The Lower Ochlockonee River begins below a dam on Lake Talquin a little east of Tallahassee. From there it flows 40 miles through the Apalachicola National Forest to The Gulf of Mexico. Since the river runs through a national forest I figured there couldn't be too much development along the way.
I drove the 35 miles (a lot more than I like for a day trip) up CR 375 from Sopchoppy to the SR 267 bridge over the Ochlockonee River. There was a put in there but it required a portage of 100 feet or more over uneven ground. I had passed a couple of put ins on CR 375 on the way up so I passed on this one and retraced my route a ways.
The boat ramp was back a dirt (sandy) road (Pine Creek Road) where the forestry service also permits primitive camping. The DeLorme Atlas shows several designated campsites along this part of the Ochlockonee River.
The fairly dark waters of the river stretched 75 feet between shores lined with hard woods for the most part and a few cypress trees. A 1-2 knot current flowed over a white, sandy bottom.
Paddling upstream I came across a great white egret, a snowy egret, a couple of gray egrets and a pair of wood ducks. At the Ochlockonee River State Park boat ramp I had seen a sign about sturgeons again so I guess the river supports them too although I saw no evidence of any.
I paddled upstream for an hour or so, detouring up a couple of small feeder streams. These seem to be generally prettier and more interesting than the main rivers so I like to poke along on them whenever possible.
I passed a couple of nice sandy beaches and eventually the temptation became to great. I pulled over to one and before I knew I was waking up from a 1.5 hour nap. And that was the end of that trip. After waking I had lunch and just drifted back to the put in.