Hello everyone.
Excited to be back with another blog post from the Florida Trail.
We just completed another successful 40-Miles section of the FT,

and we have finally reached the 400-Milestone yeah!!!
It feels like it has taken us a long time to reach this number because we have stopped
so many times in the past couple of months and years that we haven't really had any consistency.
However, by completing this last section we have gotten this far and there's more to go!
This past weekend we drove back to our last stop on Friday night
and arrived around midnight to Big Tree Park.
Unfortunately, the park itself was closed which seemed kind of odd because last time
they left the gates opened, and we were able to park there with no problems.
Without hesitation, we looked for another parking location and found next to Big Tree Park
a construction company called Nidy Sports Construction and with a space for parking,
again, we don't usually do this kind of stuff but this was a last minute attempt to find parking.
We knew it would be okay and safe to leave my car here because this establishment was close for
the weekend, and we added a note saying we were doing the Florida Trail and
to call us in the event of any emergency or towing issues with the car.
As always, we woke up pretty early around 4:00AM and had everything prepared
the night before just to start trekking the very first thing in the morning.
Per our last section we knew the very first 10-13 Miles of day one would be on the paved trail
and walking through many boulevards, so we made sure to wear our
athletic shoes for the next couple of hours until we got back to the woods.
By walking on any paved trail you pretty much have the advantage to walk faster,
I don't know why it always happens to us, and we take advantage of this.
We killed the first 13-miles in just 5hrs which was pretty good for us.
We did have a few stops here and there but not long rest stops.
There was a section between a highway and passage that we
had to crossed and get inside the trail and woods,
however, we did not see any FT marks on this side of the trail
and we would have to trespass a private fence/property area.
It didn't seem like the correct thing to do as we have had previous experience
with crossing short fences that would lead to the trail or campsites,
rather we decided to do the smart thing and walk across the passage next
to the highway and which took us to one of the most beautiful sights of the trip.
We spotted from this bridge Lower Wekiva Springs, and it was beautiful!
Saw a couple of boats and kayaks coming through on

the lake and what an astounding view from up here.
We decided to stop here and fly Hector's drone to take some really cool pictures and videos,
most likely Hector will post them later on this Instagram page.
We arrived to Bear Pond Trailhead around 11:40AM which was fairly early for us
knowing now we had to get back inside the woods and trail, so we changed to our hiking boots!
On this side of the trail things got a bit humid and hot for us,
the temperature was increasing rapidly, and we could feel.
We had to make a few stops along the way because of how hot and sunny it was that day.
I guess we are starting to feel the summer heat out here in the Florida Trail,
after all we are coming through summer season, and it could only get worse from here on forward.
For day one we were only hiking 18-miles as we wanted to locate a nearby campsite.
We arrived to Sulphur Campsite at our 18-Miles mark and at 2:30PM.
It was unbelievable, and we couldn't believe how fast we have gotten here.
I'm telling you guys we really walked pretty fast this whole section.
Anyways, it felt good to be here on time and early that way we could enjoy the campsite,
take a couple of naps or pretty much do whatever we wanted to.
Prior to making this trip we had marked this campsite on our map,
since we never get lucky to camp at any designated campsites out here,
we thought it would be a great idea to camp at this location
for the night and enjoy our time at Sulphur Campsite.
One thing we didn't know it was that you needed a reservation/permit camping at Sulphur,
lucky enough we didn't see many people out here and no one came in to take our spot.
The campsite is very spacious, secluded and has a great view,
you literally could fit as many tents as possible and provides us two tables with a fire pit.
This time we took our Grassman hammocks that we enjoy so much and set our hammocks
next to each other, and we added another layer of hammock net for the bugs at night.
Spent the next couple of hours relaxing and enjoying ourselves,
with the fire pit we made fire for the night which was spectacular, and we could
enjoy a bit of fire which it is always relaxing and satisfying.
The next morning we were up and ready by 6:30AM,
made some quick coffee that would spark us up and off we were on the trail!
Our second day was so much fun as we discovered many places and unique spots.
We came across a residential area and spotted one of the coolest rest area we have ever
seen on the Florida Trail and I have decided to call it the “Joe's Rest Area”.
Honestly, I really have no clue if that is the name of this rest area but the owner's name is Joe.
We met Joe a few minutes after stopping at this rest area which included fresh cold water,
alcohol patches, swabs, Clorox and many other items for hikers coming through.
Joe told us many stories about hikers passing through this section of the trail,
talked us about seeing many rattle snakes and other wild animals.
Instantly, we bonded with Joe as he seemed nice and sweet gentleman,
as we were about to leave Joe came back around and gave us more bottles
of water and the best frozen apple we have ever tried.
I'm being serious, the best apple pie ever!
For us this was the highlight of the trip and Joe couldn't
have been more courteous and friendly to us.
Again, most people don't believe but this is the reason
why we do this and the reason why we hike the Florida Trail.
We get to see unique places and meet such nice people
along way that will make for great memories.
The next few miles were really exhausting, but we had found out next stop area.
We spotted an empty cabin by Maggie Jones Rd which seemed to be a famous off-road by this area.
The cabin has a perfect location and a gorgeous lake at the back,
makes it look like somebody either lives here or is one of those cabins that could rent,
all we know is that it was out here hidden and on a secluded area.
Next couple of locations were Camp Rybolt and Camp La-No-Che
which were great for us as we could stop and take some time to rest.
Good thing about coming through this Paisley section is that we finally spotted two snakes,
frogs, and a huge deer at the end of the section.
Entering Clearwater Lake Recreation Area we knew we were close to reaching the end,
so we took it a bit easier and enjoyed the beautiful trail all the way to Alexander Springs.
The last couple of miles really kicked our butts off, but we made it to our final location
Talk about a perfect 12hrs hike!
We started hiking at 6:30AM that day and arrived at 6:40PM.
We have never felt so great and the feeling of accomplishment was up to the roof!
Well guys we have finally reached the end of this blog and I really hope you guys enjoy all my content.
I feel like we have been taking a lot of pictures and videos along the way more than we used to
but this is always a good sign that we are enjoying each moment and
that this will serve us for future years and memories.
You can check out all of our locations we spotted along the way Wekiva Springs, Sulphur Campsite,
Joe's Rest Area, and Clearwater Lake Recreation Area.
Before I sign off on this blog post I wanted to notify you guys that we will make a long stop as
Hector will be traveling to visit his family in Cuba, and we will make a recess
of a month or so and be back on the trail beginning of June.
In case you don't hear from me on more blogs make sure to enjoy
summer season and get yourself out here in the wilderness!
See you soon guys!