Exploring the World With Pokemon Go: Jay Blanchard Park
After missing a day thanks to a Pokemon Go Community Event, I am back. I explored somewhere very special. Jay Blanchard Park is an area where I used to train weekly to get in the best shape I was ever in. Let us see what this trip down nostalgia lane led to.
Jay Blanchard Park is probably the largest area I explored thus far. The path itself stretches from Dean Road and all the way to Rouse Road. Pictured above is the bridge that Dean Road uses to cross the nearby Little Econlockhatchee. This bridge also marks the western end of the path. I began here and started walking east.
Even on this side where few park facilities are available, there is plenty to see. Fish lurk in the shade of the bridge within the river. Alligators sneak around both on the shore and in the water. Plenty of birds flock to the many trees as well. All in all this is a beautiful area.
Central Area:
As I continued eastwards down the trail, more of the park areas were available to me. You can see pictured above just how many people frequent Jay Blanchard Park. The number of cars filling the edges where they can be parked is testament to that.
Simply having a walking trail is for amateur parks. Jay Blanchard Park has soccer fields, hiking areas, the river which is available for fishing, open fields for play, and playgrounds for the young ones. Given the large crowds, I had to pick and choose where I snapped photos. I do everything in my power to avoid other people in them.
The yellow sign warns of alligators in the river. While Florida natives understand that every single body of water here has gators in them, these signs are an important safety measure.
Former Training Grounds:
As I approached the eastern part of Jay Blanchard Park, I reflected on my past workouts. I am ashamed to admit that I would be in much better shape right now if I had stuck to a proper routine. Instead I kept making excuses and lost something that I really enjoyed.
These four photos really take me back to a few years ago. A certain blogger was in much better shape as he trained for super races such as Tough Mudder. The tree above marked where we would end a sprint. The path shown was where those sprints as well as quarter mile lunges occurred. The bench was the meeting place as a group of workout enthusiasts prepared for leg day.
Sadly one picture is a bit out of place compared to the rest. The hills near the rest of this training area were crowded with people. I was forced instead to snap an image of the nearby bog. At least those who worked out with me in the past will recognize where I was standing. The rest of you will have to take my word for it.
The T3 was a race I ran many years ago and I have blogged about the experience. I need to stop making excuses and start training again. Given my discovery of multiple parks where working out would be simple, I am running out of excuses. Completing the T3 means I am what is known as a Regiment Elite. I need to act like one again.
Eastern Half:
I passed an important part of my recent life, and reached the eastern half of Jay Blanchard Park. While there is no fancy bridge like on the Dean Road end, Rouse Road does have a relatively safe crossing. The trail continues both ways after leaving Blanchard Park. The side past Dean Road I think deserves its own blog post. Look forward to that.
I passed up a chance to get deeper into nature in the trail pictured above. By the time I had crossed the entire park, I had expended a large amount of time and still had to go all the way back. Perhaps I will visit Jay Blanchard Park again I will go see what is hidden back there.
Pokemon Go:
Jay Blanchard Park is massive. Even two separate pictures taken from Pokemon Go barely showcase it. I selected both ends of the park since they had the highest concentration of Pokestops and Gyms. Let’s talk about the viability of playing Pokemon Go here.
I will start by saying this entire region is a Poke nest. In this case, Misdreavus as of the time of writing. The Ghost Pokemon, originally from Generation II (Gold and Silver) is very rare under normal circumstances. But here it appears in abundance, for a limited time.
Jay Blanchard Park is an amazing place to play Pokemon Go even with the nest not being mentioned. The spawn density is fantastic with multiple critters spawning constantly. I managed to almost run out of Pokeballs while playing. This does address the only issue I have with the park in regards to the game. There are not enough Pokestops relative to the number of spawns. This is not really a serious problem, but is something to consider if one wishes to play here.
As for rare spawns, even with the Valentine’s Day Event making pink Pokemon appear everywhere, there were plenty of rarities to spot. Notably, I caught Croagunk and Bronzor, two Pokemon that I normally have trouble finding.
Eggs:
It should be no surprise that I hatched tons of Pokemon while walking for Community Day prior to coming here. Jay Blanchard Park is also a long walk in its own right. Plenty of eggs hatched between the two. Here they all are, with varying levels of viability.
I can’t promise that my next exploration will be as exciting as this one, but who knows where I will go next. Half the fun of traveling is the discovery.