Joe Cuhaj - Hiking the Gulf Coast: A Guide to the Areas Greatest Hiking Adventures

Hiking the Gulf Coast

HELP US KEEP THIS GUIDE UP TO DATE

Every effort has been made by the author and editors to make this guide as accurate and useful as possible. However, many things can change after a guide is publishedtrails are rerouted, regulations change, facilities come under new management, and so forth.

We welcome your comments concerning your experiences with this guide and how you feel it could be improved and kept up to date. While we may not be able to respond to all comments and suggestions, well take them to heart, and well also make certain to share them with the author. Please send your comments and suggestions to the following address:

FalconGuides

Reader Response/Editorial Department

246 Goose Lane

Guilford, CT 06437

Or you may e-mail us at: editorial@falcon.com

Thanks for your input, and happy trails!

FALCON GUIDES

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Distributed by NATIONAL BOOK NETWORK

Copyright 2016 by Rowman & Littlefield
Photos: Joe Cuhaj
Maps: Alena Joy Pearce Rowman & Littlefield

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Information available

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cuhaj, Joe.

Hiking the Gulf Coast : a guide to the areas greatest hiking adventures / Joe Cuhaj.

pages cm

Distributed by NATIONAL BOOK NETWORKT.p. verso.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-4930-0812-4 (paperback : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-4930-1450-7 (electronic) 1. HikingFloridaGuidebooks. 2. HikingAlabamaGuidebooks. 3. HikingMississippiGuidebooks. 4. HikingLouisianaGuidebooks. 5. HikingTexasGuidebooks. 6. Natural resourcesFloridaGuidebooks. 7. Natural resourcesAlabamaGuidebooks. 8. Natural resourcesMississippiGuidebooks. 9. Natural resourcesLouisianaGuidebooks. 10. Natural resourcesTexasGuidebooks. 11. FloridaGuidebooks. 12. AlabamaGuidebooks. 13. MississippiGuidebooks. 14. LouisianaGuidebooks. 15. TexasGuidebooks. I. Title.

GV199.42.F6C84 2015

796.510976dc23

2015023077

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

The author and Rowman & Littlefield assume no liability for accidents happening to, or injuries sustained by, readers who engage in the activities described in this book.

It would be impossible for me to thank all of the hikers, clubs, organizations, agencies, and land managers for their help putting this book together. Just know that I am very grateful for all of your support and input.

There are two groups that I need to specifically thank for their help and guidance. A big thank-you to the members of the Florida Trail Association and Alabama Hiking Trail Society for their help in suggesting trails to be included in this guide.

I also send my thanks to the rangers and staff of the US Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service and all of their volunteers working at the national wildlife refuges and parks I visited during my research. I have never met a group of people so dedicated, friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. Thank you!

There is one person I need to single out and thank, my wife, Maggie, who once again hiked every mile of trail with me for this book along with our rescue Labrador, Archer. I seriously couldnt have done it without her and couldnt have had better company.

Some people call it the Big Crescent, others call it the Third Coast, but most everyone calls it paradise: Shimmering emerald green waters, brilliant pristine white beaches, calming black-water rivers, salt marshes, and tidal flatsthey all make up the Gulf Coast.

The Gulf Coast can truly be called a paradise for the lovers of the outdoors. With its subtropical climate, you can lose yourself in an endless variety of activities virtually year-round. Oh, there are some bumps in the road that Ill discuss in a minute, but for the most part, its a great place to live and visit any time of year.

Since moving to the Gulf Coast some thirty years ago, it has always been a dream of mine to drive the crescent from one side to the other, not on the interstates but the back roads through the small towns and villages that dot the coast. Little did I know that one day I would not only get that opportunity, but also do it while partaking in my favorite sporthiking. When FalconGuides and I partnered to do this book, I knew I was in for an adventure and one that I wanted to share with all of you.

There are five states that form the rim of the coast: from east to westFlorida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. The goal of this guide is to provide you with information on the forty best coastal hikes across these states. Of course, the word best is subjective. Whats best for one person may not be for you. I have tried to make this book as diverse as possible so that everyone will find a trail to their liking and then will want to go out and try the others.

In this guide we will be covering hikes that fall between Tampa, Florida, and Corpus Christi, Texasabout 90 percent of the entire Gulf Coast. The treks within these pages are by no means all there is to hike on the Gulf Coast. I have also included Honorable Mentions at the end of each states section. These are other hikes along that states coastal area that I think you might like to check out. In the end I hope that this guide will inspire you to find the many other hiking adventures along the Gulf Coast.

When talking about this area with locals and tourist officials, you may hear them refer to it as the Third Coast. That rubs some Chicagoans the wrong way, since up there many call the shores of the Great Lakes the Third Coast. But come on, really? A lake coast versus an ocean coast? I rest my case. (Sorry, just had to add a little friendly fuel to the fire of this ongoing rivalry.)

The ecosystems of the Gulf are quite diverse. In south Texas well hike through salt marshes and tidal flats; in north Texas and Louisiana, its marshes, wetlands, and cedar and tupelo swamps; in Mississippi and Alabama, slow-moving black-water rivers, expansive deltas, and transitional forests; and in Florida well hike through scrub pine over ancient sand dunes and visit amazing sinkholes in what is known as a karst topography. Plus we will hike on some of the Gulf s famous barrier islands. These great long stretches of sand hold all of this fascinating ecosystem together like a picture frame by protecting the mainland from the battering of ocean waves and storms and providing habitat for thousands of different species of birds and wildlife.

The history of the Gulf Coast is a long oneover 180 million years long. That is when the supercontinent called Pangea began breaking apart. By the time this colossal jigsaw puzzle was finished rearranging itself, the Gulf was much larger than it is today. The first Gulf of Mexico would have stretched from Oklahoma all the way north to Arkansas, and Georgia would have had Gulf Coast beaches. (Florida was underwater at the time.)