The Tamiami Trail linked Tampa to Miami (Ta for Tampa and well, you get it), traversing the Florida Everglades; it was considered an engineering marvel at its 1928 opening. Not long after the cars began using it the first roadside attractions began to spring up along the route. Alligator shows, wrestling shows, Indian Villages, gift shops, fishing camps, restaurants and rest stops for weary travelers. Today you can find airboat rides and swamp buggy rides too.

We’d intended to take an airboat ride but decided not to. A swamp buggy was even more intriguing but four hours was too long for a body jarring jaunt through lord knows where and what if we broke down? Wimps.

The Museum of the Everglades and lunch at the #2 dining spot Camellia Street Grill was more appealing. The “donations only” museum was divine and beautifully restored; located in the laundry building for the 1920s company town it contained enough but not too many well-designed displays and a seating area to view four short videos.

Here we learned how and who built the Tamiami Trail in 5 long, grueling years and the history of the city that began as the village of Everglade. Settled in the 1870s by a Connecticut Yankee living in Key West, his farmlands and house were bought by George Storter, Jr. who had migrated here from Alabama with his family in search of a warmer climate. I can see if you live north of Virginia, but Alabama isn’t warm enough?

Along comes self-made millionaire, the flamboyant advertising mogul, Barron Gift Collier. He took over the Storters’ holdings for his agricultural interests in 1921. He offered to finish the Tamiami Trail from Naples (where it had stalled) to the Dade County line (Miami area). In return he requested that Collier County be created out of the acres he owned and the legislature agreed.

First a town was needed as a base to provide and house workers so Collier built a company town. Grocery, laundry, Post Office, Bank, Inn, Community Center, jail, courthouse, housing and the necessary infrastructure for the engineering center and county seat. Residents had the benefit of telephone service, newspaper and hospital.

From this base 76 miles of road through uncharted swamp was completed between 1923 and 1928, with not a single loss of life. Even though we saw photographs of the machinery and methods, still hard to comprehend an undertaking of this magnitude; just feeding everyone was a monumental effort. Thanks Barron.

Next, lunch time and TripAdvisor came through again.

A long line proved what a great spot this was

You place your order, find a table and your food, add’l beverages and check are brought out to you. New Zealanders waited in front of us; further proof that Florida’s 60 million annual visitors make it the Numero Uno travel destination in the world.

I think the water is the Barron River

Oyster Po’Boy and Garlic bread BLT/grown on-site Greens/Ricotta Salad with Grapefruit dressing.

We also learned, no surprise, that the teeny Ochopee Post Office is the smallest in the U.S. The current tiny building replaced a larger one that was destroyed by one of those nasty hurricanes in 1953; an irrigation shed in its former life.

So cute and real too!

A stop at the Gulf Coast Visitor Center in Everglades City was a must and you can look out toward the 10,000 islands. Boat tours and a small info center with displays, booklets reminded us of Flamingo. The 11am ranger-led talk could not have been better and when Mark suggested we walk away with a NPS Bird Checklist booklet for the Everglades, I got two. One for “he who is a man ahead of his time.”  I’d always (not recently though) kept a list of birds we saw in our backyards in Old Saybrook and Essex and Benj had a long list of ones he spotted in the Florida Keys during our first year cruising, but I never considered an official checklist. Oh watch out now as she takes those binoculars and camera everywhere!

A volunteer ranger gives us all an inspiring bird identification talk

Back in December we’d shortened our stay in Florida City so we could make two additional stops before Melbourne. Trail Lakes campground was right on the Tamiami Trail (aka Rte41) in Ochopee, FL near the western boundary of the Big Cypress Preserve and surely a strange land stood before us when we pulled in.

What kind of place did I book us into?

Our site is best described as pull-alongside, the pond that is. The clump of grass blocks the sign that indicates Wi-Fi and it did work with our booster. One brisk 48 degree morning we enjoyed this scene (taken from a side window).

A chilly, misty pond morning

During the day when we were around (not much) I’d sit in a chaise, read and keep eyes and ears open for flitting feathered friends. The bare tree across the pond gave me the best chance for a clear shot.

Eastern Bluebirds- not commonly seen in these parts

From this campground we ended up exploring mostly west into the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve, the Ten Thousand Islands Refuge and down CR29 to Everglades City and Chokoloskee at the road’s end. Don’t you love these Indian-based names? SR/CR 29 forms the eastern boundary of Big Cypress Nat’l Preserve with Tamiami Trail running west to east through the lower third. Everywhere you drive you see wading birds, gators and birds of prey. Rte 41 is filled with places to stop and enjoy whatever floats your boat; sightseeing, adventure, hiking, dining but with the Tamiami Canal running right next to the road many cars would just pull over to take in the scene.

In 1974 Congress created BCNP to protect the fresh water’s natural flow from the Big Cypress Swamp into the Everglades and Ten Thousand Islands. The swamp’s fresh water feeds a mosaic of five distinct habitats in its 729,000 acres: hardwood hammocks, pinelands, prairies, cypress swamps and estuaries. In creating the Preserve, Congress honored the occupancy and customs of the Miccosukee and Seminole peoples. Villages exist in the Preserve today as they have for generations; but we’d have to save a visit for another time.

After a stop at the BCP Welcome Center where we take in a wonderful video, check out the displays and wildlife out back, we decide to drive Jane’s Scenic Drive.

A great egret and great blue heron capture our attention

Not sure what the white stuff is- some sort of mold?

Our next stop

This sign appears at the start of the trail

Now we know why. Russ wouldn’t go closer.

The Big Cypress Bend (I keep typing j instead of the d in Bend) trail is an interpretive one; signs are posted along the way identifying plant life, birds that could be seen etc. No sign was posted for this. Someone heard from someone else what to look for and the word gets passed along. This nest was quite some distance and many small branches and leaves blocked the view, especially from certain angles. We could sort of see a head pop up – oh it’s a great horned owl we heard and I said Ok but that’s a baby not the adult. So we managed to get a good shot and went happily on our way. Not until I loaded the photos onto the laptop did we see the bonus; that’s mama on the left and baby is in the nest. No one looking at the time realized the adult was sitting on the edge of the nest.

Another surprise. Great horned owls are rarely seen.

We liked this walk so much that we came back the next day; nesting birds are changeable we learned. This time we clearly see mama but not so much her chick. Our binoculars made the rounds as most don’t have them and seeing the owls was a big deal.

Who who is this!

Baby horned owl’s close-up

A short ways down the boardwalk is a sign pointing out an eagle nest; the owners have been returning for 22 years. A tripod spot is even available. I did get a shot of mom or dad in the nest with jr, but it wasn’t well focused. The below shot we got on the return visit and even got to see the eagle in flight; assuredly gone hunting.

One of the adults sits on a branch; the nest is to the right

The only snakes we saw, not counting the deceased one in the road

Our day ended at the Marsh Trail, about a 30 minute drive west from our campground, on Rte 41 in the Ten Thousand Islands Nat’l Wildlife Refuge. At the northern  border with no visibility into the islands, but with a large multi-level viewing platform that was perfectly situated. A side note- during the video we watched earlier Panther Key (one of the 10,000) got a mention and we smiled- we know that place:

Panther Key- a stop in Feb 2011 aboard Ortolan

Egret and heron in flight. I am always thrilled to get an action shot

Sometimes I stop bird watching

The large viewing platform sat about one-third of the way down the 1.2 mile path. Of couple other spots held promise but none this good. On our way back we checked out the view again and Russ went up ahead of me. As I came up the steps he called me over. This beautiful egret was the subject of a man with a serious camera; long fat lens, camo color, tripod and remote shutter. The owner invited me to take a look; yes I can see the difference between that and mine- like a million miles!!

This great egret was a photographer’s dream

We got to talking; I asked what he did with his photos. Only 10 mins earlier Russ and I were discussing that; who were these people with the super serious cameras and what did they do with the pictures? Personal use? Commercial?

Rick was very obliging as befits a southern gentleman and he gave me his name, FB and other contact info. Said when we were near Charleston (we will be) to contact him and if he could he’d take us to a great spot for fantastic birding. Told us some other good places in Florida and we shared about our owl find.

I snapped this after he’d run across the path to check on a possible better  bird.

Rick Coakley amateur photographer from Charleston

My parting shot- a wood stork in flight