Florida Keys and Everglades Dec. 25, 2004 - Jan. 3, 2005 Grant and Karen Seattle, Dec. 25, 2004 Our neighbor Marilyn Haynes, drove us to the Bellevue Transit Center at 8pm, where we caught a Sound Transit bus to the airport. Downtown Bellevue it was cold and clear, lit up for Christmas. Like the station in Polar Exress. Will the bus really come? It did, and on time. At $2 each, and a 30 min. trip, it was a great way to go. Comfier busses than regular Metro. Drops you off right at baggage claim. Christmas night, it was quiet, no traffic. Got to the airport at 9. Flight left on time at 10:15. Uneventful flight, shorter than expected at just over 5 hours. Glad I had my pillow, eye covers, earplugs, as I was able to sleep much of the way. Uncomfortable though - no lumbar support so my lower back was very sore. Poor Grant was miserable, wedged in the middle seat. His feet swelled up. Miami, Dec. 26, 2004 We arrived at 6:30 am. The Miami airport is fairly easy to navigate. We called the hotel and their shuttle arrived in 10-15 minutes. It's a warm but very windy day. The high was about 70 degrees. Our hotel is in Coral Gables, right on the edge next to Little Havana. We picked it because it is close to Versailles Restaurant, which has a Cuban coffee bar, and is also close to the airport and the bus line. The hotel clerk is very nice. We stored our bags and took a city bus downtown to pick up our rental car. We rented downtown because it saved us about $300. Only had to wait 10 minutes for the bus. Four miles to downtown, where it was deserted, being a Sunday, and the day after Christmas. Except for the street people sleeping everywhere. The Conrad Hotel is in a tall office building. The lobby was empty, the wind whistling like a turbo through the glass front doors. No concierge or phone. The bellboy told us the hotel lobby was on the 25th floor. It appeared to be a very expensive hotel - the lobby had a spectacular view of the ocean and the Miami coast. The concierge called Hertz for us, and they sent a real nice guy to pick us up and take us to the rental yard a few blocks away. Our car is a Toyota Matrix - we like it! Kind of a mini-wagon. We drove straight to Versailles for sweet, rich Cuban coffee - delicious! Standing only - everyone speaks Spanish. Drove back to the hotel. Our room was ready at 10am! It's 7:00 Seattle time, and we're tired. The room is nice - not fancy, but adequate. King size bed is very comfortable. Spacious. A bit noisy (road). Slept for 4 hours - bliss! Drove to find lunch. Many things are closed on Sunday. Thank goodness for our guidebook. The Daily Bread Greek deli was perfect. Felafels were authentic - the tabouli truly tart. Lots of Greek kitsch amidst the yogurt and olives. Drove through some picturesque neighborhoods in Coral Gables. Many houses painted cheery tropical pastel colors. Oolite, local coral, used for many roofs, thus the name "coral" gables. Grant says Miami feels like LA meets Africa. Drove to South Beach and up hiway A1A. Not impressed. Fancy houses hard to see by car (maybe they're farther north?). Traffic heavy and aggressive. Should do South Beach on foot to appreciate, see art deco buildings, houses, shops. Probably not our thing though. Drove as far north as Bal Harbour. Couldn't see the ocean due to the solid wall of high rise hotels. Too windy to walk on beach. Parks looked dirty, threadbare. Guidebook says to go farther north, but we'd had it with traffic. Headed inland, then drove arterials south and back to Versailles for afternoon coffee. We love it there - it feels comfortable and homey to us. We were tired - still a bit sleep-deprived. Back to hotel for short break, then walk to Versailles for dinner. Long line, but it went very fast. Grant had a shredded beef dish (Tasajo) with rice, black beans, fried plantains. I had Chicken Versailles. The food was good, but very, very greasy. We could have split one thing and still had extra. I loved the plantains.. It was fun to see this local institution, try very authentic Cuban food, and people watch, but one time was enough. It's a full moon over Miami tonight - beautiful. Bougainvilla blooming, palm trees everywhere. The lack of sleep helped us get on local time. It's 6:30 in Seattle, but feels like the 9:30 it is in Miami - we're tired! The sun set at 5:45 here (an hour later than Seattle). Our hotel is the Best Western Chateaubleau, pronounced Chateau Blow, which Grant thought a hilarious name for a hotel, especially when we heard a couple having noisy sex in the room next door. Monday, Dec. 27, Miami to Islamorada Slept late due to blackout curtains and earplugs, and also "first day of vacation" syndrome, where we seem to sleep a lot the first day of a trip. Packed up and checked out. Drove to Versailles for coffee. Headed south on Hiway 1 looking for a grocery store. Tricky because we didn't know what store names they have here. Found a high-priced natural foods store and got yogurt and granola. Shortly thereafter found a regular grocery store, Publix, to get our requisite car trip gear: styrofoam cooler, sandwich makings, fruit. Continued south on Hiway 1. We should have taken the turnpike and avoided the red lights and traffic. Hiway 1 is a bit like Hiway 99 near Fort Lewis... Tacky strip malls all the way. Peaked into a few lovely neighborhoods behind them though. Weather today overcast, cool (64 degrees), light winds. In Florida City we took Hiway 905A instead of the main 905. It was wonderful: a lovely, blue hiway with almost no traffic, undeveloped, through green mangrove swamps. Then a sweeping view of Card Sound bridge. A lovely vista of green water and low green islands. Though we couldn't help remarking how much prettier Puget Sound is. Then we joined back with the main road for the trek down Key Largo. More traffic and ticky tacky tourism. Only occassional glimpses of water to either side. We're staying at the Drop Anchor resort in Islamorada (pronounced Eye-la-moh-rada0. The town spreads across 4 small keys. Our room is nice, feels tropical. Room opens onto central courtyard with a lovely view of water and mangrove islands. No beach, just a bulkhead straight into the water (with no fence - which was prettier, but would be scary with little kids). The place is near the road, but everything is, because the Keys are so narrow. Lots of brown pelicans and egrets. Drove to Founder's Park and walked the jetty trail, with sweeping views of green Florida Bay. No one else was there. Watched many brown pelicans diving for food at the end of the jetty. They dive beak first from a height of about 30 feet and make a big splash. This was one of the highlights of the trip so far. Then to Windley Key State Park, across the street from our hotel, where there are trails through native vegetation, and an old "key limestone" coral quarry, where you can see fossil coral reef remains. Saw local plants like gumbo limbo (pretty red bark, looks like madrona), poisonwood (bark and leaves irritate skin), and wild coffee. Headed south to look for afternoon coffee. Grant was so intent on spotting a coffee sign that he very nearly rear-ended the car in front of us when traffic stopped. But we spotted an "espresso" sign, and happened into the only place within miles that has espresso (outside of two fancy restaurants). The espresso was good, made with Cuban coffee. Then drove a few miles south, to Robbie's Pier, to see tarpon, but they weren't there because the water was too cold today! Meanwhile, the sky grew cloudy and dark, as if it were going to rain. Back to the hotel to sit in adirondack chairs and watch a lovely sunset. Then off to rent wetsuits for the dolphin swim tomorrow. (They wanted us to try them on first.) It was a traumatic experience for Grant. He said it felt like giving birth to an 800 pound meteorite! Next door to the wetsuit shop, the charter boat captains were cleaning their day's catch. They sell the extra to the local fish plant for less than $1 a pound - "beer money," said one guy. Interesting to see the fish, and the tame egrets begging. One guy was feeding the pelicans. Then to dinner at the Islamorada Fish Company. Great setting on the water, but very mediocre food. I had their famous fish sandwich, made with grilled onions and melted cheese over fried grouper. We also tried their conch fritters, which seemed to be just a way to make rubbery conch edible by chopping it up, mixing it with batter, and frying it. Grant said they were like "deep fried bedroom slippers." Back to hotel early. No cable in room, which is fine with me. I read, and wrote in my journal. It was very quiet, until a large group arrived for a family reunion, with wild, screaming kids and booming-voiced adults right outside our door. Took them a good hour to settle down. Thanks goodness (once again) for earplugs! No heat in room, and it's chilly. I had to ask for an extra blanket. Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2004 Slept OK, but room was cold and outside lights too bright - had to wear my eye covers. Little fridge in room was very noisy, so we unplugged it, and it leaked all over the floor during the night. Luckily none of our stuff got wet. It rained last night. Today it's cloudy, windy, and 64 degrees. I gave up on taking a shower because the water wouldn't get warm, and the room was cold. Back to the espresso stand, where they gave me a large latte instead of the small I ordered. So I'm now sloshing with a quart of milk. Drove to the Dolphin Research Center, 40 miles south, in Marathon. It's beautiful here when you get away from the towns. Lots of good water views, many parks. Lots of pelicans, cormorants, egrets, turkey vultures. They Dolphin Research Center was very cool, but would have been just as enjoyable if we had paid $17.50 admission, instead of $100 for a 15-minute waist-deep encounter (wetsuits were an additional $20 each). It was a bit disorganized and we had to rush to get ready on time, which was ironic, since we had arrived 1/2 an hour early. But by the time they opened the doors and we checked in and changed, we almost missed our session. There were 5 adults and 3 kids in our session. Alas, one was a 2 year old who screamed in terror the whole time, which kind of ruined it for everyone else. We got to pet, kiss, shake "hands," and dance with the dolphins. They are incredibly sweet, smart, vocal, and playful, and very cute. They like to roll on their side and look at you out of one eye. They are like big, slippery dogs. Their skin feels like smooth, wet rubber. The people who work with them look like they *love* what they do. The dolphins love attention, and to play with people. They are mimics too. For example, their squeals are not sounds they make with each other, but are imitations of human squeals! It was chilly and windy - I'm really glad we had wetsuits. After our session we changed into dry clothes and watched the dolphins. They leaped and danced to music, and did amazing tricks, including triple end-over-end flips (lengthwise) - incredible. We also watched other people swimming with dolphins. Allow 2-3 hours at this facility. The newspapers today are reporting the terrible tsunami that has killed tens of thousands of people in Asia, many of them foreign vacationers just like us. It's so horrible and sad - it makes me feel funny just going on about my life and having fun. We drove north, stopping for a picnic lunch by the roadside to watch pelicans diving in a bay. It's windy, with very light rain off and on. The wind makes picnic'ing tricky! Then parked at Anne's Beach on Lower Matecumbe Key and walked the boardwalk. Nice picnic tables and small beaches. We were going to stop at Long Key State Park, but didn't feel like paying the $6 admission. Next we returned our wetsuits, where we asked for directions to the library. The library was very welcoming of non-residents, and let us use the internet to check our email. They also had shelves full of free paperbacks. Then we had coffee, and tried a piece of Key Lime Pie - yum! The real stuff is yellow, never green. Very rich and creamy, a bit tart, not too sweet. Feeling a bit tired and crabby, we went back to the hotel for some down time: reading, nap, organize stuff. I'm sitting outside by the water, with close views of birds, including egrets feeding in the shallow water. The sun has emerged and it's beautiful. 72 degrees now. The sky and water colors are gorgeous. Pastel pinks, blues, and greens are hard to capture with my camera. We asked the hotel guy where to eat dinner, and he suggested the Island Grill, a short walk north of us. The setting was great - on the water, outside - we gave it 9 out of 10 for ambience. The food was so-so. Food has never been the highlight of our trips however, and we have learned to not trust guidebooks for restaurants. Instead we ask locals if we can, and choose based mainly on ambience and price. If the food is good, that's a bonus. Otherwise, it's just a hot meal. The restaurant had a sweet calico cat named Stir Fry. Grant found an NA meeting at milepost 93 (in the Keys, locations are mileposts). Super nice people. One is a fishing guide in the Everglades (Tony). Wednesday, December 29, 2004 We're at latitude 25 (Seattle is 47). There are no ocean waves here, because of the coral reef. There are lots of crab (lobster?) pots and depth markers in the water. We haven't noticed any tides. There are few beaches here. It rained all night again, and today it's a gorgeous, sunny day! 71 degrees at 8:30am - wahoo! When we opened our hotel door this morning there wsa a gret egret "begging" on our doorstep. He was so tame he would have eaten out of our hands. Pot boat story: a couple guys told us that while they were in high school, word would quickly get around if a pot smuggling boat was being intercepted by the Coast Guard. The smugglers would throw the pot overboard, and the Coast Gurd boats would try to chop it up with their propoellers. A lot of it would wash up on the shore and the kids would grab it. Left Islamorada about 8 am, stopped for coffee, then headed south. After pssing the Dolphin Research Cneter we were in new territory. Lots of beautiful scenery. At Deer Key we crossed into the Gulf of Mexico instead of Florida Bay. Today we saw hundreds of vultures - clouds of them - they must be the crows here, because we have seen no crows. We have also seen almost no insects - no spiders or flies, just a very occassional mosquito. Lots of osprey - several each day. No stops on the way down, just looking. Water, bridges, sky, and mangrove islands are the main scenery. Going out on the water is the way to see the Keys for sure. An old railroad bridge runs along the Seven Mile Bridge, and sections of it are missing (hurricane damage? deliberate removal to keep people off for safety?). The disconnected sections are inaccessible to people, and used only by birds. Trees and bushes are now growing in some. We arrived in Key West by 11:00 - only took about 2 hours to get here. 85 miles, but it didn't feel that far. Marathon was a big, ugly town along the way. The north side of Key West is called "new town," and it's ugly, crowded, and developed. Old town is the southern tip, and it's quaint but very crowded with tourists. Our hotel, the Angelina Guesthouse, is two blocks from busy Duval Street, on the edge of "Bahama Town," a low income area that's being gentrified. It's "relatively' quiet here, but our room is right on the street, on a corner, and there is foot and vehicle traffic just inches away. So it will be another earplug night. There's a beautiful courtyard with a pool, but the kids next door got two of those mini motorcycles for Christmas, and spent most of the day zooming them up and down the alley. The noise was unbearable - equal to about 10 blowers. The hotel owners are beside themselves. This is very bad for business. I have to laugh at the irony - I picked this hotel because it was supposed to be quiet! Our room wasn't ready yet, so we went walking. It was very warm out. First we went to see Duval Street - horrible! A crowded tourist shopping street - noisy, tacky. We got out of there as fast as we could, took a quick glance at Mallory Square, just to see it, and headed back to our hotel to check in. Our room is nice, with a fridge, couch, and large bathroom with lots of places to hang wet laundry. The hotel itself is a sprawling, 100-year old house with lots of charm, lovingly decorated and maintained. They have several cats (there are lots of cats in Key West). One of them, Alvin, jumped on our table when we were eating lunch by the pool. He weighs 22 pounds, and it's no wonder, because he is sweet and charming, and everyone feeds him. After lunch, we walked to the local meeting hall to ask where to get coffee. Should have taken their advice when they said that the best coffee in town was right there, because the coffee we paid $2 each for down the street was gross. Then we walked around some of the quieter neighborhoods to look at the cute houses. Then over to the marina area to make sure we knew where to check in for our Dry Tortugas trip in the morning. Another zoo of crowds, restaurants, shopping, and fat people eating. Several beautiful wooden sailing vessels here though. Had a tasty snack of Key Lime Pie and sat by a pond with beautiful goldfish of all sizes. Then back to the hotel for a snooze and reading. Tried to read by the pool, but the mini-bike noise was too obnoxious. Walked to a Cuban restaurant called El Siboney for dinner. It had been recommended by one of the NA guys, so we naively thought it was for locals, and the tourists didn't know about it. Hah. 45 minute wait. Big crowd out front. Food was delicious though, and cheap, and we got to take the leftovers, because we have a microwave in our room! I had roast pork, yellow rice (with a spice called mixote?), black beans, fried plantains (not too greasy - grilled?), onions, soft white bread and butter. Grant had grilled snapper - delicious. Flan for desert - good, but not as creamy as I like it. Grant also had lima bean soup, which he loved. We sat by the door, checkin counter, and till, so it was crowded all around us as we ate. Funny how people will put up with and pay for eating in a crowded, noisy place on vacation. Then we went back to the meeting hall for a meetings. Meetings are only an hour here. A big, black and white cat sat on my lap and kept me warm. He purred and was very sweet. Other Key West impressions: Lots of noisy scooters and unmuffled Harleys here. Also lots of black people who look very poor. What do they do here? How can they afford to live? Thursday, Dec. 30, 2004, Key West, FL Got up early to catch the boat to the Dry Tortugas. The checkin folks told us that the seas were very rough ("extreme conditions"), and I would get seasick for sure (since I am prone to it). Also, the water is murky with sendiment, so the snorkeling would be mediocre. And there are few birds, and no marine life to see. So we decided not to go which left us with a whole day to fill. (A couple days later we met a guy in the Everglades who had actually gone out on the trip - he said 80% of the passengers were seasick, snorkeling wasn't good (he saw no fish), and there were few birds. I'm glad we didn't go!) Grant found a good grilled Cuban sandwich for breakfast, and then we drove up to Bahia Honda State Park, 37 miles north. I really hate Hiway 1 through the Keys. We've almost rear-ended someone at least 4 times. The stop & go, cross traffic, and jockeying for position are utterly nerve-wracking. When will I learn to stop trusting Frommer's guidebooks? They have steered us wrong on many occassions, on this trip and others. We are just not Frommer's types. They said the State Park had miles of trails. It had maybe half a mile. We had hoped to spend part of the day walking. But it was beautiful there. Sandy beach, and you could walk on part of the old railroad. Rain squalls all morning, but it's warm. On the wy back to Key West, we saw what I think were Magnificent Frigatebirds flying, and white ibises feeding. Unfortunately they were short glimpses. Also had a nice view of a kestrel perched. Back in Key West, walked a lot (after a 2 hour nap and coffee). Walked over to the Atlantic side, escaping some of the crowds. Had our leftover Cuban food for dinner, by the hotel pool. Then walked some more. Decided to see Duval Street after dark. If possible, it's worse than daytime. Nothing but drinking, bad live music, and shoppers buying tacky souvenirs. It's really pathetic to see all the drunk people in crowded, noisy bars - yuk! Feet hurt, so back to hotel. I read by the pool for a while - it's a lovely, warm evening. Other Key West impressions: Roosters crowing all morning - reminds me of Africa. Scooter noise inches from hotel door. Lots of low-income housing. Lots of garbage and slum lots. XXX town - questionable for kids - tasteless - ads everywhre for "totally nude dancers in private rooms" and such Grant found a little deli with great Cuban coffee (where he got the sandwich) Friday, Dec. 31, 2004, Key West to Flamingo Woke at 6:30 (still dark), packed up, walked to get coffee, and said goodbye to Key West by 8:30am. It was a gorgeous, warm, sunny day, the kind of day when you can see why people fall in love with the Keys. The water is sparkling, everything washed clean by last night's rain. Drove north past multi-hued water and mangrove islands - feels like an estuary all around. Clouds build up mid-morning, light rain, a bit muggy, 75 degrees. Stopped at Robbie's Pier to see the tarpon that come there for handouts. They had returned. They're huge and really beautiful - a recommended stop. The little egrets we've been seeing (with yellow legs) are snowy egrets. They were begging for bait. Groceries in Marathon. Stopped near Islamorada to photograph one of the manatee mailboxes common here. At Manny and Isa's Cuban restaurant, we bought an entire Key Lime Pie for $14.95. We're told theirs is the best. It is very good, but I prefer a graham cracker crust (instead of pastry) and no meringue. Key Lime pie is sweetened, condensed milk, egg yolks, and lime juice. Lots and lots of sugar. Took the scenic Card Sound road again. We were real glad to get off the hectic Hiway 1. Stopped at Alabama Jack's restaurant, on the north side of the bridge. Their tag line is "It's like livin' in a postcard," and it is. It's a gorgeous setting on a quiet inlet. We tried the conch fritters, and they were very good. The food looks tasty, and the prices are good. Great place! Just an hour or so later we were in the Everglades! After a quick stop at the main visitor's center, we drove to the Royal Palm Visitor Center and walked the half mile boardwalk Anhinga Trail. It was unbelievable!! Alligators everywhere, and close. Incredible birds: Anhingas, Green Heron, Great White Heron, Great Egret, Tri-colored Heron, Little Blue Heron, Red-shouldered Hawk, Wood Ibis. We saw an Anhinga catch a large catfish. It was whacking the fish repeatedly against a tree branch. At first we thought the bir was just trying to stun and kill the fish, but then it ppeared that the fish was stuck on its bill. Finally the bird maneuvered the huge fish into its craw. It seemed impossibly big to swallow. the fish fell back in the water. the bird retrieved it. Finally it was able to swallow the fish. The trail is a beautiful boardwalk along waterways and marshes. The alligators look just like old tires lying in the grass. We saw at least 50 alligators, swimming or sunning. Saw 2 large adults with a small one sprawled on top. Unfortunately, many people were very noisy, and that was frustrating. Saw a red-shouldered hawk perched on a branch about 10 feet away - it seemed completely unafraid of people. Then we drove the 38 miles to Flamingo, on a very quiet road through achingly beautiful grasslands. It's very flat here, and the scenery stretched forever. Beautiful clouds in the sky. A peaceful and mesmerizing drive. So much so that we were barely awake when we reached Flamingo. Flamingo is, happily, much smaller than Grand Canyon village, its equivalent in that National Park. Our room is also much nicer than our room at the Grand Canyon lodge. We can see the Bay from our room! Drove to Eco (ee-coh) pond at sunset to see the hundreds of white ibis perched in the trees. The pond is BEAUTIFUL! Saw a glossy ibis! We are now very thankful for the wind, as there are almost no mosquitoes. The few that there are are bothering Grant though, poor guy. Had a nice meal at the restaurant. Decent food and prices. It doesn't feel too crowded here. It's New Year's eve, but you'd never know it here, and that's just the way we wanted it. It was very quiet New Year's eve. No sounds at all that we heard. No fireworks allowed in Park. Other notes: The sea grass beds change the water color, creating a lovely pattern of darker blue or green. The locals pronounce conch "conk". Grant tongue-in-cheek name idea for "rooms by the hour" motel: The Sweaty Palms. And for a Key: Door Key, or Dork Key 1/1/05 bird list: Purple Gallinule Glossy Ibis Red-Shouldered Hawk feeding Gray Catbird Green Heron catching and eating frog at Eco Pond Tri-colored Heron eating eel on beach Anhinga Roseate Spoonbill Laughing Gulls Little Blue Heron and immature (white) Cattle Egret Reddish Egret Royal Tern Pied-billed Grebe Osprey Coot Common Moorhen/Gallinule White Pelican Great White Heron Great Egret White Ibis Alligator Crocodile Soft-shell Turtle Red-wing Blackbird Black Vulture Turkey Vulture Snowy Egret Least Sandpiper? Great Blue Heron Brown Pelican Double-crested Cormorant Sharp-shinned Hawk Black Skimmer Yellow-crowned Night Heron Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin Tree snail Rabbit Black-crowned Night Heron Wood Stork Red-bellied Woodpecker Common Yellowthroat Saturday, Jan. 1, 2005, Flamingo, Everglades National Park, FL Today has been one of the best days ever, and certainly the best day on this trip! We love this place. Today we saw 35 species of birds, 21 of which I'd never seen before. Also alligators, crocodiles, turtles, dolphins! An amazing day. Perfect weather: warm, windy, some clouds to block the heat, high 70's. Hardly any mosquitoes, except right at dusk, or where there's no wind. Got up about 6:30. Decent coffee at the front desk, a stone's throw away. A beautiful sunrise over the Bay. At 7:30 boarded a small tour boat to go inland a bit. It's New Year's Day, and I guess a lot of people slept in, as there were only 9 passengers - it was like having a private tour. It wasn't a super interesting trip, but it was worth doing. We cruised up man-made Buttonwood Canal, across Coot Bay, up Tarpon Creek, and out into WhiteWater Bay, an enormous inland sea. We saw herons, ospreys, dolphins, orchids, large epiphytes (air plants), and many species of trees, including red, black, and white mangrove. Red mangrove seed pods are sometimes called beach pencils because they are long and thin and perfect for drawing in the sand. Red mangrove have aerial "prop" roots. Black mangrove have pencil-like breathing tubes that stick up out of th water (pneumatophores). Brazilian Pepper trees have bright red berries. They are an invasive, introduced species that the Park is trying to eradicate using controlled burning. Coon oysters grow on the roots of red mangrove (so-called because raccoons love them). Spanish moss, an air plant, was used to stuff the seats of Model-T Fords. Upon return, saw an American Crocodile sunning itself at the marina. American Crocs are endangered, and are much less common than alligators. After lunch we walked to Eco Pond, where we saw a Roseate Spoonbill! Our first ever. They are a brilliant pink. Also a purple gallinule, and five softshell ("hognose") turtles. These large (12" diam) softshell guys have to watch out for alligators. Also watched a green heron catch and eat a frog: shake, shake, gulp! Walking around th campground we saw a sharp-shinned hawk eating something on the grass. Walking to the marina this afternoon we had a great view of a Yellow-crowned Night Heron. For a while his great beady yellow "night vision" eyes were looking right at us - trippy! Went on a sunset cruise on the bay. Saw Spoonbills, White Pelicans, Royal Terns, and a group of frolicking dolphins. The sunset was beautiful. At the marina there is a large crocodile lying on a set of rock stairs, inches from people. It's so well camouflaged, you could step on him by accident if you weren't paying attention. Also an osprey nest with eggs. We watched an osprey fly to th nxt crrying a fish, ter it in half with its mte, thn flyoff with half to a tre, where it at is half. Also wathced a tri-colored heron catch and eat a small yellow eel on the beach today. Went to the marina at 10pm, where the ranger had said we coudl see white pelicans fishing. We didn't see any, but we did see black- and yellow-crowned night herons fishing, and it was a lovely, starry night. We did see one white pelican out on the bay, like a ghost ship floating in the darkness. Sunday, Jan. 2, 2005, Flamingo to Big Cypress to Miami Another mostly amazing, but somewhat tiring, day. Woke at 6:30 and drove to Eco Pond just after sunrise. Not many birds, but it was just gorgeous there - one of the most beautiful spots I've ever been in. The bird sounds were many and delightful to hear. Another partly cloudy, perfect temperature day. Lots of bunnies by the road. Checked out and said a sad goodbye to beautiful Florida Bay. I highly recommend spending time in Flamingo. There is a lot to do here, and it's very beautiful and quiet. Our room was $98 a night and nice, with 2 beds, table and chairs, view of Bay. A nearby mesh enclosure has a microwave and tables and chairs. Reheated my leftover restaurant pasta. A few miles down the road we stopped at Mahogany Hammock. Wow! What a magical place! We were the only people there. A boardwalk takes you into and around a hardwood hammock - an island of trees just a few feet above the "river" of water and grass that makes up most of the Everglades. As you step into the hammock, lush tropical forest surrounds you, with cool shadows, dappled sunlight, and the most wonderful noises of birds and critters chirping and calling. We could have been a million years back in time. We felt a panther could have stepped noislessly out in front of us any second. The boardwalk was raised a few feet off the forest floor, and we could hear rustlings below us, hidden in the think foliage. It's an incredibly fertile place. Then we went back to see the Anhinga Trail one last time. I lvoe that place. If I lived here I'd go there all the time. We were rewarded by seeing 3 wood storks! From about 10 feet away! First they perched in a tree, with their huge pink feet. Then they flew down to feed in the shallow water beneath. They are enormous birds. We also saw a red-bellied woodpecker and a common yellowthroat - both gorgeous. The early morning sunlight was perfect for viewing. We also got there before the crowds. We watched Anhingas squabble loudly in a tree. Then we drove back to Florida City, through agricultural land with lots of migrant workers and very poor communities. Also passed a large prison. Took the turnpike north to get to the north side of the Everglades. This is a toll road. You pay $1 about very 8-10 miles. Worth it to avoid the stop-and-go slog on the arterials. Next stop was Shark Valley visitor center, passing through the Miccosukee Indian reservation on the way, where there is 1 medium size casino and lots of airboat tours. The airboats are unbelievable loud, and destructive to the swamps. The animals must avoid them, so I wonder if you see any wildlife from them. At the Visitor's Center we could hear them a mile away, and it was really obnoxious. Shark Valley was like the Anhinga Trail, with alligators everywhere and birds galore. But it's realy crowded, being so close to a major highway. The tourists were of a lower average caliber too, with more screaming children and adult bozos. The Ranger told me that one humanoid had been pulling on an alligator's tail just before we got there! He said there have only been 2 alligator incidents (both non-fatal) inside th park since it was created: a little boy fell in the canal and got chomped on, and a drunk guy at the Flamingo campground picked one up and carried it around for a while until the gator got tired of it and chomped on the man's arm. The ranger also said that humans don't look like food on land because we look too big. But if we're in the water, at their level, it's another story. Gators have to be provoked or harrassed quite a bit to be dangerous. The rangers often have to use PVC poles to gently prod gators out of the road. Grant had to pee really bad and was walking to the bathroom when 2 gators ambled in front of him, blocking the road. Luckily the moved off before Grant got too desperate (he was thinking about jumping over them!). Here we saw, in addition to dozens of birds, gators, and wood storks, slider turtles, and large fish called Gar, with pointy noses. I have never been anywhere where wild critters let people get so close. Then we headed west on the Naples Hiway (Hiway 41) another 25 miles or so, and drove the 26 mile "loop road" through bald cypress swamps. A narrow gravel road with lots of gators, wood storks, and wood ibis in ponds with cypress trees growing right in the clear, brown water. Really pretty, and different. Only marred by the many glimpses of redneck America, including enormous swamp ORV's that look like monster trucks. Four times the size of regular ORV's, they look like they could each destroy a couple acres of swamp in a single afternoon. Then back to Miami, where I fell into depression as we left the beautiful Everglades behind, and entered the ugly wastelands of urban America. Coffee at Versailles, checked in to hotel (asked for a quieter room this time), then returned our car. The rental return was less than 3 miles away, so we walked back to the hotel. Crossed a canal with cute houses on one side and a marina on the other. We would have never seen it from the car. Some of the boats were huge, for ocean travel, said Grant. Dinner at a little Italian place. Cheap, good food. Sat at counter and chatted with owner. Up early to fly home I am sad to leave, although I miss my kids. Took a taxi to the airport (the hotel shuttle didn't start until 7am. The driver was a nice Peruvian man, and I finally got to speak Spanish. There's a Versailles coffee stand at the airport - hooray! Grant got a window seat on the plane - he was very happy. Other notes from trip: Few internet cafes - hard to do email Convicts in stripes walking along roads Water tastes funny here. Water has to be piped from the mainland to the Keys. Advice re: where to go in South Florida: Flamingo (don't bother with north side of park), upper Keys. We succeeded in escaping Christmas, except for some decorations, mostly garish and plastic, that looked extremely out of place in the sun and palms. Also xmas music at airport, even still on Jan. 2.