EVERGLADES CITY, FLORIDA
EVERGLADES CITY, FLORIDA
Island Air Boat Tours and Totch’s Island Tours
By Arlene DeAngelus
Our half-day tour began with a bus ride from Naples through the wilderness of the Everglades to Everglade City on Route 41. Along the way we saw manatees, alligators and birds in their natural habitant. Our driver, Kenny, was a wealth of information about the area and its history and we learned much.
Do you know the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? A crocodile lives in salt water and the alligator in fresh water. Route 41, or the Tamiami Trail, runs through the Everglades and separates the salt water on the Southern side from the fresh water on the Northern side. During the rainy season when it floods the salt water spills over onto the other side and so do the crocodiles.
When we arrived at Everglades Tours, we were offered either a half hour or full-hour airboat ride. We opted for the full-hour ride and were directed to the airboats. Each airboat takes six people in addition to the Boat Captain. The Captains are native to the Everglades and ours told us its stories and history as we traveled deep into the vast jungle.
The airboat winds its way through the Mangrove (walking trees) lined creeks and coves. The Captain expertly maneuvers through the narrow waterways occasionally bumping into its mounded edges. He also shows us how flexible airboats are as he takes it through some sharp turns in the bay. In addition to the Mangroves, alligators and snakes, you will see various flowers and plants native to this area.
Except for its waterways, the Everglades National Park remains the largest roadless area in the United States.
We did not see many animals, except for a family of raccoons who greeted the airboat and took drinks of fresh water from a bottle that the Captain had on board.
On our return to land, we visited the shop and purchased a couple of souvenirs including the book, Totch: A Life in the Everglades. Totch Brown’s granddaughter autographed the book for me.. In this book, the author tells about his life of fishing and alligator hunting as well as his life on the other side of the law as a poacher and drug runner.
We boarded the bus for our ride back to Naples. On our return, we again saw the many birds that grace this area and alligators that are also in abundance all along Route 41.
In the above picture, two large alligators sun themselves on the shore. In the next picture, we see a common sight of alligators sunning themselves in the water.
For more information on the Everglades Island Air Boat or Totch’s Island Tours call (239) 695-2333 or Toll Free 1-866-Manatee (1-866-626-2833). The web site is: airboateverglades.com and the email is evergladeairboat@aol.com.