Hannah Mills Creek 

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Hannah Mills is located about an 1/2 of a mile east of Cedar Point creek and about a mile west of Sister's Creek. The put-in is a pull off that slants down to the water and runs behind a guard rail on the north side of Heckscher Dr. A word of caution here - you must be very aware of the tidal conditions. The put-in area has absolutely NO WATER for at least 30 yards from shore and there is no bottom to it. In other words, if you are caught away from shore you may lose a shoe or two trying to get back. I speak from experience! If you can get out as soon as the incoming tide allows you should have at least four hours to get back and that should be enough time.  There are at least two major routes you can take in Hannah Mills - the northern route and the southern route. You can also take the northern route and cut back west and into Cedar Point Creek. To see the photo galleries associated with my trips to Hannah Mills Creek and the links to the journal entries click here. Northern Route Put In : North Side of Heckscher Dr. just before the turnoff to Sister's Creek boat ramp Length : 30 mins to the Intracoastal (2.3 miles) Difficulty : Moderate Nature Stuff : Herons, Pelicans, Tri-Colors, Ospreys, Bald Eagles, Dolphins, Night Herons  PWC Factor : Moderate This was the first route I took in Hannah Mills and I was trying to find a quick way to the Intracoastal. There is a large pool at the put-in and if you travel to the NE you keep following the widest channel as it turns sharply north and after about 100 yards turns to the NE again. The channel here makes a long, lazy turn to the east and comes back slightly south as it empties out into the Intracoastal passing just south of Sisters Island. There is a large old cedar up in the grass on the southern bank of the channel that heads out into the waterway which is a great place to take a break and is often occupied by Herons and Ospreys. Just across from the cedar is a stream that parallels the waterway as it heads north. It passes by a couple of islands to the west and has a couple of exits out onto the waterway. If you travel all the way to the last exit out to the waterway you will be just north of the northernmost island in the Shell Island chain - the one we call "Bottle Island". Southern Route Put In : North Side of Heckscher Dr. just before the turnoff to Sister's Creek boat ramp Length : 45 mins to the Intracoastal (1.45 miles) Difficulty : Moderate Nature Stuff : Herons, Pelicans, Tri-Colors, Ospreys, Dolphins, Manatees PWC Factor : Low This is a quick and easy way to get to the Intracoastal. As you head out from the put-in as above, just as the main channel turns north you take a much smaller stream about halfway up before the larger stream begins to turn to the NE. This stream goes pretty directly to the Intracoastal with the exception that you have a north or south loop that join back up so it doesn't matter much which one you take. Eventually, you are dumped out into a larger stream and you should see the pilings for the old Sister's Creek Marina ahead of you about 1/4 mile. From there, it's a short paddle to the Intracoastal. This will put you into Sister's Creek about 1/2 mile south of the northern route above. Western Route Put In : North Side of Heckscher Dr. just before the turnoff to Sister's Creek boat ramp Length : 1 hr to Cedar Point Creek (3 miles) Difficulty : Moderate Nature Stuff : Herons, Pelicans, Tri-Colors, Ospreys , Dolphins, Ospreys PWC Factor : Low This the route that connects Hannah Mills and Cedar Point. Head north from Heckscher Dr. and when you reach the main channel heading east to the ICW, continue north into the branch that quickly heads due west. There are a couple of ways that you can go but generally, you head west and north until you pass through a large "S" curve and the stream begins heading SW. Within a short time you will reach the "confluence point" at a sea daisy island where Hannah and Cedar Point join and you can either continue south or take a sharp right and follow Cedar Point out to the ICW. At the confluence of the two creeks, you are at the center point of the marsh and are about as far away from civilization as you can get. DISCLAIMER :  This web site is my own personal web site and does not express the opinions or views of any other person or organization. Use the information contained herein at your own risk. I do not attempt to represent myself as an expert in the matters of paddling or the outdoors. Note : There are many references to areas where I have noted as pleasant and inviting places to either picnic, camp or otherwise enjoy. Be aware that you do so at your own risk and any violation of trespass laws you do so at your own discretion. Please be respectful of both the environment and other people's property. Note : I find it really sad that I have to even include a statement like this!