Kayaking in the Everglades was a great way to spend some days in January. I joined friends, Paula and Chuck, on a Road Scholar tour. The Everglades is a huge wetland in southern Florida which consists of many canals, some natural and some man-made. There are also rivers and lakes with a combination of freshwater, salt water and brackish water. Many areas are sawgrass prairies, which have sharp serrated edges. We kayaked for about four hours three mornings and saw plenty of alligators, very docile, soaking up the sun, but no pythons which are eating all the small animals in the area. One day we saw turtles basking in the sun. We observed orchids and air plants growing primarily on the cypress trees and live oaks (has a very small leaf). Spanish moss (not Spanish and not moss) hangs from trees. It is an epiphyte that absorbs nutrients and water through its own leaves from the air and rain.
Paula and I shared a kayak; we had tandem kayaked before near Vancouver Island and Baja, Mexico. Most of the paddling was leisurely except for one time when we were crossing a lake and we had a strong head wind. Usually, in the canals, there was little or no wind, current, or tide. Red Mangroves are plentiful in certain areas along the canals and one day we went through several “tunnels'' where the mangrove branches and roots form a tunnel which required steering as we passed through them; we did our best, but banged now and again into the roots and branches. We visited a research and visitors center, Rookery Bay where we went on a tour in the forest where there were many different kinds of trees, so different from Minnesota trees. Settlers had tried to settle in the area, but the soil was bad and the bugs were impossible. We saw many water birds: egrets, blue, green, and tri-colored herons, Ibis, cormorants, king fishers, anhingas, pelicans, and vultures. We did one evening paddle where we were able to see beautiful clouds dotting the sky as the sun was setting. As we paddled back to the landing, gleaming orange alligator eyes glared at us.
We attended lectures in the afternoon or evening and learned about the history of the Everglades and attempts made to develop the area. People objected to the development and eventually the ideas were abandoned. It was also an area that would have been difficult to develop. The canals are not very deep and there is a limestone base. It’s partly a National Park and there is also a reserve, Big Cypress Nature Reserve, where some of the land is privately owned and motorized airboats and swamp buggies can be used, and people can hunt and fish. A big Restoration project was started in 2000 to restore, protect and preserve the Everglades.
Everglades City Is a pathetic little town where people live off of tourism and fishing. It has to be a miserable wet place in the summer. Stone Crab is a specialty found there - delicious. Only one claw is harvested on each crab, and then it grows back in about a year. We sampled those and also ate some delicious fish and seafood at different restaurants. We were well taken care of. It was an excellent tour with knowledgeable leaders, and I learned a great deal and had fun.
Red Mangrove
Cardinal Air Plant
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