SHARK VALLEY, EVERGLADES
I like this ride. I only slightly underestimated the amount of time that it would take to get here. Lodging last night was at the Hampton Inn in Ocoee, Florida, and would be in Melbourne tonight. Fun fact: From Ocoee to the Everglades to Melbourne is only 50 miles less than Woodbridge to Savannah. A long day of driving.
When I arrived I could see a long line of cars already parked off the highway leading into the Everglades National Park. I knew the drill. I went to the entrance road and honestly, the line didn’t seem that long, perhaps 5-6 cars were waiting to enter. But the parking lot was full and they held them one at a time until a car departed and a parking space opened. It could be 10 minutes or it could be an hour.
I did a U-turn and parked alongside the roadway. I grabbed my bike and rode into the park passing those cars waiting in line. Perhaps they were Floridians walking just ahead of me at the booth but they were dismayed that they had to pay an admission fee. Florida parks charge for vehicles not people. But this is a national park and I whipped out my Lifetime Pass and was waved in.
The rest was easy. I did a counterclockwise loop and headed out to the observation tower. I decided that I would ride and not stop to taking photos of alligators for the first loop. I simply counted. There were 43 that I saw in the first seven miles out to the tower and an additional 12 on the back side to the parking lot.
I reversed direction and allowed myself a little leeway to take some photos. I didn’t count alligators this time because I would likely be double-counting many of the same gators.
What a fun ride. It may be my last because I questioned the driving distance here. But I was trying to pair this with a trip to Lake Okechobee and if I do that someday, maybe I’ll be back.
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