The Everglades NP - #51-08

January 31, 2005 (Mon) Ochopee, FL to Flamingo, FL (213 miles) - On the road again at 8:15, 51°, foggy. Our first stop was Shark Valley in the Everglades at 8:45. It's a valley because it's a few inches lower than the surrounding area. We offloaded our bicycles and took off on a 15 mile loop 7 miles into the Everglades. The wild life along the trail was outstandingly abundant. There were alligators, of course, many lying with their snouts inches from the pavement. Most were quite large - 10, 12, 15 feet long but there were babies too - as small as a foot long and cute (for alligators). The variety of birds was too extensive to list here but the most interesting were the Roseate Spoonbills - large white birds with flamingo pink wings and wide flat bills - and Wood Storks - large white birds with gray heads and pointed bills. We saw no mammals, the alligators probably had something to do with that, but we did see turtles. When we got back we found a Chinook Concourse (like QI) parked right behind Q in the long RV parking slot. We had quite a long talk with the owners. They are a relatively young couple from Sedgewick (Blue Hill), ME also headed to Flamingo. We'll probably talk again.

In Homestead we found a laundromat where we were able to replenish the closet, so to speak, with a Winn Dixie Food Mart next door where we were able to replenish the larder - both badly needed. In the campground, we locked our bikes to a table, to claim the site, and went off to dump and take on a fresh water - also badly needed. We will be here at the southern tip of Florida until Sunday.

February 1, 2005 (Tue) Flamingo, FL - Our walk this morning took us around Eco Pond where we saw a Red Shouldered Hawk sitting on the fence along the trail, and to the marina. On the way we saw a family of little red Marsh Hares along the road not nearly as skittish as the rabbits we see along the road back home. At the marina we checked to see if the makeshift modem access (remove telephone, plug in computer) was still there. It wasn't! Phone and wiring completely gone; the wall painted. The fellow in the camp store said he didn't know of any facility in the area to connect a computer to a phone line but he had a dazed look in his eyes as if he'd never heard of a computer. The clerk at the campground registration desk also said there was no way to do it.

February 2, 2005 (Wed) Flamingo, FL - We bicycled out to and down a two mile long dirt road to Bear Lake this morning. Well almost. Again we encountered a sign stating "Back country permit required beyond this point". Bear Lake is where we and Bob and Pat canoed to last year. And where Mark lost his hat in a stiff wind. He was hoping to see it washed up on the shore but, alas that was not to be. The young man in the visitor's center (in khaki uniform with gold badge so apparently knowledgeable), when we got back, said a back country permit is not required to just be there, but only if we wanted to spend the night. He also went into great detail about the concessions (camp store, marina, lodge, etc.) are a monopoly and not really interested in providing services (like telephone access for computers) and how bad the telephone service in general is down here. Mark passed on the opportunity to point out that 2 minutes on the phone that sat at his elbow would cost the NPS nothing. That's how it's done at other parks where specific facilities are absent.

On the campground entrance sign there was an osprey working on a fish he had just caught. The fish was still flapping its tail! He was still there when we rode back into the campground but there wasn't much left of the fish - just bones.

February 3, 2005 (Thu) Flamingo, FL - Our adventure for today was to bicycle over to the marina in search of the resident crocodile. We had been told that he was across the bridge but there was a gate across the road (path?) and a sign proclaiming "KEEP OUT Authorized Personnel only" As we stood there wondering what to do a trolley of sorts lifted a boat, transported it over the bridge, and lowered it again into the water. (Yes it went over the bridge, not under it.) On top of the superstructure that was part of the trolley there was a large bird's nest and in it an osprey and at least two babies watching the world go by. When the trolley operators came down off the bridge, we asked if it was all right if we went across - people seemed to be ignoring the sign. They said no but they weren't baby sitters so wouldn't stop us. They said not to let the NPS see us though. So after they'd gone we walked our bikes around the gate and across the bridge. The crocodile, maybe 15 feet long, was there as predicted, just off the bridge ramp about 10 feet away. We watched him for quite a while and took pictures. In all that time there wasn't a flicker of movement, not even a heart beat as we've seen with alligators. We and another couple there came to the conclusion that he must be a stuffed display model. We're going back tomorrow to see if he has moved.

During the afternoon we watched a storm system, very dark clouds with pillars of rain coming down, pass to the north. No rain here but we were treated to a spectacular rainbow. It arched all the way across the sky with both ends visible. It was even double at the west end. At just the right time a beautiful Roseate Spoonbill flew across in front of it. Wow!

February 4, 2005 (Fri) Flamingo, FL - The prairie part of the Coastal Prairie Trail, at the far end of the campground was our destination this afternoon. The threat of rain diminished during the morning so we could go without fear of getting wet. We hiked about 2 miles out the trail before giving in to the mosquitos and turning back. We had also begun to think there was no end to it - it just went on and on with little change in scenery. The walk total was just over 5 miles. When we got back to our campsite (B22) there were three pickup trucks each with a large fishing boat in tow and 6 young adult males setting up camp next door and across the road. Six tents and a dining canopy went up on the two sites, great quantities of supplies (food, ice boxes, bags of whatever, cooking utensils, etc.) were taken from the pickups and stowed around, and several bags of fire wood were stacked by the fire ring. We immediately thought loud party late into the night. When one of the fellows brought out a 2 liter bottle of a certain shape and color and lifted it to his lips without benefit of a glass, we - well, we're now in site A48 where it's nice and quiet.

February 5, 2005 (Sat) Flamingo, FL - The coastal loop part of the Coastal Prairie Trail is much more interesting than the prairie part we took yesterday. The trail follows the Florida Bay coast through a forest of mangrove There seemed to be more wildlife, from birds to spiders, and the mosquitos were practically non existent. This afternoon we rode our bikes out to the marina to check out the crocodile. Not only had he moved but there was a different one there - also not moving. In a nearby palm tree an osprey was working away at a fish while the female sat on the nest squeaking as if to say "hurry up! My babies are hungry."

After supper we hiked over to the amphitheater for the Saturday night Ranger program. It turned out to be a pictionary game focusing on Everglades wild life. We would rather have seen a slide show or even heard a lecture on the topic but the young Ranger, female, was cute and very enthusiastic about guiding us through the game. This is her first year here having come from the Assateague Wildlife Refuge in MD/VA. We didn't get a chance to ask her if she knew Charlie but maybe he will remember Megan.

Q010268 Flamingo campground, Everglades National Park #B22(x2) #A48(x4) dry $7.00s A-