I headed to southern Florida to visit the three National Parks that make up most of the southern tip.  After experiencing the Biscayne and Dry Tortugas National Parks, I finally arrived in my RV at Everglades National Park.  I don’t camp that frequently in National Parks because most are so remote that connectivity is rare and I am unable to work. I was able to schedule my visit on the weekend, when connectivity is not an issue. I have previously been to the Everglades because it’s 1.5 million acres but I have never been “into” the National Park.  I had a terrific airboat ride 5 years ago with my family in the Everglades that was absolutely magical.  Those airboat rides are along the Tamiami Trail which is the northern border of the park. For the first time, I actually entered Everglades National Park and enjoyed the unparalleled landscape that 1.5 million acres of water and wetlands provide.

Planning is critical for any visit to Florida in March. I had to book the campsite 6 months earlier so that I could be assured of making the rest of my plans.  So, if it ends up raining or it’s super-hot, so be it. I also secured a Back Country Boat Tour that was operated close to my campsite in Flamingo. Flamingo itself is on the very tip of Florida and some 50 miles from the park entrance. I learned this while visiting Big Bend National Park in Texas.  It could take an hour or more to get from the entrance of the park to wherever you want to end up. Flamingo has a visitor center, marina, a restaurant, some lodging and a campground.  So, once you get down there, there are some amenities although you can’t take a hot shower in the campground (yikes). 

Based on my previous visit on the airboat ride, I expected the whole park to be wet grasslands.  That is completely untrue. The southern end of the park near Flamingo is mostly water and mangroves of all varieties.  I was really glad I had booked a boat ride that had a naturalist to explain all the flora and fauna in the area. There were about fifteen of us on the pontoon boat as we glided through the waterways of the park.  

We encountered a very large Osprey nest that had two active parents and two chicks that were starting to fledge. Apparently, it’s unusual to have two chicks survive so watching the two chicks and mother all in the nest with the father guarding from afar was pretty amazing. Osprey mate for life and these two had been coming back here for years. 

As we headed down a canal, we were constantly stopping the boat to observe Tricolor, Green Herons and Yellow Crowned Night Herons as we passed by.  The driver would stop and back up so that we could all observe the birds. Green Herons and Yellow Crowned Night Herons are much more elusive and almost immediately go hide in the brush.  The Tricolor Heron, on the other hand, frequently stay in the spotlight by flying ahead of the boat, stopping and then chasing us again.  It was remarkable.

By far the most elusive animals are American Crocodiles and Manatees. We had a woman on the boat spot a Crocodile.  I have no idea how she spotted it but sure enough we backed up and there it was hanging below the surface with just it’s eyes and snout pointing out of the water. We were able to see a Manatee when we returned to the marina and it was in between the docks. They can take a breath and go under for an extended period of time. 

It wasn’t until the end of the trip when I was connected to wifi again, that I saw how far we traveled on the boat tour. We had traveled from Florida Bay to Coot Bay and onto Whitewater Bay.  Whitewater Bay is an enormous body of water and one of the few places in the world where both alligators and crocodiles live.  Crocodiles need salty or at least brackish water to live. It’s hard to express how large a body of water it is. There are warnings not to kayak it without a guide since there is a monotony of mangroves ( and they all look the same).

My only hike in the park was on Anhinga Trail which is close to the main entrance.  I must have seen 30 or more Anhinga while hiking the boardwalk high above the swamp below. Anhingas are impressive because they open their wings like a bat and hang just about everywhere.  It’s intimidating to walk by but they don’t move. There were Great Blue Herons, Green Herons and Purple Gallinules as well.  It’s a bit creepy as I walked across the boardwalk because I could hear splashes of water below. I had no idea if it was a fish swimming in shallow water or an alligator grabbing lunch. 

I was really glad I ventured into the depths of Everglades National Park; it was dramatically different than an airboat ride gliding across wetlands but just as interesting and special.  It’s reassuring to see so much wetland protected and the preservation of habitat for endangered species like the manatee, American crocodile and Florida panther.  I hope this spurs you to venture out yourself.