Touring the Everglades

Saturday 22 February 2020

   Today was cool and windy but nothing like yesterday.  We started at the Big Cypress Swamp Welcome Center to see what was around.  But first was lunch at Camellia Street Grill. We both had the blackened grouper sandwich which was very good.   After that off to the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park.  We did the 6 mile drive to gate 12, passing many people on bikes and in vehicles. We wanted to do a hike but most of the trails were grass and weed covered and after a little thought we decided to save hiking for boardwalks or at least gravel trails.  Back to the Moho and usual evening routine, Rudy walk, wine on the back deck and a light evening meal.

Sunday  23 February 2020

Irma water mark

   The usual nice weather has returned.  We started with lunch at The City Seafood café, and once again grouper for both of us.  We checked out pictures and the high water mark from hurricane Irma.  It is impossible to imagine the water being 12 feet higher than normal.  Most of Everglade City was under water.  Anyway off to the Visitor Center and then out back to the board walk. The board walk is only 100yds long but we saw a lot of wildlife.  There were manatee and alligators in the canal outback, swimming side by side.  We picked up some maps and headed to the Big Cypress Bend boardwalk a little over a mile walk through an old cypress preserve and swamp.  We saw lots of birds and a mama gator protecting her nearby baby gators. I tried to get Diane to go pose with the babies but she wouldn't go for it.   

Monday 24 February 2020

    We had a nice cooked breakfast eggs with mushrooms (Diane is liking this too much).  We didn't leave until 12:30, did some things here at home first.  We stopped at Joanie's swamp diner but the place was way to crowded.  Then we were off to Kirby Storter roadside park which is another mile long boardwalk back through a variety of landscapes.  From almost dry grass land, through cypress groves and ending at a swampy pond.   Again we saw a lot of wildlife turtles, snake, birds and a baby gator. The longer we looked the more critters we found.  On the way back we again stopped at Joanie's Swamp diner at 2:30 And crowd had left so we had lunch.  Grouper sandwich for Diane and crab cake for Brad (the only decent crab cake in Florida) but still not Maryland crab cake. Back to Visitor Center to identify the snake and turns out is was a non venomous Brown water snake.  The volunteer didn't even look at the snake picture, she knew from where we saw it what it was.  Is there every day she says and we thought we found something new.  Lastly were stopped at the Ochopee PO,(historic/tiny) Post Master is probably the most photographed in the US. Back home, walk for Rudy, then a nice walk for all three of us and we called it a day.


Link to Pictures from our Everglades Visit:    The Everglades