Everglades Tours

A visit to the Everglades in Florida, is a must for everyone. At least, just once; come see what the Everglades is all about. It's a mosaic of sawgrass marshes, pine rockland forests, tropical hardwoood hammocks, mangrove swamps and coastal estuaries, unlike anywhere else on Earth. Unfortunately only about half of the original Everglades ecosystem remains. You can drive around part of the Everglades and there is even a driving map with highlights, the Everglades Trail. You can view a list of the sites (20 in all) here and download a map to print and take with you (http://www.evergladestrail.org/trail_map.htm).
The headwaters of the Everglades actually begins in Orlando (near Shingle Creek) and meanders a slow, stream downward to the Gulf and the Keys. This area is known to the west as 10,000 Islands. There are actually several state and National parks that encompass parts of the Everglades; The Everglades National Park, Collier-Seminole State Park, Big Cypress National Preserve and Biscayne National Park.
Throughout this wonderful vast ecosystem you will find some trails for hiking and biking, as well as camping and of course, paddling. You can enjoy fishing, birding, photography and learning about the more than 300 birds that call the Everglades home. These places are great for visiting again and again for a long weekend, or a week at a time.
Accommodations come in the form of primitive camping, to campsites, hostels and of course, regular hotel rooms and other lodging. There are several places where you can get guided tours, in relation to paddling and fishing, or nature tours.
My personal favorite happens to be with Captain Charles Wright with Everglades Area Tours, you can find them via website and also on Facebook. www.Evergladesareatours.com or 239-695-3633. They are a wealth of information and offer a variety of excursions from; eco tours, bicycling, hiking, sea kayak tours, day trips, overnight camping, sunset tours and guided fishing trips. Please tell them Loretta Lynn sent you and says Hi! they are located south of Naples & Marco Island in Everglade City.
Although you might be hard pressed to find any guide during the summer for regular kayaking as the mosquitoes will carry you off, boat and all!
Be sure and spend some time just walking around the area to really get a sense of what a jewel we have here. Don't speed down Alligator Ally at 60 miles per hour, or you will miss what the Everglades is all about.

Blackwater River in Collier Seminole State Park

Collier-Seminole State Park is part of the Everglades, but not the Everglades National Park. This peaceful and tropical hammock is a great place to picnic, camp, hike and paddle. Collier-Seminole State Park is more than 7,200 acres with mangrove swamps and a hardwood hammock, pinewood flats and cypress swamps. The hammocks consist of:  Royal Palms, gumbo-limbo, satinleaf and mastic trees.
The mangrove swamp is a designated wilderness preserve with tidal creeks, bays and a labyrinth of mangrove islands you can explore via kayak or canoe.
You can find hiking trails on the northern section of the state park, or by bicycle.
The Blackwater River winds southward into Florida's great mangrove swamp. This is a beautiful blueway to paddle down, go birding and just relax. Wildlife inhabitants of this estuary include; manatees, alligators, crocodiles and river otters. Birds such as ospreys, bald eagles, brown pelicans, wood storks and roseate spoonbills call this park home.
Collier-Seminole State Park is located at 20200 E. Tamiami Trail, Naples, FL. 239-394-3397, www.FloridaStateparks.org/collier-seminole

Paddling the Everglades National Park

Well, my book is finally out. Well, en route to a bookstore near you. I received my advance copies last week and anxiously await them in the stores. I look forward to going back down and revisiting some paddle routes I did almost two years ago now. I'm fairly sure the flora and fauna haven't changed much since I've been down paddling.

President Harry S. Truman formally dedicated the Everglades National Park on December 6, 1947. This event culminated years of efforts by a dedicated group of conservationists to make a national park in the Florida Everglades.

A variety of floral is one of the key resources in the park. One of the more prominent and colorful plants are the Bromeliads and epiphytic orchids. It is said that as many as 25 varieties of orchids have been seen and documented in the park, along with more than 1,000 other kinds of seed-bearing plants and 120 species of trees. More than 36 threatened or endangered animal species reside in the Everglades, including the american Alligator, the Florida Panther, the West Indies Manatee and the Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow. More than 300 species of birds have been seen in the Everglades as well. Seven of which are rare or endangered.

Protection of wading birds and their rookeries from commercial exploitation and encroachments was the main reason for setting the park aside. Tens of thousands of birds nest and call the Everglades home throughout the year.

The Everglades National Park is also an International Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site and a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.

Boating at Biscayne Bay

Great news for recreational boaters! Thought I'd pass this along. 

U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL) pushed forward an effort to allow personal watercraft to transit the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterways between Biscayne Bay National Park and the Keys without having to navigate ocean currents.

"this is largely a matter of personal safety," said Martinez, a member of Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. "boats, ships and tugs are allowed o use the intracoastal, but since 2000, thousands of people using personal watercraft have been forced to go several miles out into the open ocean. This effort brings some common sense to the rules and safety to numerous recreational boaters." 

Martinez's effort would allow personal watercraft equal access rights to the federally maintained and dredged Intracoastal Waterway; and it would create a review panel to assess any potential environmental or disproportionate impacts. In addition, it would direct the Coast Guard to complete an environmental assessment within 150 days to ensure that personal watercraft do not have any disparate impact on the environment compared to other vessels allowed to access the Intracoastal Waterway. 

Since 2000, 15 separate national parks have conducted studies on the impact of personal watercraft and all have concluded that this type of craft presents no unique challenges or impact on the economy. 

Personal watercraft are allowed to access the Florida Keys marine Sanctuary and John Pennekamp State Park, but they have been arbitrarily excluded from using the Intracoastal Waterway an it has ben deemed a boating safety risk by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. 

Sen. Martinez successfully included the personal watercraft provision as part of the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act with the support of Senator Bill Nelson - a measure reauthorizing the activities of the Coast Guard, its' missions and authorities for the years 2010 and 2011. 

Where to start paddling in the Everglades

This beautiful, one-of-a-kind tropical oasis is a challenge, respite and natural wonder for everyone. The Everglades, not just the Everglades National Park, is an awe-inspiring place that everyone should visit at least once. It's a sanctuary for people and animals. A living museum. The Everglades encompasses thousands of acres, 1.4 million to be exact, from the headwaters near Orlando, south to Lake Okeechobe, east to Biscayne National Park south to Flamingo and then west to Big Cypress State Park. 

The Everglades has been referred to as, "The River of Grass," by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. It is the jewel of America. I love exploring these ecosystems, eight in all, with their diverse habitat and terrain. At first glance, to most, they may appear similar and uninteresting, but if you stop, breath in the fresh air and just gaze into the hammocks or sawgrass, you will be amazed, surprised and delighted.

(more to come)