Island Camping in Florida

Have you ever dreamt of having your own private island? For most people, this will never happen. You can, however, experience the solitude and tranquility of having your own little island paradise. The Florida Keys alone consist of over 1,700 islands. Most of which are small and uninhabited. The state of Florida actually claims to have over 4,500 islands that are over ten acres in size, as well. That’s a lot of opportunity for finding your own little piece of paradise for a weekend adventure.

Some people might not be able to see everything that an undeveloped island has to offer, but for me they are endless fountains of adventure. An untouched island can be fun to hike and explore, provide the most secluded beaches you will find anywhere, offer a base for all of your watersport activities, become a free backcountry camp site, and so on. For others, they might be a serene place to find there inner zen.

Most of the uninhabited islands in Florida don’t have any roads to access them, which adds to their elusiveness and gives it a greater sense of sequestration. Getting to these hidden gems in the ocean is part of the adventure, and how you do it helps to define your experience. A sea kayaker can grab their tent and spend a weekend camping on the beach of a deserted island oasis. Somebody with a sail boat or cabin cruiser can anchor off the shore of and island to enjoy it by day, and bunk up in their boat at night.

I guess it comes down to how adventurous you are, and if you are comfortable with nature and the outdoors. If you are an indoor person that can’t live without modern luxuries, you might not enjoy island camping – unless you bring your own yacht along. But if you are at one with nature and love a good adventure, these islands can provide you with your very own piece of paradise.

Obstacle Races are a New Craze That’s Sweeping the Nation

 There seems to be a new obstacle race, mud run, or adventure race popping up all over the place, and they each have their own little twist. A couple of the more popular obstacle races going on around the country include Warrior Dash, and Tough Mudder. Each of these have raised millions of dollars for charities by putting on these events. I’ve seen a wide range of obstacles including crawling through pits of mud under strings of barbed wire, scaling walls, crawling over rope nets, hurdling junk cars, swimming through pools of ice water, jumping over blazing fire, and running through dangling electrical wires that are charged to 10,000 volts… just to name a few. These races typically range from 3 miles to 12 miles or more. These races obviously are not for the faint of heart.

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I was running 10K races on a regular basis when I signed up for Warrior Dash, which is equivalent to a 5K in length. I figured the addition of obstacles would slow down my race time, but I didn’t expect it to take as much out of me as it did. I guess I should have put two and two together, though. The race was at a ski resort for a reason… the hills! We had to of run up and down 4 or 5 different ski hills over the course of the race. The obstacles were a cake-walk compared to running all of those hills. Even running down a ski hill is difficult because of the steepness. You are basically doing everything you can to slow yourself down, not go faster.

It was tough as hell, but it was a blast! The race was challenging. Everybody got good and muddy, then hosed off like a house fire. The event was two full days long, with heats taking off every 30 minutes. I believe there was right around 26,000 participants, just at the location I ran at. There were bands playing, smoked turkey legs, and they even started contestants out with a free beer to get things rolling after their runs. I’ll definitely be running more of these!

Moleskin for Blister Care and Prevention

 I’m surprised how many people I talk to that don’t know the benefits of moleskin. So, I’m going to break down what moleskin is, and how to use it for blister care and prevention here.

What is Moleskin?

Moleskin actually refers to a type of fabric, but I’m talking specifically about self-adhesive moleskin that’s sold for first aid kits, foot products, etc. You can usually find it in any drug store near any other foot treatments. It’s a soft, yet durable fabric that prevents friction, and the blisters that come with that friction.

Blister Prevention

If you have an area that usually develops blisters, like the heel of your foot, you can stick a strip of moleskin on there before beginning your hike/run/walk/etc. The friction from your shoe moving is now transferred to the moleskin instead of your own skin, and therefore prevents blisters from developing. I’m sure you can see how this would be beneficial for backpackers, hikers, runners, and all kinds of athletes.

Blister Care

So, what do you do if  you already have a blister? Take a strip of moleskin that’s a couple inches bigger than your blister on all sides. Then you cut a hole in the middle of the moleskin about the same size as your blister. Apply the moleskin to the affected area with the blister in the hole you cut. The thickness of the moleskin helps protect the blister from more friction, even though the moleskin isn’t applied directly to the blister itself. Multiple companies make extra-thick, and even padded moleskin that works best for this purpose.

I keep a few strips of moleskin in my little medical kit that I take on backpacking trips just in case I need it, and I recommend you do the same. Once you get some nasty blisters and you’re 20 miles from civilization, you’re going to wish you had some with you.