26-Jul-2024 -- I wanted to visit a confluence and contribute something new to this wonderful project, however, I wanted to stay within the USA, preferably in the East because it was going to be my first and I didn’t want to undertake an adventure greater than I had time and resources to coordinate. The only confluence meeting these criteria was this one and it would complete the Eastern half of the continental USA. I began by contacting the proper authorities so here I would like to give a huge thanks to Mr. Hallman and Mr. Dennis of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. They performed the invaluable task of coordinating with the National Guard and United States Army for access to the location. I would also like to thank Sergeant Branham of the United States Army for coordinating with my organization to deliver the proper briefing to be able to access this site.

The reason this site is not easily visited is that it is located on Camp Blanding, a military base that dates from before World War II where over a million soldiers have been trained. The base was, and still is, used for live-fire practice. Live-fire training involves dropping or shooting projectiles that are designed to explosively kill people, and some of them remain buried in the ground undetonated at unknown locations. These objects are referred to as Unexploded Ordinance or UXO. When operating on Camp Blanding in any capacity whatsoever it is critical to understand that if you see anything on the ground off-road that looks man-made you must note the location, don’t touch it, back away with caution, and call range control to report it. Investigating further on your own without proper training will likely result in injury or death.

After receiving this briefing to know the types of objects to be on sharp lookout for, and coordinating for access, it was relatively easy to drive close to the location. The more dangerous off-road walking was only about 100 hundred meters where I kept a sharp eye on the ground for every step.

The confluence is located in a typical Florida pine flatwoods or scrubland ecosystem. It features an open canopy of pine trees, predominantly Slash Pine or Longleaf Pine, with a dense understory of saw palmetto, scrub oaks, gallberry, and wax myrtle. The area also shows signs of fire, which plays a crucial role in maintaining the health and biodiversity of this type of ecosystem. The ground is covered with various grasses and herbaceous plants, benefiting from the ample sunlight that penetrates the open canopy. In the area, I observed both deer and tortoises. You will see that the confluence is relatively close to a small linear pond filled with lily pads and small fish.