the+Everglades+and+Florida+Keys


 * The trip down to Florida City (closest jump-off point for the Everglades) took about 6 hours with a few stops. Although a long drive it was relatively easy as it was 2 or 3 lane freeway (or tollway) all the way, so we were sitting on 65 - 70 miles an hours all the time! Basically boring driving - just having to keep an eye out for the trucker who almost side swiped us as he changed lanes without checking (he actually waved an apology as he swung back into his lane!!! ) and an army vehicle (in a convoy) whose driver must have dozed off as he wandered across into our lane, forcing me to brake, before he suddenly yanked his vehicle back, with appropriate wobble and swerve. All in all, it kept me WIDE awake the whole trip.

When we finally arrived around 2pm at Florida City we decided to continue on and have a look at some of the Florida Keys straight away. It meant even more driving but ...hey, why not? The Keys were a bit disappointing. I'm not even sure what we were expecting but it was like driving through suburbia anywhere except for the glimpses of water and the amazing bridges that spanned the "gaps" between the keys. We "gave up" about half way to Key West - we knew that there were supposed to be some wonderful keys and beaches etc further out but eventually tiredness and the fast approaching darkness decided it for us and we turned back. || ||
 * [[image:IMG_7546.jpg caption="Even the power poles have to navigate thier way over the water"]] || [[image:IMG_7556.jpg caption="Duck Key - a more up-market area - reminded us on Sanctuary Cove, Q."]] ||
 * [[image:IMG_7547.jpg]] || [[image:IMG_7565.jpg]] ||

THE EVERGLADES wow ! what a wonderful World Heritage Site! At its simplest, the everglades are a slow moving river of fresh water 97kms wide and 160kms long which flows from Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay on the southern edge of USA. We spent the morning in the National Park, walking around a few trails seeing ..... a large alligator sleeping right by the side of the track, turtles feeding in the marsh, innumerable water birds (who all seemed to freeze when we approached), great views of the immense plains of sawgrass and, at Flamingo, manatees - OK, we actually only saw their nostrils as they took a breath but ... they don't really do much else. In the afternoon we headed out of the park to find an Air Boat for an exhilarating trip through the Everglades. These flat bottomed boats have no keel or rudder, relying on the powerful aeroplane-type propeller for propulsion and steerage, making turning corners pretty exciting! Whilstling over the very shallow waters and sawgrass we slid sideways to change direction whilst on the "plains". Later, in thicker "hammock" scrub (ie not plains or sawgrass) we encountered quite a number of alligators, some fearlessly approaching the boat. All in all, a great experience!

Below are some pictures - many of wildlife. As usual, these do not give the full picture as a camera cannot capture the immensity of this very special place (or at least my camera can't!)
 * [[image:IMG_7574.jpg]] || [[image:IMG_7673.jpg]] ||
 * [[image:IMG_7582.jpg]] || [[image:IMG_7612.jpg]] ||
 * [[image:IMG_7649.jpg align="center"]] || [[image:IMG_7657.jpg align="center"]] ||
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 * [[image:IMG_7675.jpg]] || [[image:IMG_7769.jpg caption="Dinner perhaps?"]] ||