Solo Canoe Camping the Suwannee River | Found a Gator Problem

In short: This is a solo overnight on the water in pure South Georgia swamp country. I get the boat unloaded, scout the bank, find my fat lighter, and hang the hammock. Then I go to fire up the burner and realize the propane is still sitting at the house. So I cook straight on the fire. All the while a big gator is holding across the river, watching me, and when I ease down to wash off he comes swimming right at me.

Scouting camp and finding fat lighter

First thing I do when I pull into a spot is walk it. There was a game trail running back off the bank, deer tracks all through it, and I like to poke around a little to make sure I am not stumbling onto somebody's moonshine still. Back in the deadfall I found what I came for, a good solid piece of fat lighter laying right on the ground, and another one a few steps past it. That old dead pine turns to fat lighter over the years and it is the best fire starter there is. Plenty of wood back there too, so I would not have to work hard for a fire.

While I set up, a little bitty gator about two foot long swam by and perched up on the far bank to watch me. Cute little fellow. His big old buddy was the one I kept an eye on.

The propane that stayed home

I got the pack unloaded and the hammock strung up between two trees, and then I reached for the stove. I had the burner. I did not have the propane. That was the second thing I left this trip, and it turned a simple supper into a little bit of a project. But you do not get mad out here, you get to work. I set the pots straight down on the fire, warmed a can of beef stew and made a pouch of buttery mashed potatoes, and slopped it up with a piece of white bread. That ain't bad at all. Next morning I fried up spam on the same fire and rolled it in a burrito shell, wishing the whole time I had remembered the eggs too.

A gator that would not quit watching

By evening I was hot and I told myself I would get in the water for exactly a minute and twenty two seconds, wash off, and get out. That gator across the river had other plans. Soon as I started splashing he came off his bank and swam straight at me, fast, cutting right through the water. I got out quick. Curious as I am, I splashed a little more just to see, and he came again. That told me everything I needed to know. I stayed shallow, kept my supper started, and let him have the river. Out here the danger is not the gator minding his business, it is you forgetting he is there.

Questions about solo swamp camping

Is it safe to camp solo around alligators?

Yes, as long as you use your head and pay attention. On this trip I had two gators to think about, a little bitty one about two feet long that swam by and perched up on the far bank just watching, and his much bigger buddy across the river that I kept a real close eye on the whole time. When evening came and I got hot, I told myself I would get in the water for about a minute and twenty two seconds to wash off. That big gator had other plans. As soon as I started splashing he came off his bank and swam straight at me, fast, cutting right through the water, and I got out quick. I tested it once more, and he came again the same way. After that I stayed shallow and let him have the river. The danger out there is never the gator minding his own business, it is you forgetting he is there at all.

What is fat lighter and why use it?

Fat lighter is old dead pine that has turned resinous and hard with sap over the years, and it is about the best fire starter you will find anywhere in the South Georgia woods. When I pull into a camp spot, the first thing I do is walk it, checking the game trail and deer tracks back off the bank, and while I am at it I am also on the lookout for fat lighter in the deadfall. On this trip I found a good solid piece laying right on the ground, then another one just a few steps past it, plenty to work with. It lights fast and burns hot, and it will still catch even when everything around it is a little damp, which matters a lot out on a river like the Suwannee. With fat lighter on hand and plenty of other wood around camp, I never had to work hard to get a fire going for cooking or for the night.