Gulf Islands National Seashore - Perdido Key Backpacking Trail

On May 28th, I woke up before the sun and headed out toward Perdido Key, west of Pensacola, Florida. I had two goals: watch the sun rise and hike the backpacking trail to the end of the island and back. The trail is considered one of the best for backpacking in the country and offers primitive camping for backpackers and boaters. The nice thing about it is that there is no car access, which, were it not for the skyscrapers in the distance, would contribute to a feeling of remoteness.

A ghost crab at 5am. When the gate finally opened at the Perdido Key branch of the Gulf Islands National Seashore, I rubbed my eyes and drove down the narrow, dune-flanked road. The road was crawling with crabs and I did my best to avoid them, though it was clear that the ranger who drove in before I did was less careful. I parked and began my pre-dawn stroll (or stagger) down the lagoon-side of Perdido Key.

I often enhance my pictures with colour corrections to try to make them more true to the original colours or more artistic. However, I wanted to give you the rising sun the way my camera saw it without any alterations (except some cropping). So all these sunrise pictures are unedited.

Golden shafts of light announce the suns approach, just below the horizon.

And there he is.

The sun rises over the city of Pensacola. Zooming in really brought out the reds. I didn't edit this picture or change the original colours from what the camera captured.

Zooming way out brings out more gold and blue colours.

Once the sun peaks over the horizon, the ghost crabs head for their burrows.

There were giant colonies of nesting terns all along the trail and, occasionally, to avoid bombardment and disruption of the terns behaviour, my path was diverted.

A smashed turtle shell seems to tell a sad tail of boat-testudine collision.

The crabs are fast but can be caught if they are blacked from entering their burrows. Of course I release them unharmed and never keep them from their burrows for more than a couple of minutes. Once upon a time, these crabs were sought after as popular dissection specimens for schools. I don't know that there are enough of them around any more to be as much use in that regard as they used to be.

Nearing the end of the island, the ancient ruins of forts used during World War II, the Civil War, and others can be seen crumbling into the dunes.

Needle rush, greenbriar, and touch-me-nots were among the unpleasant plants encountered.

A young pelican lies decaying were it fell. Many young pelicans are killed by their siblings before ever leaving the nest.