{"id":1217,"date":"2016-03-25T02:22:46","date_gmt":"2016-03-25T02:22:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/?p=1217"},"modified":"2016-04-07T11:56:38","modified_gmt":"2016-04-07T11:56:38","slug":"ever-been-to-the-everglades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/2016\/03\/25\/ever-been-to-the-everglades\/","title":{"rendered":"Ever been to the everglades?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I used to watch CSI Miami. \u00a0Anytime Horatio and the gang were in the everglades it meant someone was dead&#8230;the everglades are a scary place you know. \u00a0After some eerie swamp footage\u00a0Horatio would put on his sunglasses while he said some clever one liner like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=_sarYH0z948\">these<\/a>. \u00a0But the only things we were scared of during our visit were the mosquitoes&#8230;and maybe the vulchers.<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"Everglades\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/25870789390\/in\/album-72157666519961266\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1719\/25870789390_47f6949ccb_n.jpg\" alt=\"Everglades\" width=\"320\" height=\"240\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p>We went to the Royal Palm visitor center to go on the ranger guided Anhinga trail walk. The park provides large blue tarps to cover your car. \u00a0Why? \u00a0The vulchers have developed a taste for rubber&#8230;so while you are off visiting the swamp they are munching away on your windshield wipers, door moulding and window mouldings. \u00a0So we covered up the beast as best we could and headed off to meet the ranger.<br \/>\n <a title=\"Protecting the beast from vulchers\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/25870789020\/in\/album-72157666519961266\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1478\/25870789020_da05ee4dee_n.jpg\" alt=\"Protecting the beast from vulchers\" width=\"240\" height=\"320\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\nOur past experiences with rangers set our expectations very high. \u00a0Unfortunately, this ranger was a substitute and didn&#8217;t know much about what we were seeing. \u00a0At one point we heard something in the marsh&#8230;.it was like a cross between a bark and a ribbet. \u00a0Everyone looked at the ranger to hear her say, &#8220;Did you hear that? \u00a0That&#8217;s the mating call of the rare north African, yellow bellied snap gator!&#8221;. \u00a0Instead she said, &#8220;What was that? \u00a0Do you think its a frog?&#8221; \u00a0We ventured away from the tour and spotted gators, turtles, anhinga, egret and some fish (not sure what kind). \u00a0We wore long pants and long sleeve shirts to protect us from the mosquitoes but we all quickly overheated and changed into something cooler&#8230;the mosquitoes were not bad at all. \u00a0The no-see-ums were much worse during our Carabelle and Inglis stays.<\/p>\n<p>Dacen must have caught what Brielle had as he really started to drag after this stop and his head was hurting. \u00a0We drove to the Flamingo visitors center and ate lunch while we were in the car. \u00a0The kids got junior ranger books and worked on them while we waited for a ranger program on manatees. \u00a0This ranger had worked in the park for many years and knew her stuff. \u00a0She had a really nice presentation and then we went out to the marina to spot some manatee. \u00a0Eagle eye Steph was the first to spot one. \u00a0Unlike the crystal clear waters of the springs up at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/2016\/03\/02\/three-sisters-springs-and-fort-island\/\">Three Sisters<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/2016\/03\/03\/nature-preserved\/\">Ellie Schiller<\/a>\u00a0the water here was opaque so you had to wait for the manatee to come up for a breath to see them. \u00a0We sat by the water to catch glimpses every once in awhile and to also work on the junior ranger books.<\/p>\n<p>Dacen was in bad shape&#8230;.not himself at all. \u00a0But he kept pushing through. \u00a0The kids went and got their junior ranger badges\u00a0and we started heading out of the park. \u00a0We stopped at a lake to check out some spoonbills and the ranger who gave the manatee presentation was there with her scope. \u00a0She let us have a looksy through the scope and told us how the abnormal wet winter had made the water too deep for these wading birds. \u00a0You always here about how there is a water shortage in the everglades but I guess it&#8217;s possible to have too much as well. \u00a0Its a very fragile ecosystem. \u00a0And elevations of only a few inches make a big difference in what you see!<br \/>\n<a title=\"Spotting spoonbills\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/25541010033\/in\/album-72157666519961266\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1539\/25541010033_6746ffffae_n.jpg\" alt=\"Spotting spoonbills\" width=\"320\" height=\"240\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>One of our stops was at a hardwood hammock. \u00a0Basically a high spot (high, as in a foot higher than surrounding areas) that stays relatively dry and is home to mahogany and gumbo limbo trees. \u00a0It was very jungly looking&#8230;much different than the swampy mangrove areas we had seen earlier in the day. \u00a0And at another stop it was just a giant sea of saw grass.<br \/>\n <a title=\"Sea of sawgrass\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/136797225@N05\/26051172262\/in\/album-72157666519961266\/\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/farm2.staticflickr.com\/1514\/26051172262_8e093a4bc0.jpg\" alt=\"Sea of sawgrass\" width=\"500\" height=\"153\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>On our way home we decided to stop at <a href=\"https:\/\/robertishere.com\/\">Robert Is Here<\/a> for one of their famous fresh fruit milk shakes. \u00a0Caden and Steph shared a key lime while Brielle and I shared a mango. \u00a0Dacen was feeling super crappy and didn&#8217;t want anything. \u00a0The shake was eat-it-with-a-spoon thick (no way yer gonna suck it through a straw) and CREAMY. \u00a0Almost was like cold pudding. \u00a0I guess they use ice milk and yogurt. \u00a0It was super good and refreshing. \u00a0Brielle didn&#8217;t like it so I got a LOT! \u00a0There was a petting zoo there that we checked out quickly before heading home.<\/p>\n<p>It was a full day and we were tired. \u00a0As I lay in bed exhausted I imagined an episode of CSI Miami where they find a body dressed in a green\u00a0fairy outfit in the everglades. \u00a0Horatio looks \u00a0the body over, stands up , and as he puts on his sunglasses he says, &#8220;Looks like Peter Pan left\u00a0Neverland\u00a0and ended up&#8230;in the Neverglades [cue, Won&#8217;t Get Fooled Again by The Who]&#8221;. \u00a0Thats weird!<\/p>\n<div id=\"flickr_72157666519961266_4933\"><div class=\"slickr-flickr-slideshow landscape medium \"><div class=\"active\"><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1719\/25870789390_47f6949ccb.jpg\" title=\"Everglades\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Everglades<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1478\/25870789020_da05ee4dee.jpg\" title=\"Protecting the beast from vulchers\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Protecting the beast from vulchers<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1664\/25538885814_829bfe2261.jpg\" title=\"Looking for gators\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Looking for gators<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1590\/25870788870_b3d14a701c.jpg\" title=\"Wannabe gator\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Wannabe gator<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1572\/25538886004_0f42749239.jpg\" title=\"Gator spotted!\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Gator spotted!<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1557\/26077311191_c214f7b7f5.jpg\" title=\"Anhinga\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Anhinga<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1692\/25538885714_f55d4edbfe.jpg\" title=\"Turtle\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Turtle<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1619\/26117710476_55951856c9.jpg\" title=\"Lake\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Lake<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1700\/25541011443_94ea5d222b.jpg\" title=\"Ranger program\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Ranger program<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1620\/26143651115_e1270a55c7.jpg\" title=\"Manitee spotting at the marina\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Manitee spotting at the marina<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1454\/26077310401_71f5ce76cd.jpg\" title=\"Papa and Brielle\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Papa and Brielle<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1675\/26077310071_5eb5d074f8.jpg\" title=\"Caden and Papa\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Caden and Papa<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1492\/26117708976_94f4a83fac.jpg\" title=\"Junior ranger badges\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Junior ranger badges<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1539\/25541010033_6746ffffae.jpg\" title=\"Spotting spoonbills\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Spotting spoonbills<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1625\/26218569536_6b735c0527.jpg\" title=\"Overlook\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Overlook<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1514\/26051172262_8e093a4bc0.jpg\" title=\"Sea of sawgrass\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Sea of sawgrass<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1602\/25538884044_03c6c8e555.jpg\" title=\"Da guys\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Da guys<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1718\/26349150752_0afb087d48.jpg\" title=\"Here we go\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Here we go<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1526\/25836601824_96c201006b.jpg\" title=\"Love this shot\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Love this shot<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1649\/26051172182_fbeee4c418.jpg\" title=\"A 3ft pass?\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>A 3ft pass?<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1652\/26117711406_f4279ef023.jpg\" title=\"Robert Is Here milkshake\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Robert Is Here milkshake<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1563\/25870789270_3b2806dab0.jpg\" title=\"Petting zoo\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Petting zoo<\/p><\/div><div><img src=\"https:\/\/farm2.static.flickr.com\/1644\/26143652045_4a772de729.jpg\" title=\"Robert Is Here sign\" alt=\"\"  \/><p>Robert Is Here sign<\/p><\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\">jQuery(\"#flickr_72157666519961266_4933\").data(\"options\",{\"delay\":3000,\"autoplay\":true,\"transition\":500,\"link\":\"next\",\"target\":\"_self\",\"width\":\"\",\"height\":\"\"});<\/script><div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I used to watch CSI Miami. \u00a0Anytime Horatio and the gang were in the everglades it meant someone was dead&#8230;the everglades are a scary place you know. \u00a0After some eerie swamp footage\u00a0Horatio would put on his sunglasses while he said some clever one liner like these. \u00a0But the only things we were scared of during [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[13,32],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1217"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1217"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1217\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1294,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1217\/revisions\/1294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1217"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thewachs.com\/wachsacrossamerica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}