Hundreds of Alligators: Nights in the Okefenokee
Yes — the Okefenokee Swamp has a dense alligator population. BWJ documented hundreds of gators, including several 8-to-12-foot animals within a few feet of the canoe, during a two-night paddle from Park and Truck to camps at Minnie's Lake and Mixons.
We loaded up at Park and Truck and headed out for two nights in the Okefenokee. First night at Minnie's Lake, second night at Mixons. Simple plan. The swamp had other ideas.
The paddle into Minnie's Lake started like it always does — quiet water, cypress canopy, that particular kind of stillness you only get deep in the Okefenokee. Then the gators started showing up. Not a few. Not scattered. Hundreds. Laid up along both banks, in the water, on every piece of exposed ground. Big ones. Eight, ten, twelve footers. They were within a foot or two of the front of the canoe where Tina was sitting.
I hit one with the trolling motor. Felt two or three others hit the bottom of the canoe as we pushed through the thick of it. My hand was shaking on the trolling motor trying to hold our line. Tina was holding it together up front. That section was about as nerve-wracking as it gets out here.
We made it through.
Camp at Minnie's Lake came with a problem we didn't see coming — we left the tent poles at the house. Forgot to pack them when we came off the St. Marys two weekends ago and never put them back in the tent bag. No poles, no tent. So we improvised. Rigged up what we had, made it work. That's what you do. You don't get mad about it. You figure it out with what you've got.
Supper was Uncle Ben's fried rice with peas and carrots and some chicken. We said grace over the food and thanked the Lord for getting us through that gauntlet of gators. Asked Him to clear the channel for us on the way out.
After supper I walked down to the water to count. Thirty-three gators visible from one spot in the fading light. Just the little ones — four and a half footers — coming in close to the bank as it got dark.
Morning brought corned beef and bread. My daughter drove up and dropped off the tent poles and some breakfast for us at the truck — we had to swing back that way to get to Mixons anyway. She came through. The next night we'd have a proper tent.
On the paddle out the second day we ran into a fellow YouTuber — Fish on the Fly. Good people out here on the water.
Two nights, hundreds of gators, one improvised camp setup, and a swamp that reminded us again why we keep coming back. The Okefenokee doesn't repeat itself.
Where the map ends, the wild begins. Stay rugged.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there a lot of alligators in the Okefenokee Swamp?
Yes. On this two-night paddle from Park and Truck to Minnie's Lake, BWJ counted hundreds of gators along both banks in one stretch, including several 8-to-12-footers within a few feet of the canoe, plus 33 smaller gators visible from a single spot at dusk.
Is it safe to paddle through a heavy alligator concentration like this?
BWJ paddled straight through the gator-dense stretch near Minnie's Lake using a trolling motor to hold a steady line, and made contact with at least one gator via the motor and two or three more against the canoe hull during the crossing — described as one of the more nerve-wracking sections on the water.
What camps are used on this Okefenokee route?
This trip camped two nights: the first at Minnie's Lake, the second at Mixons.
What gear mistake happened on this trip, and how did they handle it?
They left the tent poles at home after a previous St. Marys trip. Rather than turning back, they improvised a shelter for the first night; a family member met them at the truck the next morning with the poles for night two.
What food did they eat on this trip?
Supper was Uncle Ben's fried rice with peas, carrots, and chicken; breakfast the next morning was corned beef and bread.