JOHN MUIR'S WALK ON THE FLORIDA RAILROAD

Early in his career, famed naturalist John Muir passed this location on his “Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf” from Indiana to Cedar Key in 1867. From Fernandina, Florida, Muir followed the route of the Florida Railroad, the first rail line to connect the east and west coasts of the state. The railroad’s route is largely paralleled by the current highways Florida A1A/SR 200 from Fernandina to Callahan, then US 301 from Callahan to Waldo, and then Florida 24 from Waldo to Cedar Key. Due to the area’s thick vegetation, swamps, and bodies of water, Muir believed that walking the Florida Railroad route would be the most efficient way to travel through the state on foot. Muir’s trek was no easy feat. He suffered from malaria, dodged alligators, and encountered many other obstacles. Even so, during his adventure, Muir meticulously documented North Florida’s flora and fauna, which contributed greatly to the field of natural studies. Afterwards, Muir relocated to California, where he was instrumental in creating Yosemite National Park and cofounding the Sierra Club. A journal of Muir’s experiences in his 1867 journey, titled A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf was published in 1916, two years after his death.