We stopped paddling to take a look at the nautical chart. Comparing the chart to the shape of the low mangrove shoreline around us, we found the slender mouth of Sweetwater Creek. The stream was tranquil in comparison to the raucous waves of the Gulf the day before. As its name implies, tasty fresh water flows out of the 'Glades in the upper reaches of this creek. Only a few birds broke the wilderness silence while we paddled up Sweetwater Creek. The lush foliage closed in until the stream was only 40 feet wide. It felt as though we were very far off the beaten path.

Two miles from the Wilderness Waterway, after a half hour of paddling, we arrived at the Sweetwater chickee. This was a "double" chickee, with two camping platforms attached by a central gangway and a vault toilet. A couple of fellow paddlers had already set up their tent on one side of the chickee. After setting up camp, we exchanged paddling tales with our neighbors. They had flown down from New York and were paddling folding kayaks. I warned them to be careful of the oyster beds they were sure to encounter in the Gulf.