Kayaking on Graham Creek

     Last weekend I went kayaking on Graham Creek. It's a fresh water creek that runs with the East River into the Apalachicola River. Both flow through the Apalachicola Wildlife and Environmental Area. 

     It was a little windy but you wouldn't have known it on the creek. Both sides were thick with cypress and tupelo trees so the wind was blocked and the water was calm. Made for easy stroking.
    


 There were six of us all together counting Lissy and myself. Lissy was the guide for the trip and invited me to go and take pictures. Two couples from Alabama and Georgia had booked the trip with "Journey's", the charter boat business on the island. I was happy to accept the invitation!

    The tide was really high. At times the tide is so low, you can see the entire root system of the cypress trees.And the tupelo trees produce a special nectar that's used to make tupelo honey.
                                                                                

      This is the only place in the world that certified tupelo honey is produced. There are a few rivers in the area with tupelo trees but the Apalachicola River is the center for honey. The bee keepers will keep their beehives on platforms along the river during the tupelo bloom. Usually in April and May. In a good harvest year, the tupelo honey crop that is produced can be worth $1000,000.00. It's some good stuff! It has a light and mild taste and. the high ratio of fructose to glucose that it has keeps it from crystallizing  I highly recommend it.

      We probably only went about five miles. We took a few detours that ended up being dead ends but there was something different down every fork.. We ran into a couple fishermen that thought nobody would find them tucked away in the little cove they were in. Surprise! They weren't catching anything anyway so our intrusion was a friendly encounter.

      The only wildlife we ran across were some huge spiders hanging in the trees. No bears, no gators, no worries.