One of the world's wonders is a vast subtropical wilderness famously known as the River of Grass. Designated as a World Heritage Site, International Biosphere Reserve, and Wetland of International Importance, it is also known as the Florida Everglades. Visitors can explore the Florida Everglades in several ways.
The Florida Everglades was unlike any other wilderness in America. This wetland, marsh, forest, river, prairie, and grassland, known to Native Americans as the "River of Grass," is more than just a wetland, swamp, lake, river, prairie, and grassland. It's all of them, distorted into a collection of soft horizons, long vistas, sunsets that extend through the whole field of view, and the toothy grins of a thriving reptile community.
More than 1.5 million acres of South Florida's 4.3million acres of subtropical, watery wilderness have been designated as national parks due to the establishment of Everglades National Park.
It is one of the country's leading national parks. It is designated as a Wetland of International Importance, an International Biosphere Reserve, and a World Heritage Site by the international community. If you want to spend a day biking, camping, or airboating in deep, rugged forests with plenty of wildlife, this is the place to go.
If you like alligators and crocodiles, this is the place to visit. Drive Loop Road for a backwoods view off the beaten path, stopping at the Oasis Visitor Center's boardwalk with alligators lounging underneath. Kayak or canoe the Turner River if you have the time and desire for a watery adventure.
The weather is so hot and humid from April to October that even brief excursions can be exhausting. Some National Park services, such as the remote Flamingo Visitor Center, are only staffed seasonally. In the summer, you will find yourself swatting mosquitos off your bloody arms, and no-see-ums can be even worse, making even the most hardened of hearts insane.
As a result, there are fewer visitors during these months. The dry season, which lasts from November to March, is always beautiful and mild. However, bring mosquito repellent or netting, and be prepared for drenching rain regardless of the season.
It's no wonder that the Florida Everglades offers afresh experience every day, with its calm wetlands, isolated islands, and deserted beaches.
The Everglades, which runs from Lake Okeechobee through Miami to Florida's Southern tip and is a UNESCO World Heritage site, is known as the River of Grass. North America's largest subtropical wilderness makes every vacation adventurous by offering kayaking, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, and hiking. If you camp on the beach, be careful not to step on sea turtle nests and expect to be joined by dolphins if you swim or cruise off the shore.
The Everglades National Park has a diverse range of species, from alligators and otters to birds and fish, providing excellent chances to see and photograph them all. Learn from expert tour guides and see as much as possible by exploring by air, water, or foot. At Everglades Safari Park, tourists can see native animals such as turtles, fish, frogs, alligators, and birds.
The winter season is the most popular time to visit the Miami Everglades (December to March). It's popular due to the colder weather and dry season and the fact that you will miss hurricane season. You should expect more visitors due to the milder season. Also, it's still Florida, so expect it to be sunny and humid regardless of when you visit.
Finally, there's no better way to get ready for a trip to the park than to pick up a copy of Marjory Stoneman Douglas's The Everglades, River of Grass. Because of Douglas's activism, a significant portion of the Everglades has survived.
You should expect high temperatures and frequent rain if you visit in the summer. Mosquitoes are still abundant at this time of year. Summer is, though, one of the perfect times to beat crowds and the best time to go on an airboat ride for the cool breeze you get while the boat is gliding across the water.
When visiting Everglades National Park, you may need a range of camping and hiking gear. It can be challenging to pack for a journey to the wetlands. Temperatures will range from over 80 degrees Fahrenheit during the day to 50 degrees Fahrenheit once the sun sets, depending on the time of year.
It will rain every day if you visit in the summer. Planning your gear will depend on the season you visit.
Both front country and backcountry camping are available in the Florida Everglades. Drinks, picnic tables, grills, restrooms, bikes, tents, and RV trailer sites are all accessible at the Long Pine Key and Flamingo campgrounds. Flamingo also has showers and electric hookups.
One of the best activities to do in Everglades National Park is to ride a watercraft such as a canoe or a kayak and watch dolphins swimming.
If kayaking isn't your choice, take a guided boat tour of the 10,000 Islands instead. Everglades City Boat Adventures offer a guided boat tour of the 10,000 Islands and soon offers a mangroves tour.
The Gulf of Mexico has a different variety of species than the Everglades' swampier areas. You could see everything from manatees to dolphins, sea turtles, and shorebirds on a self-guided 90-minute walk.
For a day trip or a two-week expedition, launch your canoe or kayak at the Flamingo or Gulf Coast Visitor Centers in Everglades National Park. Between the two points of connection, watery wilderness, backcountry campsites. There are a few marked canoe trails to help keep you from getting lost.
Everglades Safari Park, located in Miami, offers outstanding general and private airboat ecotours within Everglades National Park. Beware of airboat tours offered throughout the Everglades. Everglades Safari Park is an official Everglades National Park concession run by experts. An educational wildlife show is included with the airboat tours as well as access into the park. Safari has self-guided nature trails and has the only Restaurant available in Everglades National Park.
You will catch more than 70 different fish species here, but make sure to get a fishing license from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's website. For freshwater areas, light tackle is appropriate. You can catch a lot of panfish, catfish, and bass with crawlers.
Anything can happen in the brackish water of the mangroves, and you never know what you'll get, from the delectable black-lined snook to similarly tasty sheepshead and snapper. You can use live shrimp as bait both in freshwater and in saltwater.
Heavier tackle and wire leaders are needed for landing a tarpon, one of the region's premier saltwater game fish, and it's best to head out with a guide. They have the local experience and all of the high-end equipment that will maximize the chances of getting tight lines.
Short interpretive hikes are available at all of the Everglades National Park's visitor centers. However, they can't accommodate those looking for a challenging, all-day hike. For that, travel to the Old Ingraham Highway, from Royal Palm. There you will find a 20-mile round-trip trek incomplete isolation on what was once a paved path but has since decayed.
The Coastal Prairie Trail, which begins in Flamingo and ends at Clubhouse Beach, is a 15-mile round-trip trail with backcountry camping. A permit is required for the campsite, which you can get at the Flamingo Visitor Center.
In Everglades City, look for a restaurant that serves smoked mullet. It has a moist, jerky smell to it. City Seafood, Island Café, and Camellia Street Grill are open all year. Look for every menu that has wild hog on it.
If possible, visit Everglades City in early February for the annual Everglades Seafood Festival. More than 60,000 visitors descended in 2018 to express their solidarity and eat local seafood of all kinds while listening to live local music, demonstrating the island's post-Irma resilience.
Everglades National Park is a natural treasure in Florida. Wildlife unique to this swampy ecosystem, geological formations of great beauty, and recreation facilities unique to Florida's Southernmost tip can all be found within the park's boundaries.
You'll have a memorable experience no matter where you spend your time in Everglades National Park. Wild nature can leave an impact on your soul whether you travel by foot or by boat.
It is one of the country's leading national parks, and it is designated as a Wetland of International Importance, an International Biosphere Reserve, and a World Heritage Site by the international community. If you want to spend a day biking, camping, or boating in deep, rugged forests with plenty of wildlife, this is the place to go.
