Veteran hiker Dean Drake of the Florida Trail Association recently completed a booklet describing the Ocean to Lake Trail — a hiking trail that stretches 65 miles from Hobe Sound Beach to the dike on Lake Okeechobee.
The 39-page booklet titled “Walking the Ocean to Lake Hiking Trail” includes a map, photographs, historical tidbits, descriptions of the land, background on how the trail was developed and verses from the “The Song of the Florida Trail” by another veteran hiker, Gordon Johnson.
Copies of the Ocean to Lake Trail booklet are available for $10 (make checks payable to the Florida Trail Association, Loxahatchee Chapter). Send requests and checks to Paul Cummings, 9887 Cross Pine Court, Lake Worth, Fla., 33467 or call Cummings at (561) 963-9906.
The annual Ocean to Lake Hike, a six-day backpacking trip, is scheduled to begin Saturday at Port Mayaca. Backpackers will walk east to finish at Hobe Sound Beach.
For those who can’t make the backpacking trek, three day hikes along the Ocean to Lake Trail will be led by the Florida Trail Association Feb. 16-18.
Saturday’s hike begins at 8 a.m. at Gate 1 of the Dupuis Management Area on State Road 76 in western Martin County. Bea Rogers is the leader. Email her at: Bznest22@bellsouth.net.
On Feb. 17, Scott Lundsford will lead a hike beginning at 7:30 a.m. at Riverbend Park off Indiantown Road just west of Interstate 95. Contact him at (561) 441-1251 or by email at: TBlazer7579@comcast.net
The Feb. 18 hike begins at 8 a.m. at a trail head on Beeline Highway. For details, call hike leader Diana Clark at (561) 848-2880.
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Palm Beach County environmental officials plan to sink a new artificial reef this week north of Lake Worth Inlet.
The 110-foot tugboat Pocahontas, built in 1944, is expected to be sunk in 80 feet of water about 2 miles north of the inlet. The old tug will rest in an existing artificial reef site that includes some of the first vessels sunk for artificial reefs in the 1960s and concrete parts from the Royal Park Bridge.
For locations of artificial reefs throughout Palm Beach County, go to www.pbcgov.com/erm/coastal/reef/pdf/reeflocations.pdf.
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Surplus concrete power poles donated by Florida Power & Light Co. were scuttled recently to create two artificial reefs off St. Lucie County that are expected to be popular with anglers and divers.
One collection of concrete poles was deposited in the Offshore Reef site. They’re in 102 feet of water 11 nautical miles southeast of Fort Pierce Inlet at a bearing of 112 degrees. They rise 25 feet from the bottom.
The second set of poles are in the North County Nearshore Reef site in 62 feet of water 5.6 nautical miles from Fort Pierce Inlet at a bearing of 61 degrees. They rise 27 feet.
Construction of the artificial reefs was made possible in part with $60,000 from the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission and $18,300 from the St. Lucie County Erosion District.
For details, email James Oppenborn at: oppenbornj@stlucieco.org.
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The final weigh-in for the FLW Tour bass tournament on Lake Okeechobee is set for 4 p.m. today at the Clewiston Walmart. An outdoors expo is scheduled for noon to 4 p.m. in the store parking lot.
Country singer Dylan Scott is scheduled to perform at the beginning of the weigh-in, which is free to spectators.
