Our trip to the Everglades.

When Mom was making plans to come down here she had one request: to see the Everglades. So, naturally, I went about my research, looking for the best Everglades tours and airboat rides. There are quite a few to choose from, originating in Fort Myers, Naples, all the way over to Miami. I chose one based upon glowing reviews at tripadvisor.com, who has now lost its credibility with me. But we had fun anyway.

I worked half a day Friday and then came home to meet Brad and Mom for a quick lunch. We headed down to Everglades City which is right on the edge of the water, southeast of Naples. It took a while to get there, across a bit of Alligator Alley, and then down 29 a fair bit. While on the drive we all agreed that this was the Boonies. We arrived at the trailer/office, paid our exorbitant fee (thanks, Mom!), ate our Paydays and then got on the boat. Captain Gary wordlessly ushered us onto the boat along with two other people. Wordless is Captain Gary's favorite thing, I guess. We were expecting narration, stories, etc., which did not happen. Gary took us out to Totch's Island, which is an old Indian island that the family who owns the airboat company owns. On the island is an old shack. Sooooo, that was nice. Then we went back up the little inlet and into a mangrove forest. This was the really cool part.


The mangrove trees create islands and tunnels through which Captain Gary drove the airboat to find alligators. We saw a handful of them, and Gary was not afraid to get close. I was afraid for my mother's feet as they were closest to the gator:


...but all went well. It was a gorgeous day to be outside and on the water and it was a very pleasant way to spend an hour and a half. I think next time we'll go to National Park headquarters or something and get a narrated tour.

After the tour we got a chance to hold a baby gator:


...only Brad was brave enough to do it. "It just feels like a big snake," said Captain Gary. Like that's supposed to entice me? Nuh uh.

Afterward we went for a quick bite at the Seafood Depot, again recommended by tripadvisor.com and again a not quite success. Then we headed up north by way of US 41 and took Mom through Naples-- that was really fun. It's a whole different feel from Sanibel, despite being only about an hour south. Where Sanibel is like a laid back, California style vacation, Naples is a Beverly Hills, high society place. We all agreed that we prefer the laid back style.

So that was our little excursion. I'm so glad we did it, and it was wonderful to be together out on the water. I even thought as we drove along, I could be a boater. I'm always relaxed on boat rides down here. It just lowers my blood pressure immediately. But I'm not about to make any investments right now.