Florida Geocaching Classics:
Ed Watson Was a Bad Man

Ed Watson was a Bad Man...or so they say! Well let's just say that he must have been pretty "bad" to be able not only to survive the pre-air-conditioned, pre-Deet days of the Florida Everglades , but also to grow a prosperous sugar cane farm 17-miles out there in the back country of the Thousand Islands on the Chatham River. He was strong willed and hot-tempered, qualities that surely enabled him to brave the elements. But, according to popular belief, Mr. Watson was also a killer who escaped to the Florida wilderness to avoid murder charges and while there, saved some money by feeding certain employees to the gators so he wouldn't have to pay them! He was never convicted in a court of law...there's been no direct evidence linking the infamous bad man to these deaths...and yet the Chokoloskee townees were so convinced of his guilt that they figured vigilante justice was in order and thus formed a civilian posse to kill him when he came ashore one day.

Several weeks ago, we formed our own civilian posse to visit the former homestead of Mr. Watson, where one of the great geo-journeys in Florida can be found in the form of a virtual cache -GCF353, Ed Watson was a Bad Man. The cache itself, which has only been "found" 20 times since it was first published on 4/6/2003, has changed ownership several times. Originally created by Dogbone in 2001 as GC568, it was taken over first by FatMike and is currently owned and maintained by lorriebird. More detailed information about the cache itself can be found on the cache page. After exploring the island, the geo-posse continued out to the Pavilion Key, home of the Pavilion Key Sunset Tree (GC32AC), an amazingly unspoiled natural beach and some incredibly ginormous shells!

So how does one go about planning an awesome Floridian geo-journey like this...especially cachers like us who tend to plan a day of caching by waking up in the morning and using the ol' eeny-meeney-miney-moe decision-making method?!? Well, here are some suggestions for others who may want to enjoy this incredible journey.

1. Form your "posse". Although we didn't want the group to get too big, we knew this was a back-country, wilderness experience so we figured we'd less likely to become a victim of Mr. Watson if some friends joined us.

2. Decide how to get there, which will involve some sort of water craft. Although some other adventurous geocachers have had the stamina to paddle out to these caches in a several-day camping extravaganza, we decided that a motor boat expedition would be more appropriate for our group. It really all depends on your capabilities. So after some research into the boats that would get us through the Chatham River shallows, we rented a couple of skiffs from the very helpful people at Glades Haven Marina, located on 801 Copeland Avenue in Everglades City, right across the street from the Everglades National Park Visitor's Center. You can "visit" them at http://www.gladeshavenmarina.com/. The marina opens at 6am and the boats can leave the dock at first sunlight, so you can get a nice early start. Rates for rentals and gasoline are determined by a number of factors, especially the time of year and the current prices of gasoline.

3. Which brings us to the next important point to consider...Take the time of year into account when planning the journey. Weather-wise, anytime other than the summer months would probably be the best...that is if you have a problem with the heat and humidity, the increased skeeter population and the inevitable possibility of afternoon thunderstorms. But apparantly these factors were not an issue for us, as our trip was planned for the final week of June!  Fortunately it turned out to be a lovely day, with no rain and only minimal skeeter contact (they can't bite a moving target right?). ...And there are other advantages to going in the summer months. Since it is the off-season in terms of Florida tourism, boat rentals were discounted (we paid $100 per skiff and they usually run $150+ during the busier winter months). Nearby accommodations were considerably reduced as well. So again, discuss your priorities with your "posse".

4. Plot your course before leaving. Bring maps...laminate them if possible to keep them waterproof. Get a hold of navigational charts and be aware of the tides. The higher the tide, the easier it will be to navigate the shallows. We were fortunate in that we started our journey when there was an unusually high tide, although we did find that the difficulty level increased with the outgoing tide...but fortunately, we were almost back at the marina at that point.

5. Bring an extra tank of gas. In our case, the marina provided us with the extra gas and it came in handy toward the end of the journey.

6. Make a list and check it twice...what do you need to bring with you. Some suggestions:

* Your GPSr (...but of course!)
* A cooler filled with WATER and FOOD
* Hats & sunglasses
* Sunscreen
* DEET DEET DEET!
* Paddles or push poles to help navigate through those shallows where the motor can not be used
* A camera for all those great photo ops...lots of wildlife & gorgeous scenic views out there!

7. And now for just some miscellaneous things to think about...

* If you decide to escape to Pavilion Key after checking out the Watson joint, get ready to collect some absolutely incredible shells. These things are gigantic...the types of shells for which tourists search the kitschy gift shops! ...and on Pavilion Key itself you are allowed to collect some of these shells as long as there is nothing living inside of them and they do not appear to be Native American artifacts. We were informed of this by one of the Everglades National Park conservation officers who inspected the shells for us and gave us the "OK". Also be aware that on some of the nearby islands, the shells are specifically used as part of sacred Indian burial mounds and the removal of such artifacts is prohibited.

* Talk to or e-mail other cachers who have also taken this journey. Many folks were most helpful to us and may have further suggestions, depending on the choices you make while planning.

* For those cachers who would like to add a literary component to this journey, check out Peter Matthiessen's novel "Killing Mr. Watson." Although it is a fictionalized account of the drama of Ed Watson's life & death, it is intermingled with what is known of the historical facts and immerses the reader in the world of the 19th-century Everglades pioneers. Kind of cool!

This is one of those geocaching experiences that proves the axiom about geocaching being about the journey (even if there are only two smilies involved)...and while it is a journey that requires lots of planning, it is well worth the effort...two beautiful natural places with an intriguing, even spooky history! ...and Mr. Watson is calling to all intrepid geocachers to visit him...and remember, DON'T... BE ...FRIGHTENED!

By Mimi Barrison of M&M Melted

Originally hailing from Long Island, New York, I moved to the Tampa Bay area of Florida with my family in 2005.  In terms of my life as a geocacher, I was first half of M&M NY in July of 2003 on Long Island...and of course, once we moved to Florida, we became melted M&Ms, aka "M&M Melted."  From the very beginning, it was all about the experience and the journey to us...and we've had so many incredible journeys and made some great friends.  ...and now that I live in Florida, I am forever amazed by the swamps, the mangroves, the forests and all the other typically Floridian natural and wild places that we continue to discover here!