10 February 2017 Big Cypress and Beyond

We started our day's journey with a visit to the Big Cypress Swamp Nature Center for a rare earthcache. We enjoyed the information and a walk outside which included a nice view of the water and a few fishes swimming through.

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We also made a stop at the very-crowded HP Williams Picnic Area (do any children actually go to school anymore?). The boardwalk was nearly on top of the water and afforded some close-up views of the underwater inhabitants.

Up Close and Personal

We stopped at the Kirby Storter Roadside Park. The walk started really quietly with a walk along a rather dry and rather quiet section of the swamp. We eventually came to a section with water and a host of interesting things to see. :)

I don't know what this flower is. We've been unable to identify it, but it was attractive blooming in the water.

We were happy to spot a Florida soft shell turtle in the water.

When I was selecting images for this post I realized each image of the turtle included a female six-spotted fishing spider riding the back of the spider hunting for a meal! We are geeks.

The resident hawk appeared to be favoring a leg. None of the images I captured showed the left leg resting on the branch.

Our next stop along our journey was for a walk along the Florida Trail. The road to the trail was dotted with small bridges for the swamp to flow under the road. We stopped at a number of locations where each seemed to have an array of interesting birds and the ever-present collection of large alligators and many, many fish.

In Breeding Plumage

The Florida Trail was actually quite dry once we arrived and took a short walk.

In Dade County, the current Tamiami Trail runs parallel to the original road. There is a section of the original road which can be reached and walked. It still has the failing pavement of it's past life. At one time it looked like the image below (source: Florida Memory).

We spotted this gulf fritillary on the walk to the trail.

Navigating the trail ranged from wide open stretches to ducking under nature as it reclaimed what it owns.

An old stripe still faintly marks the center of the old road.

A painted cross and survey marker are still visible.

This isn't a place to walk your dogs. The sunny areas were heavy with mother of million plants which is toxic to animals through heart failure.

Along the road are clear heavy trails leading from the old road to the canal remains. They are the paths of the alligators. This is a place where animals come and die. Their remains are very common on the road.

We found the cache and made our way back with no alligator encounters. Although I missed ducking and took a stick in my eye. It hurt massively, but there was no blood. It would be later on when I was trying to drive when I realized I had scratched my cornea.

Our next stop was to find a cache at the original air boat ride. We were too late for a ride, but found the cache and enjoyed the last of the day's sun.

I'm curious about an air boat ride. Would it be an amazing photo opportunity or would it be a diversion from our normal day? Maybe someday we will decide to take a chance. I don't have a great track record on side activities.

We were once again treated to the rising snow moon as we finished our day on the trail.