As we continued further into Florida, we looked forward to seeing our next bucket list item: Everglades National Park. The park encompasses 1.5 million acres at the southern tip of Florida and is the largest tropical wilderness in the United States. It is so big that there are 3 entrances about 60 miles from each other and 5 different visitor centers! Although we just scratched the surface of the park, we really enjoyed seeing the many different habitats and animal species in this vast and unique wetland area.
One of the iconic things I think of when envisioning the Everglades is an airboat ride. This was our first activity and it was a lot of fun. Rather than take the larger more crowded tour, we booked on the smaller 6-person boat with Everglades Swamp Tours. As it turned out, we were the only ones signed up that day so we truly had our own private 1.5 hour airboat experience.
Our guide took us for an up-close look at the sawgrass marsh area where we saw numerous birds and alligators. We wore ear protection because the airboat can be super loud, but were able to hear about the area and ask questions at several stopping points during the tour. The airboat zoomed down canals and then veered off to the side to explore deep into the sawgrass. It was amazing that the boats need only inches of water to glide about effortlessly!
Our next stop was the Shark Valley Visitor Center on the northern side of the park. They have a great 2-hour guided tram tour that takes you along a 15-mile trail. At the halfway point the open air tram stops at an observation deck where you can experience panoramic views of the Everglades from 45 feet above the ground. From there we could see three different habitats: sloughs (deep water channels), sawgrass marshes, and hammocks (high, dry tree islands).
Our guide was very knowledgeable about the land and ecosystems and made sure to stop and point out all of the animal sightings. This was the place where we saw the most wildlife, including many of the key species of birds found in the Everglades. We also saw turtles and, of course, so many alligators.
We also visited the western side of Everglades National Park and the Gulf Coast Visitor Center. This area borders the ten thousand islands and has lots of opportunities to see the park by water. We decided on the Mangroves and Manatees Eco-Kayak Tour which was a lot of fun. Our small group of kayakers was guided through the maze of mangrove trees whose strange roots reach down into the water like fingers. Everglades National Park has the largest protected mangrove forest in the western hemisphere.
While kayking through the peaceful area, our guide pointed out blue crab, more birds and alligators, and even some bull sharks. Since it was a colder morning, the few manatees we saw were just surfacing quickly for air and then going back below the surface.
After our kayaking, we stopped in the small town of Everglades City and had lunch at Camelia Street Grill. Mike enjoyed the blue crab tacos—one of the local specialities.
On the way back we stopped at nearby Big Cypress Boardwalk. Part of Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park, the boardwalk is 2,500 feet long and winds through towering bald cypress trees and palm trees. The path is surrounded by lush greenery and ends at an alligator pond and observation deck.
The next day was cold and rainy so we took a day off from sightseeing. The local news had reportings of iguanas falling off trees because of temperatures near freezing. Apparently it is a common thing in Florida when temperatures get too low, but not to worry as the iguanas recover as soon as they warm up. Who knew!?
Our biggest day of exploration in the park was when we visited the southern end and the park’s main entrance. The 38 mile drive from the Ernest Coe visitor center all the way to the Flamingo Visitor Center passes through many of the different habitats in the park.
Anhinga Trail is a beautiful and easy path with bird and alligator sightings in the wetlands habitat. The anhinga dives in the water to catch fish and then has to dry off his wings before he can fly.
The Pinelands Trail loop includes a varitey of habitats, from slash pine trees to cactus and tropical jungle foliage. It was interesting to see so many different types of plants in one place.
Pa-hay-okee Overlook has a short boardwalk out to see a broad expanse of sawgrass. The name means “river of grass” which is a nickname for the Everglades and describes the wide but shallow flow of water with its marshes and swamps.
The end of the 38-mile road is literally at the end of the state where you reach the Florida Bay. We stopped by the Flamingo Visitor Center which is currently a temporary trailer after Hurricane Irma destroyed the building in 2017. After walking the short Guy Bradley trail to get a nice view of the bay we embarked on a 90 minute Everglades Backcountry Boat Tour. Our guide ventured up the Buttonwood Canal through Coot Bay and Tarpon Creek into the mouth of Whitewater Bay for more wildlife viewing.
Every day in the Everglades was a new and different experience. We enjoyed seeing it by airboat, kayak, tram, boat, and walking trails. The abundance of wildlife and plant life was amazing and truly brought the Everglades to life for us. And if you are wanting to see alligators, this is definitely the place!
If you missed Florida Bucket List #1 or #2 you can read them here.👍😊
Just WOW!
The Everglades was definitely an amazing place!
WOW what a large exciting park! That airboat ride and kayak tour looked so fun and adventurous. The Blue Crab Tacos looked very delicious. I really enjoyed the views of all the spectacular birds and the alligators too. Thanks for sharing 🙂
It was fun to be right on the water in the airboat ride and in the kayak. The airboat was really fun and we were amazed how it could float along with very little water. The kayaking was a very peaceful adventure. We loved seeing all of the animals up close and the mangrove trees were so interesting.
Appears the weather was good in January and February for this park.
Hi Kathy, thanks for checking out my travel blog. Yes, January through March is definitely a great time to visit Florida. It is their dry season there and the temperatures are pretty good. We had a few colder days in the low 60s, but most were in the low 70s during our two months there. Much better than other areas of the country that were having snow and ice!