Everglades National Park enroute to the Keys.

After a grueling drive through Miami, we stopped for a few nights in Florida City to relax.  Then started our trip through the "EVERGLADES" to the Keys.

This is an ANHINGA bird, fairly common in the glades.  Really beautiful

in flight with lots of white in the wings.  Even tho I asked him nicely to spread his wings...he just turned away as if to say..."bloody tourists!!"  I would have gone over and smacked it but there were lots of gators between me and the bird:o)))

A typical look at the everglades.....lots of gators, everywhere...

Thank goodness for my new zoom lens!!  No way I was getting this close to one of these prehistoric nasty beasts!!!!!

Notice, he had an eye ball on me!

We took a walk on one of the many boardwalks for an overview of the area.  I let Alistair go first.......just in case........

 
Especially after seeing this sign!!  Many cougars in the glades.

The Everglades is in fact just a huge flowing river, shallow and varying in depth by inches, so some places are grassy while others grow Mangrove Forests.

Stopped at a pond to see some birds and the noise was deafening!!  There were hundreds of birds, various kinds and all over the place.  These two look like jet fighters in flight.

 Pelicans.........all kinds and colours.

 Some type of hawk.

     Stork after making a baby delivery......
       We stopped along the road to help this leather back turtle get safely across........hopefully that is where he wanted to go.......(dumb tourists...can't they just leave a guy alone to sun tan on the road!!)                      

   Notice his "pig like" snout!  Really unattractive turtle.  Bet his friends call him names like PIG FACE and HORN SNOUT....         

This shows how the water level changes in dry season.

 Saw this gator sunning himself at the side of the road on our way out of the park.

Beautiful spot.  But now we are on to see the Keys.