Are you looking for a hardcore wilderness challenge?
I hiked the Everglades National Park Coastal Prairie Trail (15 miles round trip), the southernmost trail in the continental United States; and did it in flip-flops one way, and barefoot on the way back.
The national park rangers in the Everglades recommend that no one hike this trail, but they’ll still issue you a backcountry permit to hike and camp, if you insist on it. On this extremely rugged trail you will battle mosquitoes, biting ants, unrelenting sun and heat, painfully sharp plants, and sticky marl mud; all for the prize of camping alone on Florida Bay at the remote Clubhouse Beach. The environment that this trail traverses is some of the most hostile on the continent: the marl prairie is a breeding ground for mosquitoes, the footing can become impassable from mud, and the sun can beat unconditioned hikers into exhaustion.
My father and his wife accompanied me on this adventure, and we loved every second of it. There’s a LOT of history in this rugged wilderness, and incredibly unique beauty that you won’t see anywhere else on the planet, guaranteed.
Photos are below…more text coming soon.
