This is a nice, professional quality video by a father and son, Brad and Wayne Jennings. From their accents they are Canadians (“You can’t do with-oot fresh water.”) The video describes a seven day trip down the Everglades Wilderness Watertrail from Everglades City, down the water trail, then out to the Gulf islands and back to Everglades City, a trip similar to the one reported on earlier in this blog (click here to read that report). The difference is that they do it by canoe, not kayak as we did.
Canoes would make some aspects of this trip easier, and some more dangerous. On the inland, confined waters canoes would be better for maneuvering. And they are definitely an advantage when camping on Chickees. I just can’t see how I would get these old bones out of a sea kayak and up a ladder onto a Chickee, let alone getting the gear I need from my three closed hatches.
Canoes would be more dangerous on open water, especially the Gulf. This is where sea kayaks shine. They are less effected by wind and unlike a canoe, they are sealed to keep out water.
There were two errors in the video that I want to correct here. The video said that there are no porta-potties on the Gulf Islands. Any National Park sites on the islands have Porta-potties. The video also mentioned that campfires could be built on the Keys. This is true only if the fire is built below the highest high tide mark on the beach.
This video and my trip report may inspire you to plan a trip through Everglades National Park by canoe or Kayak yourself. Or you could enlist the help of one of the fine outfitters I mention in my trip report.
Good Luck! Have fun! Be safe!