let her sleep for a while until i could figure out how to tell her. 45 mins pass and i guess its time to wake her. Well that kinda didnt go as i planned, but shes a trooper and went anyway. I may have left out the wind when i told her ( ooopppssss ) .  So wind chill Sunday morning was going to put us at about 16 degs, i dont think thats the best weather to be sleeping in a hammock. So panic is setting in.
 To be honest Saturday wasnt all that bad weather wise, BUT  when we get there we kinda realize that our packs are just about 20 lbs too heavy, maybe not that bad but they were bad. Deb really struggled with hers, i wasnt happy about mine, and James well he seemed to be fine with his. Although his bag was heavy also.
 So we head out on our way, despite the weight. About 2/10ths of a mile on the first spur trail i look down and see bear tracks, no worries we have spray ( just thought i would throw that in ). I didnt say anything to Deb cause she was having a hard time, with the new bag and all that stuff. I wasnt sure how she would react that soon in with the thought of the bears. We do make it about half way on the first day and want to stop for lunch and clean out our shoes, ( gotta love sugar sand ).

 While sitting on a tree to eat some wraps that Deb made, we looked at our legs and noticed more freckles on our legs and they were moving, yep CHIGGERS! Time to move, i jumped up brushed off and looked down, now i have carpenter ants climbing on me!!! REALLYY!!!!! LOL.
 So we head off again, and see all kinds of great camping areas, BTW in Ocala you can camp anywhere there arent any designated campgrounds. We really want to hit our "6" mile point then start looking for a place to camp. Well i guess i miss added , by the time we got to our "6" mile point, we had gone 6.9 miles, and guess what? The terrain changed, all we can see is Pines right in the middle of palmettos, not the best to be sleeping in .

  Well now we are all ready to be done for the day but we have to find a place to camp, and there doesnt look like any great place to camp. James is pushing on me and deb are lagging behind trying to keep our spirits up. Finally we realize we are just going to have to grab the first thing we see. After about 8 miles James runs up to a spot that we see from a distance, and comes back with good news, its got potential. So we go about 200 more yards up hill in the snow and blizzard conditions. WE MADE IT!!!

Nap time! She earned it...

Deb making coffee, James chillin

Cheif James " HOW"

James hard at work

SOUPS ON!!!!

 Well after about a hour of cleaning the area up and deciding where to hang the hammocks, and where the fire should be, and getting fire wood, it was a GREAT spot! We all liked it.
 That night was a interesting night, we had a raccoon come up to our camp about 50 feet or so ( my bad, i thew the water from the pot after cleaning it out there, i wont do that again ), and we kept hearing this strang sound. We kind of think it was a fawn looking for its mama, or the wind in the trees, or the dreaded Swamp Skunk. Either way we made it, even with all the bear scat we saw, the snapping trees, the chiggers, and the dreaded blizzard conditions. The night was cold and getting colder. james and me stayed up talking for a little while, while Deb when to bed.
 We did wake early, and when walking early, Deb was cold and sore, and we had about 3 miles out, but again she made it.
 I hate that this sounds like we hated it, cuz we didnt we all had fun and cant wait for another one, minus the cold and heavy bags. It was a great learning experience for us. We loved all of the terrain change.  I really like the thought of not having a designated campsite, and was really looking forward to seeing the wild life ( we didnt see much, but they were out there).
 Here are some more pics,
 Leave some comments so we know what you think!!!

Im SO TIRED!! LOL, Nooooo this isnt staged LOL

What is it with me and signs?

I thought this "canopy" was cool

Just a pretty sunset

See theres a smile , told you she was having a good time.