Day One on the Caloosahatchee: Hickey Creek and Franklin Lock
Editor’s introduction, added in 2026. The original September 19, 2011 dispatch by Chad follows unchanged.
Sean Fitzgibbon and I launched from Caloosahatchee Regional Park near Alva on September 19, 2011. Our first day on the Great Calusa Blueway expedition took us into Hickey Creek and then downstream to W. P. Franklin Lock, where we had to carry boats and equipment around the obstruction. We reached Rock Creek Resort after 20.1 miles. What the brief dispatch does not capture is the laughter, the repeated trips over the hill, and a frantic search for tent poles that were in my kayak all along.
For the fuller firsthand story and historical lock document, read Kayaking the Caloosahatchee: W. P. Franklin Lock and the 2011 Portage. See also the complete expedition journal. Today’s paddlers should confirm lock procedures and access with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers rather than rely on the 2011 report.
Today is the offical first day of the trip and everything went well. The overnight pre-departure camping went without incident and they launched from Caloosahatchee Regional Park, which is located near Alva. Their first planned detour from the Caloosahatchee River was the Hickey Creek. Hickey Creek is actually a mitigation park implemented by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conversation Commission (FWC). This mitigation area gives developers an alternative solution to creating mitigation areas on their development site. For additional information and a map of the area check out the Hickey_Creek_Information brochure.
After completing the creek and finding their way back to the Caloosahatchee, the journey continued downstream until they reached their first obstacle, the WP Franklin Lock and Dam. These locks were constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1965 and are located approximately 33 miles from the Intercoastal Waterway. Their primary purpose is for flood control, water control, prevention of saltwater intrusion, and for navigational purposes. This is one of five locks the Corps constructed and maintains along the 152 mile Okeechobee Waterway. Unfortunately they were not able (allowed) to pass through these locks, so this became the first portage of the trip. Camping tonight at Rock Creek Resort.
Trip details: Day 1: Caloosahatchee Regional Park to Rock Creek Resort via Hickey Creek. Miles covered – 20.1
(Posted September 19th by Chad)
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