Exploring the World with Pokémon Go: Central Regional Rail Trail 5
Deciding I would go on another 8 mile walk, I returned to Central Rail Trail and traveled northwards and even deeper into Florida’s swamps.
The first place I visited on this section of the Central Regional Rail Trail took my past Interstate 95. Its a major road that follows the Atlantic Ocean Coast for the few people reading this that are not familiar with this iconic road.
Beyond the Interstate Highway, the trail returned to the green walls of swamps that define a majority of my adventures through Volusia County. The more I visit these swamps, the more I wish I knew a bit about the wildlife that makes these green spaces home. It would make my blog posts a lot more informative and significantly less repetitive.
Worry not though. This section of the trail was not only defined by swamp. As I continued on my way, I found much more.
An Airstrip:
While this section of Central Regional Rail Trail did still have green walls of trees and plenty of swampland to look at, there were also plenty of magnificent houses to see. I imagine the land value around here is high. Not only is there a bike trail, but plenty of land to live on. Lots of people love peace and quiet. But I’m not one of them of course.
Still, I’m not opposed to going out into nature to look at all this lovely scenery. Just wouldn’t want to live here. Its a personal preference.
Really wish it had been foggy when I arrived here. I bet this section of the trail looks amazing under the surreal cover of ground clouds. Especially when these tree formations shine through. Well, for those who have visited this part of Florida under those conditions, I can only be envious of what you saw.
Leaving the Road:
Most of what I said in the above section of Central Regional Rail Trail applies to this next part too. I won’t bore you with a repeat of words or even synonyms of those words. Instead, I want to highlight the new feature I found here that I have never had on one of my blog posts.
So let’s talk about the airstrip you can sort of make out in the above images. Yep an airstrip. I even saw some homes nearby with small planes. I can only imagine how much money some of the people living nearby must have if they can afford to have planes.
One other feature crossed my path in this section of the trail. Maytown Road goes by several names as it goes through Volusia County. And that continuous road with one rerouting spot near Osteen has followed almost my entire adventure on the Central Regional Rail Trail. But at this point, the road continues east towards the town of Oak Hill. The trail instead chooses to go north.
Secret Greenspaces:
This next section of the Central Regional Rail Trail featured some empty space along the sides of the trail. I’m not sure if those small fields are part of the nearby properties or part of the trail itself. If they are the former, its a good thing I didn’t walk on those green patches. Florida can be an unpredictable place after all. But if its the latter, this seems like a good spot, secluded and all to hang with friends.
Something I can’t show in pictures, and I’ll admit, have mentioned only a few times seems relevant at this part of the adventure. This section of the trail is far from trailheads. I learned on the way back later from a police officer that I had illegally parked before setting out. For that reason among many, I need to point out that for walkers especially, this trail is not very accessible, especially this specific section.
The trailheads are almost 12 miles apart. I know some people are in much better shape than me, but although I walked 8 miles in this blog post to get you these pictures, I don’t think I could have walked 12. Remember even if I cut the adventure in half, I still would have had to walk back that same distance.
Conservation Area:
All that work, risking a parking ticket, and the extra amount of hiking on Central Regional Rail Trail all became worth it when I reached this final section for my day’s adventure. On one side of the trail, you can see a conservation area. On the other, one will find a private shooting range.
I saw signs showcasing the interesting juxtaposition of these two places. Notably with “no hunting” signs on one side. Meanwhile the other had signs warning that it was a gun range and not only was it illegal to wander onto the property, but also stupid and dangerous.
For my part, I enjoyed what my eyes could see beyond the two fences. The part with the lake and the conservation area wrapped around it is probably one of my favorite places on the entire Central Regional Rail Trail.
Pokémon Go:
Well I already talked a little about the issue with playing Pokémon Go is on this section of the trail, but let’s bring it up again. While there are a lot of Pokémon that spawned on my walk, there wasn’t a single Pokestop anywhere near me from start to finish. Combined with just how far away from parking this section of Central Regional Rail Trail is, I can’t recommend this specific section for the game.
This trail was really designed with biking in mind. Not walking. In fact, I rarely if ever saw anyone else on foot during this leg of the trail. And playing Pokémon Go is much harder while riding a bicycle. Parks are a better place to play. If you want to enjoy this section of the trail safely and legally, I recommend coming on a bicycle.
I walked quite a bit, but only had one incubator to hatch eggs. And I was disappointed with both things that came out of those eggs. Maybe next time I’ll find something a bit more exciting.
Zorark is stealing your food while you read this post. Its the sneakiest of sneaky foxes. But it had fun on this walk.
Here I am at the halfway point of this day’s adventure. I loved the scenery between the gun range and conservation area. Surreal aside, this large expanse of water and green around it was a lovely little secret spot. Well, I guess its not too much of a secret anymore. At least to those of you reading it.
Next time I’ll be able to start at a proper trailhead. And according to maps, I’m reaching the end of Volusia County’s wilderness as I get close to the coast and the towns that are along US Highway 1.