On my way to Cotswold Way I had it in mind to do a 6.2 mile loop on Paynes Prairie Preserve’s Chacala Trail on Sunday.
Alas, Chacala turns out to be an obscure indigenous word that, roughly translated, means: This trail is under water for as far as the eye can see.
But I am nothing if not adaptable.
So having been stopped in my tracks approximately one mile into the Chacala sponge, I slowly retraced my steps until I came to the juncture of Jackson’s Gap Trail.
Jackson’s Gap turned out to be a lovely (and mostly dry) stroll amongst spreading oaks, lush palmetto scrubs and pine forests.
I highly recommend it.
There is also a spur called the Lake Trail.
It is not so much a trail as a dirt road for service vehicles. And there are long stretches with no tree shade at all, so it’s not the most pleasant hike.
Still, the trade off is that you get an awesome view of Lake Wauburg at Lake Trail’s end.
Then you have to turn around and retrace your steps, under the sun, back to Jackson’s Gap.
I still want to do Chacala. But I suspect it’ll have to wait until all the spring rain flooding begins to receed.
In the meantime I’ll keep hiking one GNV trail at a time. On my way to Cotswold Way. So stay tuned.
FreeGNV 